Student Body Right

It is called, simply, Play 18. In football parlance, it's referred to as the pitchsweep. And over the years, Play 18 has caused more consternation for Dartmouth gridiron opponents than any other entry in the Big Green playbook.

"Throughout the seasons, it's been one of our most consistent plays," said Coach Joe Yukica. "In academic terminology, it's called Student Body Right or Left because there are so many people leading the ball carrier that it looks like half the students came down out of the stands to help."

And every solid offensive team needs a strong outside running play, he added. At Dartmouth, Play 18 has produced more long runs and more consistent yardage than any other, including Sean Maher's eight yard touchdown run in last year's nailbiting 14-12 win over Harvard.

Ironically, the defense creates the play. The defenders "pursue" laterally and because not all players move at the same speed, openings or "voids" are created.

"A good runner sees the voids as lanes to cut back into," explained Yukica. "Al though the pitch-sweep is designed to move outside and the blocking also is designed that way, it is the reaction of the defense that creates the play."

Yukica also has a tailback who is particularly suited for Play 18. Junior Richard Weissman, Dartmouth's leading rusher last season with 605 yards in 124 carries, "has a real good feel for it. And he can go laterally and turn on a dime," added Yukica.

The pitch-sweep has big play potential it can break for a 50 yard gain or go along at a more modest four yards per try. And it lends itself to a variety of formations, said Yukica. "We've also developed a number of complementary plays like the reverse and flea flicker, which are our situation plays."

"We never give up on Play 18," he added. "It's been a very, very good play for a long time."

From conception to execution: This is the way Student Body Right looked at A rmy last September 24 as Rich Weissman '85 darts around theCadets' defensive line for good yardage. One of the keys to the success of this play is the strong, crisp blocking of both the offensive line andbackjield. After a very impressive first half at Mich it Stadium, the Big Green offense sputtered in the second half as Army went on to eke out a13-12 win.