NEW HAVEN, Conn. — Yale coach Tony Reno had no idea anything was amiss with Dartmouth quarterback Nick Howard until he saw Dylan Cadwallader trot onto the field for the first series of Saturday’s game.
Reno and the Bulldogs had, of course, been preparing for Howard, who rushed for 351 yards while passing for just 283 through three games. Cadwallader, a pure pocket passer with a stronger arm and much less mobility, came out throwing. Through two drives, the Big Green passed 10 times to just four runs, with Cadwallader completing eight of those passes for 87 yards and a touchdown.
“We spent a lot of time on the things that Dartmouth did with (Howard) in the game,” Reno said. “He’d been the only quarterback that’s played, aside from two snaps. We were expecting him, and we obviously had to adjust on the fly.”
In all, Cadwallader completed 28 of 45 passes — as many completions as Howard recorded in the first three games combined, with three fewer attempts — in Dartmouth’s 24-21 loss. Howard, still far and away the Big Green’s leader in rush attempts with 63, took a number of hits in a double overtime loss to Penn on Sept. 30 and was limited in practice last week, riding an exercise bike during much of Tuesday’s practice.
Although Saturday’s defeat put Dartmouth (1-3, 0-2 Ivy League) all but out of title contention, Cadwallader’s performance in a pinch may have been just what they needed to open up the offense. Receivers Jonny Barrett, Paxton Scott and Jamal Cooney were all major factors for the first time this season, with Barrett shattering his previous career highs in receptions and yards.
If Dale Chesson and Painter Richards-Baker are able to get healthy, the Big Green would have two more speedy weapons who can beat defensive backs deep.
“We’ve talked the last couple weeks about expanding the offense,” Dartmouth coach Buddy Teevens said after the game. “We were too one-dimensional. We opened it up and we had some guys who can catch the football and make plays after the catch. We need to expand upon that as we go through the season.”
Teevens expressed confidence that Howard will be ready to play this Saturday against New Hampshire, but that’s no reason for Cadwallader to simply return to the bench. Dartmouth was a combined 35-5 over its last four seasons, all of which featured multiple quarterbacks playing regularly.
In 2017, Jack Heneghan was the primary passer, completing 185 of 293 passes with 17 touchdowns to just six interceptions. Jared Gerbino, a sophomore at the time, threw only four passes but was the Big Green’s second-leading rusher with 428 yards and a team-best seven touchdowns.
For the next two years, Gerbino shared quarterback duties with Derek Kyler, with Kyler handling nearly all the passing in 2018 before both threw the ball effectively in 2019. Gerbino’s rushing yards fell from 700 as a junior to 368 as a senior, but he finished 2019 with 940 yards through the air.
Last year, Kyler shared the reins with Howard, who threw just 18 passes but rushed 125 times for 787 yards and 15 touchdowns. Kyler, who now plays at Pittsburgh, was remarkably efficient, completing more than 70% of his throws for 17 touchdowns and only one interception. In fact, Reno said his Yale team made defensive adjustments for Cadwallader similar to how they defended Kyler’s offense.
“It became much more of the offense that Derek Kyler ran,” Reno said. “We spent a little bit of time on it (during the week). Defending Nick Howard is not easy sledding, so we spent a lot of time on defending Nick, and when Cadwallader is in, we said, ‘okay, this is much more of a Derek Kyler offense.’ That’s a heck of an offense to defend, too.”
Dartmouth may have waited too long to switch back to a two-quarterback system, but Howard and Cadwallader are both eligible to return next year.
With Cadwallader now having proven himself as a passer, Howard should get more chances to do what he does best — use his speed and strength to run through opposing defenses — for the rest of this season and potentially beyond.
Using both quarterbacks could also open things up for the other rushers, as Zack Bair did not see any action Saturday and Noah Roper and Q Jones both had pedestrian outings. Another option could involve Jace Henry, listed as both a quarterback and tight end, being utilized in Wildcat formations.
“You’ll probably see the two-quarterback system we’re used to using,” Teevens said. “Nick should be ready to go next week, and the combination of those two guys, similar to what we had last year, will be tough to defend.”
Benjamin Rosenberg can be reached at brosenberg@vnews.com or 603-727-3302.