Junior tailback Nick Palazzo, who missed the last game with a hamstring injury, is uncertain as to whether or not he will see action tomorrow.
With its two leading running backs possibly on the sideline, the bulk of the Crimson carries will likely fall into the hands of senior tailback Rodney Thomas.
Thomas is spending his first year in the offensive backfield after moving from the defensive safety position during spring practices. Thomas has racked up 177 yards on 50 carries this year for the Crimson.
With the running game and quarterback situation not optimal, the defense will need to step up the intensity.
“I think it does put a little bit more pressure on the defense,” said sophomore linebacker Dante Balestracci. “The offense may not be clicking on all cylinders right off the bat and we are going to have to play a very good game to keep Dartmouth under wraps.”
Luckily for Harvard, its opponent this weekend is not among the elite of the Ivy League.
Despite its record, Dartmouth has shown signs of brilliance at times this season. The Big Green started the year on a tear, losing to reigning Ivy Champion Penn (5-0, 3-0) by one point, after a PAT was blocked with just over a minute to go. Then, one week later, Dartmouth came through in the spoiler role by upending Yale, 32-27.
Big Green senior quarterback Greg Smith was third in Division I-AA for passing yardage, averaging 346 yards a game. Unfortunately for Dartmouth, Smith broke a finger on his throwing hand against Holy Cross. Freshman quarterback Evan Love has taken over in Smith’s absence.
Dartmouth lost to Holy Cross 49-17 that afternoon and then lost to traditional Ivy basement dweller Columbia, 27-20, last week.
Since Smith’s injury, Dartmouth has been led by running back Michael Gratch. Gratch is currently fourth in the Ivy League in yards per game, averaging 89 yards a contest.
“Gratch is an excellent player,” Balestracci said. “He is having a great year.”
One of the keys to the Harvard game plan will be shutting down Gratch, similar to the way the Crimson attempted to shut down Cam Atkinson of Princeton.
“[Gratch] runs the ball real hard,” Balestracci said. “Kind of similar to Atkinson.”
Gratch has rushed for over 100 yards in each of the Big Green’s last two games.
The passing game, engineered by Love, has yet to work out its kinks. Last week against Columbia, Love managed just 104 yards passing while throwing two interceptions.
Love’s favorite targets are running back Gratch and wide receiver Dan Anderson. Both Gratch and Anderson had three completions last week for a combined 54 yards.
“I think every week we basically go into the game doing the same things,” Balestracci said. “Our biggest goal is trying to shut down the run, we have to be physical and try to do that, hopefully it’ll carry over to our passing game and we can will have a good defensive effort on the whole.”
Kickoff for tomorrow’s game is slated for 1 p.m. at the Stadium.