Loosening the Bottle Cap

The Ivy League schedule is a quirky thing. The current configuration, (which has been around since 2000 and we're stuck with it for another decade or so), has presented an interesting quirk for Columbia in that Dartmouth seems to be wounding the Lions' opponents in the weeks immediately prior to when they face Columbia.

The Lions' last three Ivy opponents; Harvard, Cornell and Brown each played Dartmouth the week immediately prior to facing Columbia. And Penn played Dartmouth two weeks before hosting the Lions, but did not face an Ivy opponent in the interim week. Considering Columbia's decent performances against each of those teams this season, (we'll see about Brown), should the Lions send the Big Green a "thank you" note?

Well, since Dartmouth made Columbia look bad in their 20-7 win over the Lion at Baker Field in week 6, I don't think Columbia should be too grateful. But I do think the vastly different styles of play presented by the two teams are giving opposing Ivy teams a little trouble as they need to adjust quickly in practice.

The Big Green is a running team this year, and their best weapon has been QB Mike Fritz running for big gains on key plays. Columbia has had little success running the ball, and QB Craig Hormann rarely tries to scramble. Columbia has a multitude of receiving targets, and Dartmouth pretty much relies on Ryan Fuselier when they pass. The Big Green defense has had an inconsistent season, but has been especially burned by the big-name Ivy backs Mike McLeod and Clifton Dawson. Neither McLeod nor Dawson was the key reason their team beat the Lions.

There's also a considerable mental aspect to all of this. Dartmouth and Columbia have been the Ivy League's bottom-feeders for a while now, and the prospect of playing two straight games against non-contenders seems to be producing a little sloppiness by the second week. Harvard was crisp in its 28-0 rout of the Big Green at Hanover in week 7, but looked very beatable in their 24-7 win over Columbia a week later in Cambridge. Cornell looked strong in the first half against Dartmouth in the Big Red's 28-25 win at home in week 8, but the weaker play they exhibited in the second half carried over to the first quarter in week 9 when the Lions jumped to a 14-0 lead.

Call me crazy; but I think Columbia has really benefitted from all this. I also expect the trend to continue this weekend, even though the Big Green beat Brown and presumably the Bears will be more focused on a win to end the season on a better note. In this case, the tough way Brown lost last week is still probably on a lot of players' and coaches' minds. Trying to forget losses like that can be really tough and the Lions can capitalize on Brown's distractions.

So thanks Dartmouth, and I hope you don't find it rude if we beat in Hanover next season anyway!