Big Green Comes Through At The End In Win Over UNH

 HANOVER – Coaches say it all the time. A football game doesn’t come down to just one play.

That maybe be true, but it sure felt that way in Dartmouth’s 27-20 come-from-behind win over No. 23 New Hampshire in the Big Green’s season opener before 4,457 sun-splashed fans at Buddy Teevens Stadium Saturday afternoon.

The biggest play of the day came after Dartmouth quarterback Grayson Saunier's one-yard touchdown run and two-point conversion run gave the Big Green a seven-point lead with 2:53 remaining.

But while Saunier's legs had helped Dartmouth come from behind for the second time, the biggest play of the game was yet to come.

Facing a fourth-and-four with 1:53 on the clock with the game hanging in the balance, New Hampshire quarterback Matt Vezza found Caleb Burke for a bobbled first down completion at the UNH 40 to give the Wildcats life.

Half a minute later it was blitzing Dartmouth linebacker Teddy Gianaris exploding up the middle for a seven-yard sack that left UNH in a fourth-and-15 hole at its own 35.

But yet again, the Wildcats would escape. This time Vezza found receiver Chase Wilson for a 20-yard gain and a first down at the plus 45.

After a pass interference penalty gave the visitors still another first down at the Big Green 30, two incompletions and a seven-yard pass left the Wildcats needing to convert their third do-or-die play of the drive to have a chance. This time  they faced a fourth-and-three at Dartmouth 23 with 45 seconds left.

It looked for all the world as if UNH had survived to live another play when Vezza put the ball on the hands of tight end Peyton Strickland at the Big Green 18. But Dartmouth corner Patrick Campbell somehow jarred the ball free, finally ended the threat.

Two victory formation kneel downs and 38 seconds later Dartmouth had its third Granite Bowl victory over its in-state rival in the last five meetings.

Even while watching New Hampshire march inexorably down the field on the final drive, Dartmouth coach Sammy McCorkle was confident his team would rise up and get the one more stop it needed.

“You want to close the deal,” he said. “But I just knew we kept putting them in those tough situations. The thing is, it’s like, ‘Hey, is their luck going to run out?’ ”

In the end, it was more than luck that made the difference.

“I just thought our guys kept putting pressure on them,” McCorkle explained. “We didn’t panic on those fourth downs when they completed it and got first downs. We just kept coming at them, kept coming at them. We were resilient and didn’t back down.”

Because they didn’t, and because they made the most critical play of the day when they absolutely had to, they will head into this week's game at Central Connecticut off a big win over a perennial FCS power. 

“These are the ones you look for,” McCorkle said. “That's the type of games you want. You've got a team who's a very talented football team, and it forces your program to prepare. You need to be ready.

“You can't afford to have first game jitters or first game mistakes. You can't afford to do that. But I think those type of games prepare your team, and you learn from it, too. There's mistakes we've got to clean up because we don't want that to bite us later.”

The first mistake came on Dartmouth’s opening possession.

After narrowly missing a home run pass down the middle to speedster Luke Rives on the day's initial play from scrimmage, the Big Green got back-to-back first downs while marching to the New Hampshire 46. But after an 18-yard run by D.J. Crowther (20 carries for 143 yards) Saunier was picked off by Matt Sopp. The linebacker brought his first career interception back 65 yards to the Dartmouth 13 before he was knocked out of bounds.

One first down later Vezza ran in from the one for a 7-0 UNH lead.

Saunier, who would go on to complete 22-of-30 passes for 244 yards and run for 37 yards and a touchdown, took the early turnover that led to the day's first point in stride.

“Made the wrong read and the ball slipped out of my hand,” the junior said. “You know it happens. But it’s about bouncing back. You know we’re going to make mistakes. 

"Coach Mac said it before the game. We’re going to make mistakes, but it’s about not dwelling on the mistakes. It’s about bouncing back and how can you capitalize (on) the next drive and the next drive? And it worked out for us in the end.”

After Dartmouth's first series after the touchdown misfired on a fourth-and-six bid at the plus-39, New Hampshire made it two scores in two possessions. Again, it was that man Pat Campbell bringing a 268-pound tight end down for no gain to force the 32-yard field goal that made it 10-0 after one quarter.

The Big Green got on the board for the first time this fall early in the second quarter after Rives made a terrific over-the shoulder grab of a 34-yard rainbow down the right sideline from Saunier. The catch highlighted a nine-play, 75-yard drive capped by Crowther’s four-yard TD run.

The half finished with New Hampshire clinging to a 10-7 lead, thanks in no small part to a diving interception by safety Harrison Keith at the 20 with 54 seconds remaining.

Crowther put Dartmouth ahead for the first time this year on a 16-yard TD run after a Sean Williams interception and 22-yard return early in the third. A rare PAT miss left the score at 13-10 and meant New Hampshire’s 52-yard field goal late in the third would send the contest into the final period tied at 13.

In a preview of what was to come later in the fourth quarter, the Wildcats drove deep into Dartmouth territory with a chance to move back in front before rolling the dice on the second play of the fourth quarter and getting stuffed on a fourth-and-two at the Big Green 13. Campbell – who else? – got credit for the stop.

Saunier made that failure hurt with 16- and 13-yard completions to Grayson O’Bara (seven catches for 106 yards) and a 15-yard check down to Crowther before the senior running back ripped off a 33-yard touchdown run. That put Dartmouth back in front, albeit with a vulnerable 19-13 lead when Woods Ray's conversion pass failed.

And vulnerable the lead was as Vezza completed consecutive passes of 15, 2, 13 and 38 yards – the last a TD throw to the front corner of the end zone – to move UNH back in front, 20-19, midway through the final period.

Dartmouth made it three scores in three possessions for the two teams by answering right back with an eight-play, 75-yard march. All-America tight end Chris Corbo kept the drive going with a critical, second-effort, four-yard gain on a third-and-three play that brought a first down at the Big Green 36.

On the first play after Corbo helped Dartmouth avoid a punt, O’Bara took advantage of a blown coverage and carried a completion 48 yards down the left sideline to the UNH 16. Saunier's one-yard touchdown run put the Big Green back up, 25-20.

Still needing a two-point conversion to build an all-important seven-point lead, Dartmouth got what it needed on a Saunier run. The lead would hold up thanks to Campbell spoiling the Wildcats' third fourth-down bid of their final possession.

New Hampshire coach Ricky Santos came away impressed with the Ivy Leaguers. “You’ve got to give credit to Coach McCorkle,” he said. “Their staff had them extremely well-prepared. That’s a really impressive game for them for their first game of the season.”

The win over a nationally ranked opponent will not go unnoticed around the rest of the Ivy League. But Williams, who had a breakup and three tackles along with his interception, stopped short of saying the impressive win put the rest of the Ancient Eight on notice.

“I wouldn’t go as far as saying it was sending a message,” he said. “I would say (it was just) doing what we came out there and expected to do.

“Obviously, you plan to win. You prepare to win. And that’s what we did. We got the win, so it’s more just moving forward ready to go 1-0 next week.” 

Which is what they are after one week, thanks in no small part to one big play at the end . . . and a bunch of others over the previous 59 minutes.