WITH THE BIG GREEN TEAMS

THE varsity football campaign wound up as one of peaks and valleys. It was the ninth consecutive winning season for Dartmouth and, for many Old Greens, one of the most memorable because of that historic 48-0 triumph over Harvard.

On the other hand the fall brought several low points, notably that 37-7 defeat by Princeton and the 33-15 loss to Cornell. The former was the biggest margin of defeat for a Blackman-coached eleven, the latter was the first time Cornell has been able to beat one of Bob's teams.

Not all the low points were on the scoreboard. For some inexplicable reason this '64 varsity seemed to be injury prone despite an excellent preseason conditioning period. Before the final game with Penn. Coach Blackman counted 13 players - including standouts like Captain Jack McLean, end Tom Clarke, tackles Gerry LaMontagne and Dan Williams - who were out of action with various injuries.

And there were the boils, a staph infection which hit the squad so that 17 different players were affected throughout the season. This was a particularly frustrating ailment. The players felt fairly healthy but they had to miss practice sessions, games and classes because of the danger of infection. The medical staff scoured the training room, instituted new hygienic procedures, and had the situation pretty well under control by season's end.

Painful as the boils were, they did bring the funniest crack of the season. Said Syracuse coach Ben Schwartzwalder, "I knew the Ivy League took its football seriously but I didn't think it would stoop to germ warfare."

An oddity of the campaign, also, was that there were no close games, no thrilling finishes. The Big Green was either far ahead (35-0 over Harvard at halftime, 21-0 over Columbia at half-time) or far behind (in all three defeats the Indians trailed by at least two touchdowns entering the fourth quarter).

This was a Dartmouth team which entered the season in a rebuilding frame of mind, suddenly showed brilliance in that Harvard contest (which happily for the Green was shown on television throughout the East), then fell victim to manpower problems against Yale and Cornell.

No other Dartmouth eleven played so well before so many as this team did in Harvard Stadium. There were 32,500 people on hand plus millions more watching on TV. If Coach Blackman could have written the script himself, he couldn't have improved on it.

A Blackman-coached team, either at Dartmouth or during his six-year career earlier out west, never has lost a game on television. It seemed possible that this streak would be broken, especially since Harvard's John Yovicsin never had been able to win on TV and his Crimson squad was skyhigh for the occasion. There also were whispers in Hanover that week about the "national magazine jinx," the tradition that a person or team which is featured in a national publication falls on its face in its next contest. Look Magazine had just appeared on the stands with a five-page spread on Dartmouth football.

But it was all Dartmouth's day in the stadium. The first team played less than 20 minutes, scored on each of the four occasions it had the ball. In one space of 11 minutes in the second quarter the demoralized Crimson saw Dartmouth block two punts, intercept a pass, run back a short punt and create four touchdowns from these opportunities. Blackman sent in three plays from the bench during the game; alt went for touchdowns. On defense Dartmouth swarmed all over Harvard, handed the Crimson its first shutout in 30 Ivy games. It was a bit embarrassing, actually, when even the Harvard stands needled their team by loudly applauding one of the few Crimson first downs late in the game.

From this peak Dartmouth tumbled ... hard. Yale won the next week, 24-15, as it jumped in front by two touchdowns on weird plays in the first 17 minutes and held on down the stretch. Two key developments took place in the Yale Bowl. Dartmouth lost its best end, Tom Clarke, on the fifth play with a broken ankle and his defensive strength was missed for the rest of the season. On the positive side, junior fullback Mike Urbanic first began to realize his potential as a power runner in the Bowl, out-gaining Yale's Mercein, 108 yards to 60, and becoming the Green's most potent ball-carrier from then on.

The game also illustrated a facet of the '64 Dartmouth squad which was appreciated by the 50,000 people in attendance. This had become one of the most interesting teams to watch on offense in the nation. Win or lose, it moved that football. It used 22 different formations and its passing attack was equally as effective as its running game. Two veteran Connecticut sports editors, Bill Lee of Hartford and Hank O'Donnell of Waterbury, commented on this as we walked over to the dressing rooms after the game. "I always anticipate Dartmouth's appearance in the Bowl more than any other Yale opponent," said Lee. "The team is always full of life, well coached and interesting to watch. You never know what it will come up with. Regardless of the outcome the spectators respect the Green squad."

Lee's words were borne out by the figures in the game. While losing to Yale, Dartmouth gained more yardage (374) than it had while trouncing Harvard the week before. In fact, only Cornell (which outgained Dartmouth by a total of eight yards) outgained the Indians during the entire season.

Although Columbia was subdued 31-14 with some fine defensive work in the secondary, signs of attrition were evident in the Green squad. The bright hopes for a three-platoon system were dead. There just weren't enough healthy players to use 33 in each period.

Sophomore quarterback Mickey Beard, who was immense in the Harvard and Columbia triumphs, continued to draw the roars from the stands. When he left the bench to enter a game, people stood up and applauded. But unsung senior Bruce Gottschall had his supporters, including rookie Beard himself. "Bruce has to play both offense and defense. He has to start the game and see what the other team is doing on defense and figure out a way to beat it. Meanwhile I'm sitting on the bench, talking to our spotters, learning what will click and what won't. I've learned a lot just watching Gottschall operate," admitted Beard. And the Columbia coaches echoed this sentiment after the game. Beard had been named Ivy Back of the Week for scoring two touchdowns and gaining 160 yards but those Columbia coaches looked at the game movies and praised Gottschall. "He is the best defensive back we've ever seen in the Ivy League, not just this season," they said.

Gottschall's value was realized by all at Cornell. The Chicago senior had brought Dartmouth within striking distance in the third quarter, 21-15, when he was knocked unconscious and could not return to action. From there on the Big Red riddled our defenses and added two more touchdowns to insure its first triumph over the Green since 1954.

The season was a good one, all things being considered. But even before the finale at Penn the Green fans were talking about '65 with the return of the Holy Cross rivalry, and the final game being played at Princeton again. What kind of football team would Dartmouth have for next season?

Overall the '65 eleven should be much stronger in the backfield, improved at end and tackle, weaker at linebacker and from guard to guard.

There are 20 seniors on the current squad and key losses will include Captain Jack McLean, Bruce Gottschall, and Dave Perinchief, all exceptional defensive backs; center Bob Komives; guards Ted Bracken, Ed Keible, and Pete Sapione; and tackle Pete Frederick.

Bright spots for '65 should be the return of Gerry LaMontagne, the team's best tackle who broke his leg in preseason, and Tom Clarke, the junior end who broke his ankle against Yale.

There also is a possibility that John Matzke, a 230-pound tackle from Birch Run, Mich., who has been in the Army for two years, may return to Dartmouth to bolster this tackle squad along with holdovers Tom Boyan,Dave Coughlin, and Dan Williams.

As you will note in the freshman football report, the yearlings should provide several good backs to supplement Mickey Beard, Bob O'Brien, Mike Urbanic, Paul Klungness and Co. It also is hoped some help can be gained at center and guard where the senior losses will be felt most. Rarely has Dartmouth had a more effective left guard pair than Ed Keible on offense and Ted Bracken on defense, while Bob Komives and Pete Sapione have been outstanding in the interior also.

Young Bob MacLeod rates as the most improved player on the squad, a boy who jumped from substitute tackle status as a freshman to All-Ivy consideration as a sophomore end. He and Paul Klungness, the swift halfback from Thief River Falls, Minn., were the first rookies to gain first-team status this past season.

So overall it looks like a winning season for football if some of the younger linemen develop and that old injury devil doesn't nibble away too much at the thin spots from tackle to tackle. Of course, this optimistic report for next year is being repeated in alumni magazines all over the nation. Prospects always look bright after that last game and during the winter when only the positive factors are remembered.

Dave Perinchief (25), with good blocking, finds running room against Harvard.

Coach Whitey Burnham and Captain Ron Knapp '65 of Canton, Conn., who ledthe Dartmouth soccer team (5-2) to a tie for the Ivy League championship.

DARTMOUTH 27, PENN 7 The Big Green wound up its 1964 season with a 27-7 win over Penn, giving it a 6-3 record overall and a 4-3 record and fourth place in the Ivy League, behind undefeated Princeton, Harvard (5-2) and Yale (4-2-1).