Your Mileage May Vary – Week Two

Here’s your weekly half dozen observations between the Central Connecticut and Penn games.

1) Grayson Saunier became just the fourth Dartmouth quarterback to surpass 400 passing yards in a game when he went 30-for-44 for 407 yards with two touchdowns and one interception last Saturday. It’s way too easy to overlook that this was just Saunier’s fourth game as the starter. The junior is completing 70.3 percent of his passes through the first two games. It’s still early, but the Big Green record for completion percentage in a season is 70.7 by Derek Kyler in 2021.

And in case you are wondering: other Dartmouth QBs who have topped 400 yards are Jack Heneghan ’18 (440), Dalyn Williams ’16 (435), Greg Smith ’02 (416 and 407), and Jay Fiedler  (419). 

2) Tailback DJ Crowther didn’t have as many yards as he did in the opener against New Hampshire, but he was even busier with 29 touches. He had 24 carries for 86 yards and two touchdowns, and caught five passes for 12 yards. Crowther is big and strong, but it’s a long season and that’s a lot of work for someone who takes a lot of hits. The Big Green needs to get another running back going. Desmin Jackson had five carries for 10 yards against Central Connecticut but was the only other tailback to get a carry. Through two games, Crowther has 44 carries for 238 yards. Jackson is next among the running backs with seven for 21.

3) Kickoff return yardage against Central Connecticut was telling. Dartmouth’s only return on five kickoffs was a 12-yarder by Luke Rives. The Blue Devils, meanwhile, returned five of six kickoffs, including several brought out of the end zone. Averaging a healthy 32.0 yards on five returns helped Central Connecticut start drives with better field position than Dartmouth. Coach Sammy McCorkle has been more aggressive in the return game than Buddy Teevens was, but that wasn’t the case on Saturday.

4) Kudos to offensive coordinator Shane Montgomery and defensive coordinator Don Dobes this this. Again, it’s still wicked early in the season but through two games Dartmouth is converting 62.5 percent of its third down opportunities and limiting the opposition to 23.8 percent. The raw numbers: Dartmouth is 15-of-24 while the opposition is 5-of-21. That’s a significant difference. 

5) The Ivy League office likes to promote the Ancient Eight’s out-of-league record while much of the country that doesn’t think the Ivy League challenges itself goes tsk, tsk, tsk. When the Dartmouth program was trying to get back on track the schedule was definitely softened but as Craig Haley reminds us, the Big Green’s first two wins of the year came against teams that went to the FCS playoffs last year. Granted, Fordham is down, but at least the Rams got off the schneid Saturday with a win over Holy Cross. (Although to be fair, the Crusaders are now the winless ones.)

For some years there was thought to be an unspoken scheduling philosophy holding that Dartmouth’s three non-conference games would feature one good challenge, one 50/50ish game, and one pretty likely win. It would seem the opening two games both belong in the first bucket.

6) Sammy McCorkle wasn’t kidding when he said teams like Central Connecticut and Merrimack are better than many Ivy League fans realize. There was a time when the perception was those teams were stocked with players almost exclusively from the tri-state area who were just happy not to be playing in Division III. If that was ever the case it’s not like that anymore. Central Connecticut has players who hail from places like Texas, Florida, Virginia, Maryland, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Washington, D.C. There are transfers from big-time programs like Virginia Tech and Syracuse, and a good number of junior college products. Likewise, there was a time when coaches in the Northeast Conference didn’t all have full staffs, and some of their assistants might be public school teachers by day. All of that has changed, which is why it’s a mistake to simply pencil in a win over schools like Central Connecticut and Merrimack. Consider this: Northeast Conference member LIU is 1-4 with losses to Sacred Heart and Stonehill. It’s only win? A 28-23 victory over FBS member Eastern Michigan.

And the bonus that you knew was coming:

7) This probably belongs higher up, but during camp I asked Sammy McCorkle about areas of concern heading into the 2025 season. He brought up both lines, and talked about the wide receiver group establishing itself. How are they doing so far? The O-line hasn’t given up a sack while the D-line has recorded five. Dartmouth has 13 “quarterback hurries” to date and the opponents have three. And through two games, the Big Green already has three receivers with double-figures in catches and that doesn't even count Ky'Dric Fisher, who caught the game-winning 50-yard touchdown pass Saturday. Check, check and check.