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The Bulldogs suffered their first Ivy League loss of the season on Saturday, when they lost 24-17 to Dartmouth in overtime. The loss marks the fourth straight season Big Green has beaten the Elis.
Yale (2-2, 1-1 Ivy) entered Saturday’s game after facing a single rival Ancient Eight all season. The battle against Dartmouth (4-0, 2-0 Ivy) has been the biggest test for Team 148 so far. Dartmouth was chosen to finish third in the Ivy League Preseason Poll, just behind the Elis. In 2019, the Big Green and Bulldogs shared the Ivy League crown, both ending with just one loss in their ledgers. Yale hasn’t beaten Dartmouth in a 21-13 victory in 2016.
“Give Dartmouth credit,” Yale head coach Tony Reno said after the game. “They finished the game. Obviously a big football game, a big Ivy League game, a big college football game to play in. Give them the credit, Coach Stevens, they managed to deliver the final punch and finish the game.
The Bulldogs started quickly, racking up 12 plays and 54 yards on their first possession. Practice stalled at Dartmouth’s 21-yard line after the Elis failed to convert at third-and-7s. A field goal from kicker Jack Bosman ’24 opened the scoring and gave Yale a 3-0 lead. After the two teams traded punters, Dartmouth found the end zone for the first time. Quarterback Derek Kyler hit wide Isaac Boston on the left sideline for a 32-yard touchdown pass. The extra point gave Dartmouth a 7-3 lead as the first quarter ended.
The Elis’ offense came to a halt in their next practice, coming out of their own 41-yard line. The Big Green capitalized, putting together an 83-yard touchdown to extend the lead to 14-3. Kyler connected with second wide receiver Jamal Cooney for a big 44-yard play to prepare for the touchdown. Bulldogs’ 23 defensive back Wande Owens had tight coverage on the play, but was unable to break the big end.
Yale rebounded quickly, covering 75 yards in under three minutes to score his first touchdown of the game. After quarterback Griffin O’Connor ’23 hit running back Noah Aaron ’22 for 21 yards, head coach Tony Reno replaced backup quarterback Nolan Grooms ’24 for a game to maintain momentum. Grooms connected with wide Melvin Rouse II ’22 for a 32-yard touchdown in the corner of the end zone.
Dartmouth was unable to respond after a short drive that stalled mainly due to an 11-yard sack from Christian Sampleton ’22.
“Defensively, it’s going to be about stopping the race,” said Clay Patterson ’24 before the match. “Then when it comes to a passing situation, our goal on the defensive line is just going to contain [Kyler], keeping it in the pocket and pressuring it to throw. We have good defensive backs, like Rodney Thomas II, who can make a few plays with the ball, so as long as we get in [Kyler’s] face and force him to make bad decisions to throw the ball, I think we can make him shake early.
Yale’s next possession ended with a missed field goal of 41 yards as halftime drew to a close.
The second half was marked by the defenses of both teams. The two teams combined for seven punts on eight discs to start the second half. The only outlier possession was a Yale fumble in midfield.
With 8:11 remaining in the game, the Bulldogs recovered the ball at the Dartmouth 43-yard line, still 14-10. Practice began with an 11-yard run at Rouse, bringing the ball to Dartmouth’s 32-yard line. After two quick failures, the Elis found themselves facing third and -10. O’Connor connected with Rouse, but the veteran wide receiver was only able to recover seven yards. On the fourth and third, Reno placed his placement unit on the ground. Unexpectedly, the Bulldogs switched formation, emulating Big Green’s defense and calling for a run designed for Grooms, who made their way to a six-yard gain and a first try.
“Yeah, we’re looking at things situally,” Reno said. “If we think it’s going to give us an advantage, you know, we want to be aggressive and we feel like we are. We thought Nolan did a really good job reading the game and you know, making the win and making us first down.
After a short completion on the third and long, the Elis found themselves staring at another fourth down. This time, O’Connor led the offense against the fourth and fifth from Dartmouth’s 14-yard line. O’Connor found running back Zane Dudek ’22 on the left sideline, who picked up six yards to move the chains.
After a two-yard loss on the first down and a failure on the second down, the Elis once again found themselves behind the chains. On the third and the 10’s goal, O’Connor found Rouse in the middle, who picked up five yards before being overrun by Big Green’s defense. For the third time on record, Reno and the Bulldogs took the shot in the fourth and short. This time, O’Connor quickly exploited the 1v1 game Mason Tipton ’24 had away. O’Connor shot Tipton in the back shoulder, who got the go-ahead touchdown with 2:34 left. Bosman’s extra point gave Yale a 17-14 lead.
The Big Green’s next practice began on his own 17-yard line. Dartmouth, who only needed a field goal to send the game into overtime, struggled to move the ball against the Yale defense in the second half. After the first play of practice became incomplete, Kyler found second Paxton Scott on consecutive throws to establish a fourth and a 1 with 1:27 on the clock. The Bulldogs started to cheer when Kyler’s fourth pass was interrupted by Eli’s defensive back Miles Oldacre ’23. Unfortunately, the celebration was premature, as a flag was sleeping on the field. Officials conferred and ultimately made the call: a personal foul, aimed, on Owens. After a lengthy review, the appeal was upheld and Owens was kicked out of the game. Owens was running step by step with the intended catcher on the play and accidentally made helmet-to-helmet contact when Oldacre came over and interrupted the pass.
“It’s hard to make a decision before watching the movie, but from where I sat and saw, no,” Reno said in response to a question about whether he agreed with the movie. ‘personal fault appeal. “But then again, you know, the refs have the advantage of going to the replay booth and they always do the right thing when they take a look at it and they slow it down, but where I sat in a bang bang game, i didn’t. to see him.
The 15-yard penalty and the first automatic down made the run much more manageable for the Big Green who quickly descended the field and tied the score at 17 with 13 seconds left.
In overtime, the Big Green got the ball first. Dartmouth put on a few positive yards and at the second and third yards off Yale’s seven-yard line, Big Green quarterback Nick Howard made a designed run to the end zone, knocking down several Yale defenders on his back. path.
The Bulldogs had a chance to respond and once again faced a fourth down in an attempt to keep the game alive. After a time out taken to deliberate, Reno sent O’Connor and the offensive into shotgun formation to try and retrieve the fourth and first. O’Connor pretended to Dudek, who was lined up to his left, and with pressure to his face tried to deliver the ball to Rouse, who was running an exit to the left side. The pass never stood a chance and rebounded before approaching the open sea of Yale, who immediately jumped up and called a flag after tangling with a Dartmouth defensive back. Officials didn’t find Rouse’s argument convincing as Big Green’s list began to spill out onto the pitch in celebration.
Yale will travel to East Hartford next weekend to face the University of Connecticut.
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