MICHIGAN 27, DARTMOUTH 7
For almost half of this game, it looked as though the gallant men in Green and White were going to pull one of the upsets of the year and beat mighty Michigan on their own grounds. Scoring first in the initial period, the men of Dartmouth led by the score of 7-6 at the end of this stanza. and were behind only 13-7 at the half, following a second Michigan score in the waning moments of the second quarter. Even then, Dartmouth was still very much in the game, with their forward wall opening holes in the massive Michigan line for the backs to gallop through and with the defensive Dartmouth line stopping the famed Michigan running attack cold. Even the erstwhile gaps at the ends were pretty well plugged for this game, and the entire Green forward barrier, from end to end, consistently outplayed their heavier opponents. But the fatal weakness at pass defense manifested itself in the third period, when the roof fell in on Dartmouth in the shape of two touchdowns. This debacle made the score 27-7, where it remained throughout the last period, with neither team able to tally. The team returned to Hanover (by plane) in a cold rage. They had not wanted merely to "look good" against Michigan. They had wanted to win. And with a few breaks they would have.
Clayton stood out as the most brilliant performer on the field, in spite of the fact that five of his passes were intercepted by the alert Michigan defense. This number was one more than had gone astray during the entire last season. The Dartmouth score came in the first ten minutes of the game, when Clayton tossed one to big John McDonald in the end zone, after two other of his previous tosses had been dropped by their potential receivers. Indeed, the Dartmouth ends and halfbacks kept dropping passes all afternoon, with the result that Clayton had the (for him) mediocre record of only 9 for go. But after the first Dartmouth touchdown, followed by the point by the reliable Doc Dey, joy briefly reigned unconfined among the Dartmouth supporters, as the Green was solidly out in front. This joy was only slightly dampened by the first Michigan touchdown, after which they failed to convert, leaving the visitors still ahead 7-6.
Matters continued on this level until the waning minutes of the first half, when Dartmouth's Bob McCraney, spelling Clayton at quarterback, got off a kick on the side of his foot which went out of bounds after traveling the magnificent net total of one yard. Michigan promptly took over at midfield. On the next play, Michigan pulled off a long pass which went over the head of the Dartmouth safety man Jim Churchill, substituting for Charlie Curtis, who was hurt early in the game and did not return. The lack of an experienced man in this crucial spot bothered the Green all afternoon and the opportunistic Michigan field general was quick to take advantage of it.
In the third period, Michigan scored again on a long pass and soon after made their final tally on a blocked kick recovered on the Dartmouth two-yard line. Even after this last reverse, it took Michigan three plays to put it over, thereby indicating the calibre of the line play that Dartmouth put up all afternoon. Time and again during the last two periods, the Dartmouth attack was frustrated by pass interceptions. Three of Clayton's tosses were intercepted deep in Michigan territory—one on the 1-foot line, another on the 5-yard line, and a third on the 25yard line. If any one of these passes had gone into the hands for which they were intended, the entire complexion of the game might have been changed. All the observers agree that Dartmouth was in the game all the way, and were by no means as heavily outclassed as the score would indicate.
The Dartmouth running attack received a crippling blow by the injury of Bill Roberts in the first half. The Dubuque express was forced to retire with a painful foot injury, which kept him out for the rest of the game and in the hospital for most of the week before the Penn game. His substitute, stocky Jack Foster, played a whale of a game, but even under the best of conditions he is no Roberts. The Green was also heavily handicapped by penalties, losing 50 yards by this route (to 5 for Michigan) and having a number of long gains nullified by off-side or manin-motion infractions. The other injury, that to safety man Charlie Curtis, was just as devastating as the loss of Roberts, as noted above. Offensively and defensively, the Green thus played the entire second half without two of their outstanding operatives.
In the department of statistics, Dartmouth actually had more first downs than Michigan, with 15 for the Green and only 12 for the home side. Michigan made 168 yards rushing to 148 for Dartmouth. The Wolverines completed 8 out of 19 passes, as compared to the aforementioned 9 out of go for Dartmouth, but two of the Michigan tosses were long ones that went for TDs. There is one statistic that tells the story perhaps more graphically than any other. That is the matter of pass interceptions. Here the record stood Michigan 5, Dartmouth o. That was just about it.
DARTMOUTH'S LEADING GROUND-GAINER, Fullback Bill Roberts (34) gets going off tackle in the Holy Cross game in Hanover. Other Indians shown are Dick Price (69), John Clayton (20) and Bob Tyler (42), on ground.
A SPARKLING RUN-BACK of a punt by Charlie Curtis (46) sets up the first Big Green touchdown against Holy Cross. Tackle Red Bailey (72) dears the way, and Tackle Craig Murphy (79) protects the rear.
