The Ivy League hasn't been known for its athletic prowess in years. The once mighty league doesn't get mentioned by Chris Berman during the NFL Draft marathon, Charles Barkley doesn't make strange jokes about it for the NBA Draft and the Florida Marlins aren't selling off anyone who went to school in the league. Yet Dartmouth has its share of marquee names in professional sports.
Jay Fiedler '94, the starting quarterback for the Miami Dolphins, is one of the most noted recent Dartmouth alums. Fiedler led the Big Green to an 18-2-1 Ivy League record from 1991-93 as well as a 22-7-1 overall record. This included an Ivy League title in 1991 and a share of the crown with Princeton in 1992.
Fiedler is most well known nowadays as the man who took over for the legendary Dan Marino in Miami. Fiedler led the Dolphins to the NFL playoffs in 2000 and looks to do so again this season after he recovers from recent hip surgery.
Joining Fiedler in the NFL is three-time All-Ivy linebacker Zack Walz '98, a former sixth round draft pick of the Arizona Cardinals who has seen little playing time despite leading the Big Green to an undefeated season in 1996.
Football isn't the only sport which Dartmouth sends professional players to. All-star reliever Mike Remlinger is a member of the Dartmouth Class of 1988. The Atlanta Brave lefty is in the midst of a career season, as is reflected by his recent selection to his first career All-Star game.
Remlinger led Dartmouth to an Ivy League baseball crown in 1987 and was named to the All-Ivy squad for his 4-1 season. Remlinger has previously been a part of the Cincinatti Reds, New York Mets and San Francisco Giants organizations. He has a career record of 44-38 with a 3.82 E.R.A.
Joining Remlinger in the ranks of Major League Baseball is Houston Astros catcher Brad Ausmus '91. Ausmus has bounced around the Majors since his debut in 1993, but has started consistently since 1994 with the San Diego Padres.
New York Mets utility man Mark Johnson '90 is also a Dartmouth grad and a former All-Ivy selection as well.
Dartmouth has added new names to that list as Conor Brooks '00 and Brian Nickerson '00 have since gone pro, with Brooks getting drafted by the Oakland Athletics and Nickerson signing a contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Dartmouth has also contributed several basketball players to the pro ranks, with Crawford Palmer '92 and Greg Buth '01 both playing ball in Spain and James Blackwell '91 toiling in Turkey. Palmer also played for the French Olympic Basketball team.
Not content with merely sending players to the pros, another Dartmouth grad is also quite visible in the front office. Mike Brown '57 is the former General Manager of the Cincinnati Bengals, as well as its current owner and team president. Brown has been involved with team for decades prior to accepting his current position in 2000.
Far from sending its star athletes to the pros only, Dartmouth has a long history of sending its best and brightest to the Olympics. At the Sydney Olympics in 2000, Adam Nelson '97 and Ted Murphy '94 won Silver Medals, Nelson in the shot put and Murphy in pairs rowing.
This year, Cherie Piper '06 won a gold medal as part of the Canadian Women's Hockey team, following Sara Tueting '98 and Gretchen Ulion '92 who won Women's Hockey Gold for the United States in 1998. The Salt Lake City games also saw the death of Jack Shea '34 who won a pair of Olympic golds in speedskating at Lake Placid in 1932. Shea is the grandfather of Olympian Jim Shea Jr. who won a gold medal in the skeleton at Salt Lake City.
The Dartmouth ski team has also amassed a phenomenal record in sending athletes to the Olympics. Since its inception, the ski team has sent 86 skiers to the Olympic Games.
