Saturday's game will carry particular significance for both teams. Despite a 2-1 start, the Bulldogs (2-1, 0-1 Ivy) have an identical conference record to Dartmouth (0-3, 0-1 Ivy), as well as last year's champion, Harvard (2-1, 0-1 Ivy). The winner of this game will stay in contention for the Ivy League title, while the loser will likely drop out of the race for the season.
Last season, Yale crushed Dartmouth in New Haven, 50-10. The Bulldogs had a near-perfect season and came within reach of the Ivy title but were upset in their last game by Harvard. The Crimson, who also had an unbeaten record up to that point, took the 2007 league championship with that win.
Yale captain Bobby Abare commented on the importance of Saturday's contest.
"Dartmouth is in the same spot as us right now, despite being 0-3," Abare said. "If we lose this game, we're pretty much out of the Ivy League hunt, and if Dartmouth loses, they're out. We have to come ready to play."
The Big Green has shown significant improvements in some areas, but the team has also mysteriously under-performed lately in areas that are typically its strong suit.
On offense, Dartmouth seems to have stalled. After a 343-yard performance in the first week of the season against Colgate, quarterback Alex Jenny '10 has failed to produce the same product in the last two games, gaining just 299 yards through the air and watching his completion percentage drop to 55.4%, despite having a talented, consistent receiving corps at his disposal.
Jenny and his receivers will have to deal with a talented Yale secondary, including senior linebacker Abare, who earned national player of the week recognition after his 10-tackle, two-interception performance against Holy Cross last weekend.
When asked what his team is doing to prepare for Saturday, Abare was deferential in his description of the Big Green attack.
"We've been getting back to the game tape and learning what Dartmouth does well," he said. "They pass pretty well, they have some great receivers, and they have a very good running back, Milan Williams ['09]. Their offense is pretty good, and we'll have to prepare for them."
Williams, the Big Green's leading rusher, with 171 yards on the ground this season, has performed consistently, but is burdened by the lack of depth at his position. Williams has accounted for nearly 75% of the rushing attempts by Big Green running backs this season.
The defense improved its statistics against the Quakers last week, holding them to single-digit rushing yards in the first half. The poor tackling form seen in the first two games of the season also appears to have been resolved. Top performers Ian Wilson '08 and co-captain Andrew Dete '09 had 12 and nine tackles, respectively, while defensive backs Shawn Abuhoff '12 and Pete Pidermann '10 each had an interception.
The defensive unit, however, has yet to prove its consistency. The unit is still prone to giving up large gains, and by no means did it shut down the Penn offense.
They will have a major test against Yale, whose senior running back, Mike McLeod, is one of the top running backs in the Football Championship Subdivision. Bolstered by the help of a skilled and experienced offensive line, McLeod could be a dangerous threat to the Big Green's still-unproven defense.
In order for Dartmouth to succeed, Williams will have to have a big game. If there is a weakness in Yale's defense, it is their defensive line. The Bulldogs lost a number of starters last year, and they are now using a smaller, less experienced lineup.
"Our defensive line is a little smaller than last year, obviously," Abare said. "We lost some big guys up front, but the guys we have in this year are really quick. We have a different defense -- a little faster than last year."
As for Dartmouth's play on both sides of the ball, a number of players commented that it comes down to playing as a team.
"I think it just comes down to execution," wide receiver Tim McManus '11 said. "Against Colgate, we did have great passing attack, and we're capable of that every game, but we just need to execute better. Football is the ultimate team sport. 10 guys can be doing their job, and if one guy screws up, the play is over."
"I think it'll be a close game, hard-fought," said Dete. "I think if we play consistent football -- which we haven't -- there's no question in my mind that we can beat any of the teams on our schedule. The talent-level is pretty similar, it's just execution."
The Big Green machine will need to have all of its parts running smoothly if it expects to beat Yale.
Dartmouth kicks off against Yale this Saturday in Hanover at 12:30 p.m. The game will be televised live on NESN.
