Wanted: Leader of Men

Football coach Joe Yukica figures development of a quarterback may be the key to the Ivy League championship this fall. "The position will have a lot to say about who wins the Ivy title," he says, noting that only Princeton and Cornell have established signal-callers returning. "The rest of us will start fresh."

Yukica says the quarterback is the key to any offensive football team. If that's the case, Dartmouth has a big vacancy to fill. Gone through graduation is Buddy Teevens. Last year, the previously unheralded quarterback won the Asa S. Bushnell Cup as the Ivy League's player- of-the-year, set three College and two Ivy League marks, made the all-Ivy and all- East first teams, and was the starting quarterback in the Blue-Gray game. "We lost as fine a quarterback as Dartmouth ever had," says Yukica. "He took a team not favored to win the title and made us a very fine football team. Teevens made the plays for us last year. It was not a good year but a great year."

All is not lost, however, with the departure of Teevens. "I like what we have to start with," notes Yukica. "We have good candidates. I feel we'll get ourselves a quarterback." Before training began in August, the leading candidates were senior Larry Margerum, juniors Jeff Kemp and Joe McLaughlin, sophomore Darryl Wong, and possibly Tim Seeley, another junior. Margerum is the only quarterback with varsity play experience. Kemp and Seeley played on the JV team before Kemp, son of ex-Buffalo Bills quarterback and now Congressman Jack Kemp, was lost for the season with a shoulder injury suffered in the Harvard game. McLaughlin is trying out after playing defensive back last year. Wong emerged as the top throwing prospect on last season's freshman team. "One just doesn't know now who the quarterback will be," Yukica says.

The Big Green also has to replace three of its seven starters up front, an improvement over the situation last year. Terry Bonus and Mike Lempres are leading candidates at tight end to succeed Phil Olsen and Mark Mioski, both graduated. The receiving corps, led by all-Ivy Dave Shula, John Wilson, Len Robinson, transplanted running back Eric Cutter, and possibly Frank Cosolito, is in good shape. "The running back picture is a little better than a year ago," says Yukica. Leading the running contingent will be Jeff Dufresne, who was first-team all-Ivy as a sophomore, Greg Henry, Mark Akey, Jon Bassindale, and Bill Spaulding. "Offensively," according to Yukica, "we're looking for four people to come through for us, primarily at quarterback. That's the key position."

Defensively, Dartmouth must shore things up. The Green last year finished second best in the league for points allowed, something that far exceeded pre-season expectations. Highlights included limiting Yale to three points and Cornell and the Big Red's explosive runner Joe Holland to seven points. Gone from the defense are first-team all-Ivy Joe Nastri and second- team all-league Tom Kuchar, both linebackers. "What we need is some quick sophomore help on defense," observes Yukica. "The key will be the development or emergence of linebackers and someone in the secondary to make it steady very early."

Four of the top eight linebacker candidates are sophomores. Jerry Pierce '81 and Mike Lynch '80 and Joe Fernandes '82 will be challenged by Tim Fredel '81, Mike Littlejohn '82, Rahn Fleming '81, Curt Reed '82, and Darren Cde Baca '82 for the inside linebacker positions vacated by Nastri and Kuchar, whom Yukica calls "as fine a pair of inside linebackers as we have had at Dartmouth." Outside linebackers Steve Pignatiello, Tony Garippo, Rick Salchunas, and Dave Watt will try to follow in the footsteps of the graduated Jeff Hickey, who also made the all-Ivy first team. Mike Francis, Byron Boston, and Frank Leddy are the most experienced interior linemen, and Yukica also is counting on Chris Lucas and Ken Gonsier, who are returning from injuries.

Cody Press, co-captain and a member of the all-Ivy second team, is counted on in the deep secondary, as is Greg Jaeger. The other side is wide open, says Yukica, and will probably go to a "rising soph," who could be Barry Pizor, Charles Williams, Kevin Thorne, or Robert Ford. Andy Chodos will back up Press at safety.

All-Ivy placekicker Chris Sawch will be back, and Margerum or a sophomore will handle the punting.

The pollsters say that Brown and then Yale are the teams to beat in the Ivy League this fall. Dartmouth has frequently been mentioned as the third most powerful team. Some say the championship is up for grabs. Yukica's goal is no different than it was last year at this time. "There's no question about our goal," he says. "We want to win the Ivy title and be a strong football team. That has always been our goal. It's our number one thought. And we know a lot more about our team at this point than we did at this time last year," the coach of the defending league champion adds.