The 1995 Dartmouth football team can best be described as a team on a mission.
After limping to the finish line in 1994 with a 2-5 Ivy League record and a 4-6 overall mark, the Big Green will be out to prove that they were the team that dominated the Ancient Eight from 1990-94, and not the squad that lingered in mediocrity last year.
Indeed, this year the Big Green will look for a return to respectability.
Last season was by all means a transition year for the gridironers, who for the first time this decade were without quarterback Jay Fiedler '94, one of the best players to come out of the Ivy League in years.
Aided by Fiedler's incredible knack for engineering fourth quarter comebacks, the squad won three consecutive Ivy titles from 1990-92 and finished a close second in 1993. In the process, Fiedler rewrote the Dartmouth record book, claiming virtually every school passing record as his own.
But last year was the first year in the post-Fielder era, and the QB job was opened to three hungry gunslingers -- Ren Riley '96, Colorado State transfer Jerry Singleton '96 and Jon Aljancic '97.
Riley won the starting job, although he ended up on the shelf midway through the season with a broken arm. After filling in nicely for Riley, Singleton also injured his arm late in the season, joining several other starters on the injury list.
Among the other casualties of the long season were feature running back Pete Oberle '96 and co-Captain linebacker Hunter Buckner '95.
After a promising 3-2 start, the team sagged as the injuries mounted, and for the first time in the modern Ivy League, the Big Green finished in last place. The losing record was also the first sub-.500 finish Dartmouth has had since 1987.
This year the team will again be aiming for the top of the Ivy League after one of its most disappointing seasons in recent memory.
Head Coach John Lyons said he was "very pleased with the attitude" of the players throughout spring camp, and noted that the team has worked hard in the offseason.
"I think we're going to be a young football team, and I think if we continue to keep working hard, and if we stay healthy, I think we can be pretty good," Lyons said.
On the offensive side of the ball, Lyons said he would ideally like to achieve more balance between the running and passing game. Last year, with the inexperience of the three quarterbacks, the onus fell on Oberle in the Big Green's run-oriented offense.
This year, with all three quarterbacks having varsity experience under their belts, Lyons said there will be a more equal mix of running and passing.
The starting QB job will again be a three-way horse race, with Riley, Singleton and Aljancic battling for the honor of head signal-caller.
After spring practice, Lyons said that of the three, "no one really stood out as being head and shoulders above the other two." Each of the three will get an equal shot at the job at fall camp, and a decision will be made then, Lyons said.
At running back, Oberle, who carried the offensive load last year, is currently in a rehabilitation program following reconstructive knee surgery. Lyons said Oberle is making good progress, but as to whether or not he will be ready for the start of the season, "that will go down to the wire."
Other running backs who figure to get significant playing time are Jon Clark '96 at the fullback spot, and Zack Ellis '98, who got some valuable playing time last year.
Ambrose Garcia '97 and Matt Rothe '98 will also battle for time out of the tailback position.
The receivers are a big question mark, with both of last years starters --David Shearer '95 and Andre Grant '95, lost to graduation.
Lyons said Eric Morton '97 and Will Bergman '97 were the most consistent performers at spring practice, so those two may have the inside track on the starting positions.
Abe Rife '96 is a safe bet to retain his starting tight end job.
On the offensive line, the Big Green lost two of its starting five to graduation, but the addition of incoming freshman John Fowler will help offset these losses. The Big Green still has returning starters J.J. Coslet '97 and Brian Larsen '97 on the line to help protect the QB, whomever he may be.
Defensively, the Big Green lost players to graduation across the board, from linemen to linebackers to defensive backs.
The pass rush will be especially hurt, with last year's entire starting defensive line -- Ben Murphy '95, Zach Lehman '95 and David Schumacher '95 lost to graduation.
Several linemen will compete for time on the defensive line, with Tim Cross '96 figuring to have a good shot to win one of the starting jobs. The addition of incoming freshman Preston Love will also be a big help in replacing Murhpy, Lehman and Schumacher.
The linebacker corps will also have to fill significant holes, as the Big Green lost perhaps their best two linebackers in Buckner and Josh Bloom '95 to graduation.
Lyons said, "I think when you lose Josh and Hunter, those two guys were as good as anybody in the league."
Co-captain Taran Lent '96 and Mark Abel '97 figure to retain their starting jobs at linebacker, while Brian Schmidt '97, Adam Nelson '97, Eric Swanson '96 and Zach Walz '98 will compete to fill the spots vacated by Bloom and Buckner.
Incoming freshman Jon Gibbs will help offset the loss of Buckner and Bloom and add depth to the linebacking corps.
The secondary also was depleted by graduation, with Brian White '95, Adam Scheier '95 and Chris Boran '95 lost to graduation. White will try to take his skills as a defensive cover man and kick returner to the New England Patriots of the National Football League.
Jamie Whitticomb '96 returns from last year and will most likely start at one of the cornerback spots, and Brian Crowell '96 is also a likely bet to win a starting job in the defensive backfield.
Lyons said the competition for the other secondary spots is tight, with several players sure to get a good look. Brad Verber, an incoming freshman, will also try to challenge for some playing time at cornerback.
The punt returning and kick returning game will really suffer from the loss of White, who was a special teams terror for opposing teams. White shares the Dartmouth record for the longest kickoff return for a touchdown, having run a kick back 98 yards against Harvard last year.
The punting duties, handled last year by Geoff Wilson '95, figure to go to either part-time wide receiver John McEwan '96 or Adam Weigold '98.
And the placekicking chores will fall on the shoulders of either Weigold, Dave Regula '98 or incoming freshman Justin Bunker.
