1974

Recently, while I was watching Joe Montana stand his ground in the NFL against various and sundry young football upstarts, I remembered that while Joe was a star at the University of Alabama some 20- odd years ago we had our own set of stars up in Hanover. Some of those stars recently returned to Hanover along with coaches, trainers and other friends to a mini-reunion celebrating the 20th anniversary of the championship season when the Big Green stole the Ivy League title.

What was most fascinating about the season of 20 years ago was its parallels to Dartmouth's successful 1993 season. With cocaptains Tom Csatari and Herbie Hopkins at the helm, Dartmouth began the 1973 season with a 3-0 record, then exploded. They beat Brown on the road 28-16, which began six consecutive wins to lock up the 10th Ivy League Championship. This year, with quarterback extraordinaire Jay Fiedler '94, the season was very similar. And to be part of it, ours truly returned for the Princeton game November 20. In attendance were WilliamCarpenter (tight end), George Carr (split end), Simon Etzel (linebacker), Rick Gerardi (linebacker), James Gleason (offensive tackle), Herbie Hopkins (offensive guard), James Ryan, Michael Sadar (linebacker), Donald Smith (defensive back), Pat Stone (linebacker), and Rocky Whitaker (defensive back). Missing were Rick Klupchak, DougieLynn, Ted Perry, Ellis Rowe, and RobertFunk. So, where are they now?

William Carpenter is president of the U.S. division of a British consumer-products company. George Carr is an architect in Philadelphia. Tom Csatari is chief counsel for the Methodist Hospital in Dallas. Simon Etzel is the project manager for a construction company in Connecticut. Rick Gerardi works for the State of New York in the public-buildings program. James Gleason is a lawyer in the Binghamton, N.Y., area. Herbie Hopkins is a CEO for an equipment and supply company in Connecticut. Dougie Lynn manages real estate in L.A. Ellis Rowe works in the marketing division of the Morris Food Corporation. Bob Funk does oil deals in Oklahoma. Mitch Sadar is a psychologist in the Pennsylvania state prison system. Don Smith works for IBM. Pat Stone is an orthopedic surgeon in Tennessee. Kim Wehrenberg is chief legal counsel somewhere, and Rocky Whitaker is involved in real-estate management in D.C. Interesting careers following great college careers and a challenging and rewarding time at Dartmouth.

I think Herbie Hopkins summed it up after their win at Harvard: "We're a championship team—when a championship team has to perform, it performs."

See you all in June.

Dean's Office, Mercer Law School, 1021 Georgia Ave., Macon, GA 31207-0003