PRINCETON, N.J. – How does the saying go?
When you are sawing away on the fiddle and you happen to hit a couple of notes from a symphony, the trick is to not drop the fiddle.
Dartmouth hit more than a couple of sweet notes in last week’s 24-14 win over Harvard. But it’s all for naught if the Big Green drops the fiddle, er, ball, Saturday at Princeton.
Thanks to the win over the previously undefeated Crimson, Dartmouth is 4-3 overall and in control of its own destiny both in the Ivy League race and the race for the conference’s automatic bid to the FCS Playoffs with a 3-1 Ivy record. Princeton, arguably the surprise team in the Ancient Eight this fall, is 5-2 overall and also 3-1 in conference.
Should Dartmouth beat the Tigers, it can guarantee itself a trip to the playoffs with wins next week at Cornell and at home the following week against Brown. Should Princeton win, it will hold the tiebreaker over Dartmouth and the Big Green will need the Tigers to drop one of its final two games at Yale next week and home against Penn in Week 10 while taking care of its own business and hoping Harvard picks up a second league loss.
Dartmouth players and coaches know all that, of course, but they aren’t looking that far ahead. Quarterback Grayson Saunier made that clear after the win over Harvard.
“I mean, obviously we’re aware,” the senior co-captain said. “We pay attention to what’s going on. But it’s all about us. . . . We’ve just got to focus on what we can do, buy into the process and take it game-by-game, day-to-day, honestly.
“Obviously, Princeton’s a great team. We respect them just like Harvard, but we’ve got to treat it like any other week. Prepare our butts off and get ready (for) Princeton.”
Picked fifth in the Ivy League’s preseason media poll (but chosen the “dark horse of the year” by BGA ;-) Princeton dropped a 21-14 decision at Bryant in its opener but bounced back a week later with an impressive 22-0 win over Albany, which hasn’t lost since and is now ranked No. 20/21 with a 6-3 record.
The only bump in the road for Princeton since the opener was a big one, a 35-7 loss at Harvard two weeks ago. Actually, there was another bump last week against Cornell, but the Tigers survived that one by blocking a field goal in the final four minutes and then scoring the winning touchdown with 1:33 remaining.
The clear strength for Princeton this year is a veteran defense that led the nation with 9.3 points against until Harvard and is still fifth in the nation at 15.1 points allowed per game. The Tigers are fourth in the country, and first in the Ivy League, in red zone defense.
“They play with a lot of energy and they fly around,” said Dartmouth coach Sammy McCorkle. “They’ve got dudes. The D-end (6-foot-4, 240-pound Jake Moore) off the edge leads in sacks (5.5) and tackles for loss (6.5). The linebacker (6-1, 220 Chase Christopher) flies downhill, and obviously they’ve got experience in the secondary. They’re all seniors. They’re all seasoned guys.
“We’ve got our hands full and we just have to be assignment sound. We have to make sure we are in the right spots, and we're able to read what they're trying to do.”
Princeton came into the season with the Ivy League Rookie of the Year at wide receiver, two veteran running backs, and a talented, veteran offensive line. The question? Quarterback.
On paper, it seemed the Tigers might have found the answer with the addition of 6-2, 200 Wyatt Becker, who graduated high school early to enroll at Utah, went through spring ball, and then transferred to Princeton.
Although at least one service ranked Becker as a four-star quarterback coming out of high school, he’s been sharing QB responsibilities this fall with 6-0, 190 sophomore Ty Ciongoli. Through seven games, Becker has completed 55.5 percent of his throws for 735 yards and five touchdowns. Ciongoli has completed 62.5 percent for 644 yards and four touchdowns. Becker has thrown two interceptions and Ciongoli three.
“Both of those guys have played a lot of snaps and obviously they have confidence in both of those guys,” said McCorkle. “They are very similar type quarterbacks, but at the same time they are different in certain ways.
“We have to be aware of which quarterback's in there. We’re going to see both. Both guys have done a good job of creating big plays either with their feet or with their arm.”
Becker is the more effective runner of the two with 32 carries for 143 yards (before sacks) and a long of 23. Ciongoli, a left-handed thrower, has run just three times with a long of one yard.
The Tigers’ top receivers are both named Josh. Leading the way in terms of catches is Josh Robinson, a 5-7, 170-pound sophomore who was the Ivy Rookie of the Year as a freshman. He has 28 receptions for 302 yards and broke out last week with 11 grabs for 122 yards against Cornell.
Leading the way in terms of yards is Josh Smith, a 6-0, 180 sophomore who has 18 catches for a team-high 347 yards, a healthy 19.3 yards per reception. He has five touchdowns with three coming last week against Cornell when he had four receptions for 107 yards, including the gamewinner.
Heading up the run game is 5-10, 210 junior Kai Honda, who has 554 yards this fall, averaging 5.3 yards per carry. He has eight touchdowns on the ground and exploded for 219 yards in the win over Columbia.
Last week saw the return of 6-1, 210 Ethan Clark, a second-team All-Ivy pick a year ago who had missed the previous four games. Clark, who led the Tigers with 594 yards on the ground last fall, carried seven times for 14 yards last week but came into the season as the lead back, running 18 times for 69 yards and a touchdown in the opener against Bryant.
“There’s a lot of speed in their wide receiver group and then obviously (Honda),” said McCorkle. “He's one of the top backs in the league. He's a hard runner. He can create problems out in space when he catches the ball.
“I wish there were only the two quarterbacks I had to be worried about, but there are multiple things we have got to be concerned about.”
The list includes a veteran offensive line featuring two returning All-Ivy picks and three preseason All-Ivy picks.
“It is a very, very mature and seasoned offensive line,” said McCorkle. “It is by far the most athletic offensive line we've seen all year.
“It’s a very, very dangerous and potent offense, so we have got to be prepared. We've got to make sure we're in the right spots and we've got to be able to make sure we match their aggressiveness and their intensity.”
NOTES
Dartmouth has won the last three meetings between the teams and five of the last six. The Big Green won the last meeting, 20-17. . . . Dartmouth and Princeton most recently played each other while tied for the Ivy League in 2018 and 2019. Princeton won the ’18 game in New Jersey, 14-9. Dartmouth won the ’19 game at Yankee Stadium, 27-10.
Princeton coach Bob Surace last week tied Bill Roper’s program record of 89 victories. Roper had three different stints with the Tigers, with the last from 1919 to 1930. He finished 89-28-16 at Princeton. Surace is 89-68 with the Orange and Black. . . . Surace and Dartmouth’s Buddy Teevens are the only coaches both to play for an Ivy League championship team and then coach their alma mater to a title.