PHILADELPHIA, Sept. 18 ' On a quest for a fourth consecutive Ivy League title, the Dartmouth football team started off on the wrong foot today, losing to the University of Pennsylvania,10-6.
The Big Green, led by senior captain and quarterback Jay Fiedler, failed to come up with the big plays typical of the past two successful years and were stopped cold by the strong Quaker defense that repeatedly broke through the offensive line.
Throughout the steady light rain here, Penn running back Terrance Stokes was like a bad itch, aggravating Dartmouth's defensive line for 124 yards and one touchdown ' a slashing 19-yard run that accounted for Penn's only touchdown of the game at the end of the second quarter.
From Dartmouth's first possession on, the Penn defensive line harassed and hurried Fiedler, forcing him to throw early or scramble out of the pocket unprotected where he was sacked and tripped up for losses of yards.
While Penn only had 56 more offensive yards than the Big Green, the Quakers dominated on the ground, piling up 151 yards by land to just 34 yards on 33 frustrating carries for Dartmouth, including just eight yards in the first half.
Early Lead
Penn scored first early in the second quarter off a picturesque 42-yard field goal by Andy Glockner at 12:01. The field goal was set up by a drive that began at Penn's 42-yard line and punctuated by a rambling draw play by Stokes on second and 15 that went for 12 yards.
Penn continued to knock on Dartmouth's door throughout the half as it continually had an edge in field position, starting most of its drives near mid-field.
Towards the end of the first half, just as the Big Green began to contain Stokes with Gerry Lamontagne '94 skewering Stokes behind the line of scrimmage for a loss of one yard, Penn scored again with Stokes and Penn's Jim McGeehan leading a 57-yard drive in seven plays. The touchdown gave Penn a 10-0 lead heading into the locker room.
Dartmouth threatened to score towards the end of the half as Fiedler hit wideout Andre Grant '95 for 25 yards to push Dartmouth into Penn turf. But the Big Green's drive ended abruptly when Quaker cornerback Jamie Daniels rammed all of his 171-pounds into receiver John Hyland '94, forcing him to cough up the ball and causing the turnover at the end of the 25-yard pass play.
Penn was held scoreless for the rest of the half despite its good field position. Dartmouth's defense managed to contain Stokes to five-yards rushing and six-yards in the air in the remaining 1:31 in the half, and Penn headed to the locker room with a 10-0 lead.
Comeback Kid?
In the second half, Fiedler came out firing but missed his target on his first three passes, then regained his touch on third down and seven, pinpointing Grant on the right sideline as he dove to catch the ball and dragged his foot to complete the pass.
But the Big Green failed to make a fourth down conversion after penetrating into Penn's territory for the first time since the middle of the first quarter when Brian Bajari '95 caught a screen pass from Fiedler but failed to muscle the final two yards.
Chris Umscheid '94 and Bajari lit up in the third quarter, blasting through the softened Penn defense rushing for a total of 40 yards.
Another surge into Quaker territory at the end of the third quarter ended in another heartbreaker as Penn stopped Fiedler on a quarterback sneak with one yard to go on Penn's 21-yard line.
A Big Green surge was afoot late in the fourth quarter when Grant ditched his Quaker shadow to score the Big Green's only points of the game when he snagged a 39-yard pass from Fiedler.
But Willison's extra point attempted was blocked by a surging Quaker, leaving the score, 10-6.
During Dartmouth's second to last possession of the game, the Big Green began their drive from their own 21-yard line.
A long ball from Fiedler to David Shearer '95 on the right sideline bounced off his chest as Quaker Kevin Allen, who intercepted one pass and broke up four passes during the game, pressured the receiver from behind.
On the next play, Fiedler, who hooked up with a receiver 13 times on 31 attempts, threw away a pass to a charging Allen on his interception in the game.
The Big Green's last drive ended in defeat as Fiedler fumbled the snap and then failed to convert a fourth-and-12.
Downbeat but Looking Forward
The entrance to the Dartmouth locker room was quiet as the players shuffled off the field.
"A long day, isn't it?" remarked Dartmouth Athletic Director Dick Jaeger.
Head Coach John Lyons attributed part of the loss to the terrible field position throughout the game. Dartmouth's average field position was on their 24-yard line compared to Penn's on their 42-yard line.
"The rain was a factor, but is not why we lost the game," Lyons said. "They beat us up front. They put a lot of heat on Jay."
But Fielder and Lyons said that the team will just have to come out harder and work throughout the season to regain its footing.
"The team will pull together," Fiedler said. "They know what it take to win an Ivy championship. It's tough on us because we don't control our own destiny. That's a tough situation."
