With the Big Green Teams

DARTMOUTH football has been delight-fully associated with the possession of the Ivy League championship trophy since the league debuted in 1956. It's a happy statistic that the Big Green has figured in four of the last five titles, although this fall an unusual three-way tie resulted when Harvard, Princeton, and the Indians finished with identical 6-1 records.

Dartmouth also holds some some other impressive Ivy League statistics, including the Tribe's 58-17-2 league summary for eleven seasons - the league's best. Princeton is a tight second with 58-19-0.

After a sizzling 19-14 defeat at Harvard, Dartmouth rolled over its final four opponents with a 156-point outburst. The Indians more than doubled the score on Yale, Columbia, Cornell, and Penn, who collected 71 points in defeat.

Determined to prove that it should rank as one of the best offensive teams in history of the Ancient Eight, the 1966 contingent of Indian gridders averaged 441.3 yards a game in seven appearances, almost 100 yards better than the undefeated 1962 team. The Bob Blackman-coached players also set a record of 250 points in the league. Penn ran second in total offense, nearly 100 yards per game behind.

Coming off the Harvard game with spark aplenty, Dartmouth crushed Yale before nearly 53,000 at the Bowl, 28-13; smothered Columbia here, 56-14, with the entire squad participating in the victory; charged back from a 17-7 deficit to drop Jack Musick's strong Cornell team from the title race, 32-23; and overwhelmed Penn at Franklin Field, 40-21. Only six points kept the team from back-to-back undefeated seasons. The five-point difference with the Crimson and a 7-6 rain-washed loss at Holy Cross made up this narrow margin between a perfect record and the team's seven wins-two losses record.

Combined with stellar statistics in the league, Dartmouth again appeared as a national leader in the weekly reports on major college teams from the National Collegiate Athletic Bureau of the NCAA. With but a handful of games elsewhere remaining, plus the "Bowl Weekends," the Big Green ranked in the Top Five nationally in offensive statistics. The Indians have been consistently listed in Top Ten figures in four of the last five years; however, in 1966 the Tribe advanced even higher.

In total offense, rushing, and passing, Dartmouth was third in the country with a husky 388.8-yard average per game and 37 touchdowns. For nine contests the Green ran 610 plays for 3499 yards. On an average per game basis the Indians were one yard out of second place. Houston and West Texas State were over the Hanover squad. Notre Dame was fourth.

In rushing offense Dartmouth was running second with a 255.3 average. The Indians ran from scrimmage 453 times for 2298 yards and 23 touchdowns. Harvard was 13.7 yards a game better than Dartmouth for first place.

In the NCAB records, Dartmouth was the only Ivy team included in total offense, one of two league clubs in rushing, and the only Ivy member in the top scoring summary. These and other statistics are impressive and important. They help to build team pride, a vital factor in the success of Dartmouth football.

Another national leader this season was placement specialist Bill Hay. The little kicker scored 38 points, including 32 conversions in 37 tries and a pair of field goals. Hay's PAT string stopped at 35 when he pulled a muscle on the opening kickoff at Cornell and could make just two of five at Ithaca. Hay set a Dartmouth record for career kicking with 81 points. The old mark of 77 was held by Bill Wellstead (1961-62). Wellstead had 47 PATs and ten field goals. Hay connected on 66 points after and five field goals. Wellstead's 48 points for the 1962 season still stands. Hay had 43 as a junior.

Hay was one of seventeen seniors on the 1966 team. Two of the veteran Indians were forced out of action with knee problems, defensive left end Bill Brandt in the Holy Cross game and offensive left end Bob MacLeod in the Harvard game. The remaining fifteen all saw service in the Penn finale. The senior defensive lineup included: left tackle Bill Eggeling; right tackle Roy "Corky" Johnson; right linebacker Bruce Smith; and All-Ivy right halfback Wynn Mabry. In the offensive lineup were; left guard Bill Sjogren; All-Ivy center Chuck Matuszak; right end and captain Bill Calhoun; left halfback Jim Menter; right halfback Paul Klungness; quarterbacks Mickey Beard, Bill Robb, and Wally Bowman; and fullback Pete Walton, an all-ECAC selection as a junior.

Punter Tom Pyles completes the senior roster. Pyles continued as a valuable asset on the club with a 38.9 yard average.

The "book" on quarterback Beard, unanimous choice for the All-Ivy team, is exceptional. Mickey set records for career total offense, career passing yardage, season passing yardage, and season touchdown completions. His career passing total of 2665 yards passed Bill King's combined passing and running offense of 2569. Adding Beard's 599 rushing yards he had a grand total of 3264. Hitting on 75 of 137 passes for 1079 yards, he topped Dana Kelly's 1062 mark of 1964.

Beard passed for thirteen touchdowns in 1966. The former mark of ten was held by John Clayton, Bill Beagle, and King. Beard was involved in 41 TDs. He passed for 24 and scored 17 himself. Clayton holds the career TD record at 26.

Beard also figures into other Dartmouth records. His 16 for 19 against Cornell was the best by any Big Green quarterback in an Ivy game. His 79-yard strike to Calhoun at Princeton in 1965 is the longest TD toss in Indian history.

Beard will take some time off from active competition to receive awards for his crafty generalship before switching to baseball this spring. He is a first-class shortstop.

Also figuring in all of the major Indian final season statistics were Walton, Calhoun, and junior halfback Gene Ryzewicz. Walton won the rushing parade with 585 yards, a 5.7 average on 102 carries. Little Gene ran for 556 yards (he did not play in the Penn game) for a 7.5 average. Menter, in reserve for Ryzewicz, went out in style at Penn with 11 yards. He averaged six yards per carry over the season.

Captain Calhoun led the pass receivers with 21 catches for 388 yards and three TDs. Klungness and Ryzewicz led the kickoff returning with 24.3 and 22.6 averages respectively. Safety Sam Hawken was top punt returner with a 12.8 average.

Senior Bill Hay kicked 35 points-afterin a row until he missed in the Cornellgame. His career kicking total of 81points set a new Dartmouth record.

Final League Standings League SeasonW L T Pts OP W L T Pts OP Dartmouth 6 1 0 250 117 7 2 0 273 131 Harvard 6 1 0 156 53 8 1 0 231 60 Princeton 6 1 0 119 84 7 2 0 135 103 Cornell 4 3 0 138 122 6 3 0 181 157 Yale 3 4 0 119 109 4 5 0 149 126 Columbia 2 5 0 122 231 2 7 0 156 306 Penn 1 6 0 117 181 2 7 0 176 237 Brown 0 7 0 80 204 1 8 0 127 279