Correction appended
This will be my last Power Rankings this spring, so why not prognosticate and speculate excessively four months too early? Here are the teams I'm most excited to watch this fall:
1.Men's Soccer
The class of campus, the men's soccer team has risen to the top of the Ivy League with effortless charisma to become a fan favorite at Dartmouth. The team took a share of the Ivy League championship last season, splitting with Penn, and performed admirably in the national tourney, discounting one extremely muddy, ugly game at Wake Forest.
The team will be losing some serious talent in the Class of 2009, including goalkeeper Sean Milligan '09, but the gents in Green will be retaining more than enough extraordinary players to compensate.
The highly anticipated return of scary-good carrot top Dan Keat '10, whose junior season and trip to the Olympics were sidelined by a knee injury, adds a nearly unstoppable midfield force to a pretty-much-completely-unstoppable forward, Lucky Mkosana '12, who will look to top an 11-goal freshman campaign. Look for the men this fall to stay atop the Ancient Eight and head even deeper into the Big Dance.
2.Football
Yes, I'm excited. I'm excited because Dartmouth football has absolutely nowhere to go but up. Let's face it -- the team hit rock bottom last year, and we all felt it, even those of us who couldn't care less about Dartmouth sports.It was embarrassing to everyone.
But football has the tools for success, and I'm interested to see what the team can do with them. We have two very talented QBs vying for the starting spot in Alex Jenny '10 and Conner Kempe '12.
The team has a new offensive line coach who has more experience in the Ivies than Eleazar Wheelock. We have an outstanding wideout in Tim McManus '11 and a strong supporting cast. And I hold, just as I did last year, that we have a great, fast, hard-hitting defense.
Without a threatening running game, however, the pass attack is covered, we can't keep possession, the defense tires out, gives up big plays, we get scored on or get terrible field position and we lose. Again. With a real running threat, though, the Big Green can control possession, keep the defense rested, present opportunities for Jenny and Kempe to stretch the field with their big arms and win. For once. If Dartmouth runs well, we win games. If the team doesn't run well, we lose. Either way, I'll be watching.
3.Women's Soccer
Buoyed by the talent of an impressive Class of 2010, our favorite fleet-footed females have a chance to keep up with the men's team this fall if they perform up to their ability. Last season was blemished by losses in close games that could have pushed the team to stardom -- the women lost two games in the Ivies by one goal and went to overtime six times during the season. This year, Dartmouth will be led up front by Myra Sack '10 and Kelsey Quick '10, who notched 10 and 11 points last season, respectively. Strong talent anchors a formidable defense, which will have to recover from the loss of goalkeeper Laurel Peak '09. Look for good things from the Big Green this fall.
4.Volleyball
Volleyball makes the list because the team is talented and has the potential to win, but mostly because it is extremely fun to watch. Generally, women's sports don't get nearly as many fans as men's sports at Dartmouth. Some people cite differences in athleticism, excitement or ability. While that is a matter of opinion, I disagree, especially when it comes to the women on the volleyball team. Volleyball is extremely fast-paced and explosive, with fast action and constant movement. It's also extremely tense -- no matter who's playing, a true blowout is rare because of the nature of the game.
You can always count on good action and competition at a Big Green volleyball game. Oh, and the shorts don't hurt either.
The original version of this article incorrectly stated that the Dartmouth men's soccer team would be losing Craig Henderson '09 next season. In fact, Henderson will continue to play with the team next year.
