For football captains Taran Lent '96 and Pete Oberle '96 playing football together is nothing new since the two are not only Dartmouth classmates but childhood friends.
Football was a joining factor for Lent and Oberle who met in the fourth grade while playing together. Later, they would attend high school together at Cherry Creek High School in Colorado where the two would emerge as football stars.
While in high school, the two would lead their team to two Colorado State Championships. Lent was a two-time All-State selection, and Oberle was an All State selection and a runner up for the Golden Helmet Award, given annually to Colorado's top high school football player.
Lent, a 6-2, 230 pound defensive end, chose to come to Dartmouth straight from high school and has been making major impacts on the Big Green defense ever since.
Last year, Lent was a winner of the Kenneth T. Young Award for outstanding junior defensive player after leading the team in sacks.
Oberle, on the other hand, is a transfer to Dartmouth. After playing for Colorado State University his freshman year, he rejoined his friend in Hanover. He too has been an instrumental part of the Dartmouth team.
As a 6-0, 210 pound tailback, Oberle led the Big Green in rushing last year with 625 yards on 154 carries. These impressive results came despite Oberle's missing four games with a knee injury. For his efforts, Oberle won last year's Jake Crouthamel Award for being an outstanding junior offensive player.
With the two players respectively leading the Big Green in offense and defense, their election to captains this year came as no surprise. Through their work on and off the field, Lent and Oberle have gained the respect of their teammates.
"It was an enormous honor to be elected captainn by my teamates." Lent said. "It is even more special to have a great longtime friend there by my side."
For Lent and Oberle, who arrived at Dartmouth during the "golden era" for Big Green football, the tasks of captain are numerous as they inherited the burden of bringing back Dartmouth's winning tradition and the Ivy League championship to Hanover.
Many observers wrote the 1994 last place finish off as a fluke, and expectations were high entering this season. Yet so far the Big Green hasn't been able to combine all of the elements of a successful football team. Nevertheless, Lent and Oberle still insist that the Big Green will have a successful season.
"If we continue to get better," Lent said, "we will be a great team that is able to compete with anyone. If we can get our offense, defense, and kicking games going all at the same time, we will be a force to contend with."
To accomplish that Lent and Oberle will have to both work to get their respective units pumped up. For both players, who have been relatively quiet on in the stat book, this means raising the level of their own play.
Oberle has been used sparingly, supposedly to avoid recurrence of last year's injury to his knee. Against Cornell Oberle rushed three times for 23 yards, a huge difference from last year when Oberle had at least 30 rushing attempts in four of six games.
Lent has been solid on defense but has yet to have a huge game as he did last year against Penn with eight tackles. Against Cornell, Lent recorded three tackles, less than he had for any single game in 1994.
But for two competitors, finding inspiration to come back will be no problem. Lent and Oberle will look to change the Big Green momentum with a win against Lafayette this Saturday at Memorial Field. A victory could put the Big Green back at .500 and on track heading into the second half of the season.
