Yale vs. Dartmouth

Sat., Oct. 12 p.m. – 12 p.m
Yale Bowl, Vintage 1954 Field
New Haven, Connecticut
ESPN+ video | Live statistics

NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Team 151 is back in action with its second Ivy game of the season at home as the Dartmouth Big Green rolls into New Haven for a noon game against the Bulldogs. Yale earned a thrilling 23-22 victory over Central Connecticut in its home opener last weekend. Kickoff at Yale Bowl, Class of 1954 Field is scheduled for noon and the game can be watched on ESPN+ with Justin Gallanty and Jack Siedlecki.

What you need to know:

• Yale has won its last two meetings against Dartmouth, dating back to October 8, 2022. In 2023, the Bulldogs defeated the Big Green in Hanover 31-24. The win was Yale's first at Dartmouth since 2010. The Bulldogs had previously lost their last five games at Memorial Field.
• The last meeting at the Yale Bowl, Class of 1954 Field, was a 24-21 win in favor of the Bulldogs in 2022.
• Dartmouth enters the game with a 3-0 overall record and picked up its first Ivy win of the season with a 20-17 home win over Penn last weekend.
• It is the first time since 2021 that Dartmouth has started the season with three straight wins.
• Quarterback in Yale's home opener win over CCSU Grant Jordan recorded his first career touchdown pass while Luke Foster recorded his first career touchdown.
• The Bulldogs are ranked No. 3 in the FCS^approx Down conversion with a conversion rate of .478.
• At the defensive end Abu Kamara has had a productive year, currently ranks third in FCS football in total tackles (33) and leads the FCS in solo tackles per game (9.3).
• Dartmouth is the Bulldogs' second Ivy game of the season and the second of three home games for the preseason favorite as they clinch their third straight Ivy title.
• Tony Reno, the Bulldogs' 1954 Joel E. Smilow head coach and in his 12th season at the helm, earned his 69th win at Yale last Saturday. He is two wins shy of tying Jack Siedlecki (71) for second place in program history for wins by a coach.
• The Bulldogs are coming off a memorable 2023 season. After losing its first two games – against Holy Cross and Cornell – Yale won seven of its last eight games, including a 23-18 victory over Harvard in the finals that secured an Ivy championship. The Bulldogs, who finished 7-3 overall and 5-2 in Ivy play, shared the crown with Harvard and Dartmouth.
• Yale is the preseason favorite to win a third straight Ivy title, but by a narrow margin. In the league's official preseason media poll, the Bulldogs received six of the 16 first-place votes and finished with 114 points, six more than second-place Harvard, which received seven first-place votes. Penn (2 first-place votes, 88 points) is third, while Princeton (1 first-place vote) and Dartmouth each had 80 points. Brown (56 points), Cornell (26) and Columbia (24) round out the survey.
• Yale is looking to win three straight Ivy titles for the first time since 1979-81.
• The Bulldogs return four All-Ivy selections from a year ago. Run back Josh Pitsenberger was a second-team selection and also an offensive lineman Michael Bennett, Defensive lineman Alvin Gulley, Jr. and defensive back Sean Guyton were honorable mentions. Pitsenberger, Gulley, Guyton, kick returner Joey Felton, tight end Ry Yates, and defensive lineman Dylan Yang were named preseason All-Ivy by college football analyst Phil Steele.

History lessons

Saturday's game will be the 107th meeting ever between Yale and Dartmouth. The Bulldogs lead the series 56-44-6, which dates back to 1884; a game Yale won 113-0. While Yale won nine straight times against the Big Green from 2003 to 2011, Dartmouth had won four straight times (2012 to 2015).

Exploring Dartmouth

• The Big Green enter Saturday undefeated on the season with an overall record of 3-0 and are 1-0 in Ivy play. It is the first time since 2021 that Dartmouth has won three straight to open the season. They were voted by media members to finish fourth in the 2024 Ivy League Football Preseason Poll.
• In their last game, Dartmouth defeated Penn 20-17 in the Ivy opener. Trailing 14-10 at halftime, the Big Green erased the deficit while limiting the Quakers to just one field goal in the entire second half. Paxton Scott set a career high with 10 receptions for 75 yards and a touchdown. Chris Corbo posted the best performance of his career with seven receptions for 51 yards and his second touchdown of the season.
• Owen Zalc, named Ivy Special Teams Player of the Week for the second straight year, was a bright spot for Dartmouth.
• Against Penn in the Ivy opener, Zalc made both field goals he attempted – 42 yards in the second quarter and 39 in the fourth in the Big Green's win. His 39-yarder six seconds into the fourth gave Dartmouth a 20-14 lead and was the difference in the first Ivy win of 2024. This season he is 6-7 on field goals and 9-9 on extra-point field goals, his only miss being a 50-yarder.

Looking ahead

Yale concludes its three home games on Saturday, October 19, by welcoming Lehigh to the Yale Bowl, Class of 1954 Field. Kickoff is scheduled for noon in New Haven.