Hanover
Dartmouth led, 35-0, at halftime and improved to 5-0 during the last of its three nonleague games. Ivy League action resumes this weekend with a visit to Columbia, followed by the arrival of Harvard for homecoming and what’s shaping up to be a titanic clash at Princeton the week after that. The Tigers also are undefeated.
“We talked about the psychology of an underdog coming in when we’re coming off a big win,” said Dartmouth coach Buddy Teevens, whose team had pummeled Yale in its previous game. “The history is that we’ve let down a bit … but we scored a bunch of points and it was a satisfying win.”
Dartmouth wildcat formation quarterback Jared Gerbino rushed 11 times for 43 yards and two touchdowns and completed all three passes he attempted for 63 yards and two touchdowns. Derek Kyler connected on 9 of 12 passes for 126 yards and a touchdown and Hunter Hagdorn caught four passes for 80 yards and a score.
Dartmouth had backups in the game midway through the third quarter and finished with 531 yards to Sacred Heart’s 171. The Pioneers (3-3) surrendered touchdowns on each of Dartmouth’s first-half possessions and the game was over by intermission for all intents and purposes.
“Our kids didn’t play well in the first half and it showed,” said Sacred Heart coach Mark Nofri, whose team competed without injured starting quarterback Kevin Duke. “Dartmouth fired on all cylinders, and I think they’re the best team in the Ivy League. I knew they were good going in and seeing them solidifies that impression.”
Dartmouth forced a three-and-out on the game’s opening possession and then drove 61 yards in four plays for a 7-0 lead. Gerbino lobbed his fourth career completion 27 yards to Robbie Mangas for the touchdown and Conor Davis added the first of his five extra points. The play was the first career catch for Mangas, a freshman tight end.
Sacred Heart put together a bit of a drive on its next possession but turned the ball over on downs at Dartmouth’s 36-yard line. The Big Green again marched for a score, this time in six plays covering 64 yards and capped when Gerbino jogged untouched into the end zone from a yard.
The Pioneers punted the next time they had the ball and it led to Dartmouth’s third score in as many possessions. The touchdown came on another 1-yard Gerbino run, ending a seven-play, 52-yard drive.
The rout was on for real when Dartmouth pushed its lead to 28-0 five minutes into the second quarter. A nine-play, 60-yard drive was kept alive by a successful fake punt snap to linebacker Andrew Lemkuil, who swept right for 24 yards. Kyler threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to Hagdorn in the end zone’s right, rear corner.
Dartmouth pushed its lead to 35-0 with 3:25 remaining in the first half. Gerbino hit tight end Connor Rempel with a 5-yard touchdown pass to finish a nine-play, 81-yard drive.
The last time the Big Green put up 35 points in the first half? Three years ago against the Pioneers.
Sacred Heart kicked off to begin the second half and gave up another touchdown. This time, Dartmouth ground its way 59 yards in 11 plays and found the end zone on an 11-yard Rashaad Cooper run.
“They ran the ball at will, getting 6-7 yards a clip and capitalizing on it when they got inside the red zone,” Nofri said. “You always want to believe you can come back and win, but I knew we had our work cut out for us. They don’t beat themselves.”
By Dartmouth’s last drive of the game, fourth-string quarterback Cole Douglas was in the game for his first varsity action, amid a cast of other supporting characters. Backup punter Jack Katzman was in use. And focus was edging towards this week’s journey to New York City.
“They’ve beat us two years in a row, so it’s obviously a big game down in New York,” Teevens said.
Notes: Attendance was announced at 3,138. … Freshman defensive tackle Alex Schmidt, who overcame a 2016 stroke, made his varsity debut in the fourth quarter. … Sacred Heart’s roster includes a sixth-year senior and five graduate students. One of them is former Dartmouth receiver Charles Mack. … Davis’ father, Judd, came to town earlier in the week to fine-tune his son’s kicking game, but the freshman missed his only field goal attempt, from 48 yards, and is 5 of 11 this season. Judd Davis won the 1993 Groza Award as the nation’s best kicker while playing at the University of Florida. … Dartmouth is undefeated in coin toss calls this season. … The Big Green had a streak of scoring in consecutive quarters snapped at 20, dating back to last season. … Dartmouth has thrown a touchdown pass in 16 consecutive games and has produced more than 400 yards of offense in every game this season. … Former Dartmouth running back and 2018 graduate Ryder Stone, now a member of the Canadian Football League’s Montreal Alouettes, was on the sidelines for the game. … The Big Green beat visiting Sacred Heart, 49-7, in 2015. The teams have clashed six times since 2010, with Dartmouth holding a 4-2 lead in the series. … Stratton, who’s from Hawaii, said that while his mother pronounces his first name “Bun,” his father pronounces it “Boon,” and that he’s fine with either choice.
Tris Wykes can be reached at twykes@vnews.com or 603-727-3227.