Crimson JV Stops Dartmouth

The Harvard JV football team turned the Big Green into the Bright Pink by drubbing Dartmouth in the league opener, 27-7, yesterday at Soldiers Field.

"Our defense and offense worked hard today," Crimson Head Coach Bob McCarthy said. "Everyone did their job, and we didn't let up. The line, the quarterbacking, and the running was good."

The running, in particular, deserves credit for the rout. The Cantabs ran up 232 yards (and 15 running first downs) against the porous Big Green defense--and all four touchdowns came on the ground.

Fullback Dave Bunning led the surge with 95 yards on 18 carries, including one touchdown.

The strong running game gave Harvard quarterback Scott Svenson (3 for 7, 24 yards) little reason to go to the passing game. After watching his runners embarrass the Big Green defense on the first offensive possession, why pass?

On that series, Harvard began on its own 30-yd. line and promptly advanced up the field, thanks to solid running by Bunning, Bob Glatz, Mike McConnell, and Svenson himself.

Glatz culminated the drive with a Walter Payton-like jump over the defensive line into the end zone. And not once had Svenson put the ball in the air.

Dartmouth (1-1 overall), on the other hand, couldn't score until the fourth quarter. Apart from that sole touchdown, the Hanoverian possessions resulted in: three punts, two interceptions, a missed field goal, and two fumbles by the punter.

Big Green quarterback Tom Walko won't remember the game as on of his finest. Walko went 8 for 18 with two interceptions (by Richard Mau and Mike Von Rueden). He and his replacement, John Sipple, must have lost confidence in their offensive line--the swarming Crimson defense reached them for five sacks on the day.

The hard-hitting Cantab defense, combined with poor Dartmouth execution, provided the Harvard offense with excellent field position in the second half. Five of its possessions began in Dartmouth territory, three of which it converted into touchdowns.

In the third quarter, Harvard padded its 7-0 lead when Svenson scored on a five-yard quarterback sneak--set up by the running of Bunning and Svenson. However, the biggest play of the drive was a 3rd-and-10 completion to Mike Bunar for a first down.

On Dartmouth's next possession, its punter fumbled the snap on his 12-yd. line, giving the Crimson another chance to widen the lead--which it did. Wingback John Manning's run into the end zone, aided by a good block by Roy Lackey, increased Harvard's advantage to 21-0.

The Big Green averted a shutout in the fourth quarter when Walko completed a pass to receiver Mike Tyne for a touchdown.

But Harvard applied the icing on the cake when Bunning took a handoff from reserve q.b. Mike O'Connell for a three-yard touch-down run. The score stood at 27-7 after a failed extra point attempt.