Friday, October 31, 2014

Telling It Like It Is . . . Or Was

A Harvard Crimson column (LINK) points out that the Dartmouth-Harvard contest is the biggest game in the Ivy League this week. From the column:
Concerning the meaningfulness of this week’s game, the Big Green Athletic Department agrees.
“Dartmouth football hosts #18 Harvard on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. in the biggest game at Memorial Field in 17 years,” the school’s athletics website reported this week.
For Harvard, this is the biggest game since last Saturday. That says a lot about the recent history of these two programs.
To quote Sammy Davis, Jr., "Ouch babe."

The column goes on to predict a 41-27 Harvard victory
The Harvard school paper's regular preview is HERE.
From a preview in The Dartmouth (LINK):
(Quarterback Dalyn) Williams was given the day off against the Lions (0-6, 0-3 Ivy) to rehab an AC sprain, and the team was led by Alex Park ’14. 
“I think it was fun to look at the game from a different lens,” Williams said. “Playing football, you always see the game from your perspective, you see the field like you always see it, it’s repetitive. It was good to be on the outside and see different little aspects of the game that I can’t see from behind the line of scrimmage.” 
That's the first time the reason for Williams' watching from the sideline last week has been made public. The AC has to do with the shoulder, but fear not. It's safe to say the Dartmouth QB has lost nothing off his fastball.

And yes, the game is on Saturday, not Friday as the headline said this morning.
The Boston Herald previews the Dartmouth-Harvard game HERE.
The local daily has a story about the rebuilding of Memorial Field's home stands, slated to begin as soon as the season ends. Dick Terk, vice president and project manager at Engelberth Construction, is quoted as being supremely confident the project will be finished in time for next year's home opener.

Perhaps the most interesting news in the story is that not only do the plans call for the exterior brick facade to be saved, but the entire perimeter of the current facility is going to be reused, barring the unexpected. From the STORY (subscription may be required):
“There’s no sense in removing parts that would have to be put back when I don’t need to,” Terk said. “I’m going to (tear down) the bleachers starting from the north end and work toward the south, and I’ll remove everything inside until it’s just the four walls remaining. Then I’ll start rebuilding from the south end.”
Given the addition of railings, widening of aisles, widening of the American, um, tush, and the addition of handicapped seating, Memorial Field will seat 11,000 after the project is completed. It is currently listed at 13,000, meaning if my math is correct that 2,000 seats will be lost on the home side ;-). From the story in the local paper:
Memorial Field, which seated 21,416 in the mid-1970s, now has the smallest capacity in the Ivies. Columbia’s Wien Stadium is the next smallest at 17,000 and the Yale Bowl the largest at 64,269. … The largest crowd in Memorial Field history was 21,530 for a 1974 game against Harvard.
Editor's Note: It may be the smallest capacity but it also is the most appropriate.
Speaking of attendance, have you entered the NextTitle18 contest to win a $100 gift certificate to Murphy's yet? If not, check out the rules and some helpful information HERE and then send your guess to guesstheattendance@gmail.com .