Dartmouth 38, Brown 13: Somber start to year turns celebratory with split championship

Dartmouth College football coach Sammy McCorkle holds the Ivy League championship trophy aloft during a celebration with the Big Green following its 38-13 win over Brown on Saturday in Providence, R.I. The Big Green’s win combined with Yale’s defeat of Harvard left all three schools with a share of the league title.

Dartmouth College football coach Sammy McCorkle holds the Ivy League championship trophy aloft during a celebration with the Big Green following its 38-13 win over Brown on Saturday in Providence, R.I. The Big Green’s win combined with Yale’s defeat of Harvard left all three schools with a share of the league title. Justin Lafleur photographs

Dartmouth College football coach Sammy McCorkle, right, is wrapped in an embrace following the Big Green’s 38-13 win over Brown in Providence, R.I., on Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023. The win gave Dartmouth a share of its 21st Ivy League championship.

Dartmouth College football coach Sammy McCorkle, right, is wrapped in an embrace following the Big Green’s 38-13 win over Brown in Providence, R.I., on Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023. The win gave Dartmouth a share of its 21st Ivy League championship. Justin Lafleur photograph

Dartmouth College running back Q Jones, center, looks back at Brown defensive back Aubrey Parker (7) en route to a 38-yard second-quarter TD run. Jones had a season-high 124 rushing yards and two scores.

Dartmouth College running back Q Jones, center, looks back at Brown defensive back Aubrey Parker (7) en route to a 38-yard second-quarter TD run. Jones had a season-high 124 rushing yards and two scores. Justin Lafleur photograph

Dartmouth College quarterback Nick Howard, rear, gets an embrace from running back Tyler Green (21) following the Big Green’s 38-13 Ivy League football win over Brown on Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023, in Providence, R.I., a victory that gave Dartmouth a share of its 21st league championship.

Dartmouth College quarterback Nick Howard, rear, gets an embrace from running back Tyler Green (21) following the Big Green’s 38-13 Ivy League football win over Brown on Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023, in Providence, R.I., a victory that gave Dartmouth a share of its 21st league championship. Justin Lafleur photograph

Staff report

Published: 11-19-2023 3:38 AM

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — The Dartmouth College football team finished in a three-way tie for the Ivy League championship Saturday after beating Brown, 38-13, at Brown Stadium.

Harvard, which began the afternoon needing a victory at Yale to claim the crown outright, instead lost to the Bulldogs, 23-18, in New Haven, Conn.

The Ivy League’s rules include no tiebreakers for its gridiron crown, so Harvard, Yale and Dartmouth share the championship, each with 5-2 league records. Overall, Harvard finished 8-2, Yale 7-3 and Dartmouth 6-4.

The Big Green’s last four football titles have been shared. Its last outright crowns were in 1996 and 1991.

The latter championship was earned under head coach Buddy Teevens, who served two stints in the job. Teevens completed his 32nd season last year, months before suffering what later proved to be fatal injuries during a March crash between he and his bicycle and a pickup truck on a darkened Florida highway.

This season is only the third time since the league’s 1956 founding that two-loss teams have finished atop the standings. Dartmouth, also involved in those occurrences in 1963 and 1982, claims 21 Ancient Eight football titles. That’s the most in the league history, although eight of those have been shared.

“We challenged each other, held each other accountable all season,” said coach Sammy McCorkle, who became the 10th Ivy bench boss to capture a crown in his first season at the helm.

“I’ve been on championship teams before, but there is something different about this group, what they had to face, what they had to endure and overcome. There are so many emotions right now, but I’ll tell you what. We’re going to enjoy this championship.”

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Dartmouth’s Q Jones ran for a season-high 124 yards and two first-half touchdowns while quarterback Jackson Proctor ran for 103 yards and a 78-yard touchdown. The visitors piled up 386 yards on the ground and controlled the game from the start.

Jones’ two TDs gave Dartmouth a lead it wouldn’t surrender, and Proctor’s dash sent the Big Green into halftime with a 28-7 lead. Proctor also connected with Chris Corbo on an 8-yard TD pass in the first half.

Owen Zalc hit an 18-yard field goal and D.J. Crowther added a 36-yard touchdown run in the second half.