BGA Overtime

BGA (Nov. 5) – It doesn’t happen often but on this day The Pessimist not only arrives ahead of The Optimist but also makes sure he has the first say before being interrupted. The Pessimist: Well that certainly was fun . . . The Optimist: Sorry for cutting you off but as you might imagine, I’ve got a lot on my mind today. I’m not sure I’m in the mood for joking. The Pessimist: Not to worry. At least any more than you already are. Worried, I mean. Listen, I actually came away impressed Saturday and like your chances the rest of the way. The Optimist: If this is a game of role reversal, I’m not ready to play. The Pessimist: You mean, like your team on Saturday?   The Optimist: OK, that’s more like it. The Pessimist: I start our visit by saying something nice about your chances and you get defensive. Then I take a shot at you, and you praise me. Now that’s role reversal. If that’s how you want it, fine. The floor is yours. The Optimist: I’ve told you before I’m not a fan of you talking i

  (BGA Nov. 4) – It’s Monday so let’s get to the Seventh-Week Six Pack: 1. I t’s hard not to start with Owen Zalc booting a school-record 54-yard field goal, eclipsing Tyler Lavin’s 52-yarder against Colgate in 2003. A little digging over the weekend turned up this nugget that helps put Zalc’s contributions to the team in perspective. Three times last year the Big Green would not have won if he missed his field goal attempts. Five times in six games this year Dartmouth doesn’t win without his field goals. Add it up and Zalc's kicks have been instrumental in eight of the team’s 12 wins since the start of last season. 2. Did you realize Dartmouth had no penalties against Harvard? None, zilch, nada, donut. That’s right, a team that came into the afternoon among the worst in the nation in terms of infractions, a team that almost gave away the Columbia game thanks to penalties, didn’t have a single flag thrown against Harvard. Whatever message was passed on behind closed doors certain

A crowd of 7,711 turned out at Buddy Teevens Stadium at Memorial Field. (BGA Nov. 3) – The sun came up Sunday morning. An hour earlier, even, than the day before. You’ll have to excuse the Dartmouth faithful if it didn’t feel like it. The Big Green used a 20-point run to put more points on Harvard than it had in more than two decades only to see the Crimson roar back from a 10-point deficit over the final six minutes Saturday and grab a dramatic 31-27 victory in the closing seconds. When Jackson Proctor’s Hail Mary on the final play of the game was knocked down it took with it Dartmouth’s dreams of an undefeated season and left the Big Green in a three-way tie for the Ivy League lead with the resurgent Crimson and surprising Columbia. Dartmouth, which had come into the game alone atop the conference standings, will now bring a 6-1 overall record and a 3-1 Ivy League mark into Friday night’s nationally televised game at Princeton. Harvard (6-1, 3-1), which dropped its Ivy opener at Brow