After opening the season with two losses, the Dartmouth football team will seek its first win of the season as the team opens its Ivy League schedule this weekend against the University of Pennsylvania.
The Big Green will need to have a strong showing in order to defeat Penn, which was picked to finish second in the Ivy League preseason media poll.
Dartmouth (0-2, 0-0 Ivy) has already shown vast improvement from last year's winless season, and will look to build on its solid outing against the University of New Hampshire.
Last week, the Big Green was able to keep pace with the Wildcats for the first half before falling 44-14. More importantly, the Big Green offense was able to hold its own against a top FCS team, gaining 314 total yards.
An integral part of the Big Green offense this season has been the establishment of a solid running game. Last year, the offense seemed one-dimensional at times, but the addition of a ground attack has changed the offensive gameplan.
Running back Nick Schwieger '12 has been able to find holes and push through opposing defenses, averaging 4.8 yards per carry.
A strong running game will be crucial to the Big Green's chances against Penn. Last year, Penn held Dartmouth to an abysmal five yards on the ground a number that head coach Buddy Teevens said Dartmouth will have to improve upon.
"What running does is it helps you play-action pass and also drop back protection," Teevens said. "People aren't as ready to tee off on us as they have been in the past, so it's very important that we run the football effectively."
The improved running game can partly be attributed to a much-improved offensive line, which was consistently able to create holes for Schwieger and protect quarterback Alex Jenny '10.
Jenny was roughed up in last year's game against New Hampshire, but was only touched by the Wildcat defense twice on Saturday, and threw for 166 yards.
Dartmouth's offensive line will have to hold its own against a very strong Penn defensive line that boasts one of the top linemen in the Ancient Eight, Joe Goniprow. The experienced Penn secondary will also challenge the Big Green's offense.
Apart from running the ball, the offense must also limit its mental miscues. The strong offensive showing against New Hampshire was negated by five turnovers, three of which came in the red zone.
"When you turn the ball over five times against anybody, you're not going to have success," Teevens said. "We helped UNH beat us last week we can't do that and expect to have success. We can't help them, so we've got to take care of our business and be sharp in terms of our assignments and responsibilities."
On the defensive side of the ball, Dartmouth will need to execute its game plan and prevent mistakes that allow the opposing team to create big plays. Last week, the defense allowed a 65-yard pass that eventually led to a touchdown and was unable to stop the Wildcats from scoring on a third-and-15 situation.
"We broke coverage on a couple of occasions, let people run free, and they got chunk yardage," Teevens said. "Those are the assignments that we can't miss."
Penn, meanwhile, will look to give the Dartmouth defense several different looks, running an offense that shifts formations and substitutes players in several positions. At quarterback, Penn will likely start senior Kyle Olson, as starter Keiffer Garton was injured in a 14-3 loss to Villanova two weeks ago. The running back position is also an area of concern for Penn, as both starter Michael DiMaggio and reserve Matt Hamscher are nursing ankle injuries.
The team views the matchup with Penn as a critical game and hopes that it can win and make a statement in the Ivy League.
"It's the biggest game so far," Schwieger said. "It's going to set the tone for our Ivy League play as well, and if we come out and are able to win this game, it'll kind of put us on the map for the rest the of year."
Dartmouth faces Penn at noon Saturday at Memorial Field.
