Skip navigation

Dartmouth apologizes for football brawl

Melee began when Holy Cross players celebrate win atop Dartmouth 'D'

Video: Football from NBC Sports
Pitt prepared for aggressive Irish attack
Nov. 11: Pittsburgh head coach Dave Wannstedt says he expects Notre Dame to rebound after recent setbacks and come out strong.

Special feature
Ohio State v Penn State
Predictions 101: Ohio State to roll, N.D. to win squeaker
Stanford will stun Southern Cal again, while No. 4 TCU will dominate.

NBCSports.com

Slideshow
North Carolina v Virginia Tech
  College cheer
Check out some of the college football cheerleaders from across the country.
updated 9:51 p.m. ET Oct. 19, 2006

The Dartmouth athletic department and football team apologized for the fight that broke out at the end of its game with Holy Cross last weekend as the college and police continued to investigate the incident.

After winning in overtime, Holy Cross players celebrated atop the Dartmouth “D” painted on the field, and fights broke out when the teams lined up for post-game handshakes. Some players were thrown to the ground and kicked. Coaches, campus security and Hanover police broke it up. No one was hurt.

“It is obvious that many players and some staff of both teams were involved in this incident,” athletic director Jo Ann Harper said Thursday. But she said she was not able to identify specific participants.

Story continues below ↓
advertisement | your ad here

“Coach (Buddy) Teevens, his staff and his players have acknowledged that the actions displayed Saturday were not in keeping with acceptable standards of behavior at Dartmouth, nor with the great traditions of Dartmouth football and Dartmouth athletics in general,” Harper said. “They join me in apologizing to the Dartmouth community, the Holy Cross community and the public.”

The game wasn’t televised and the fight so unexpected and short that the cameraman filming the game for Dartmouth caught only the end.

Police Chief Nicholas Giaccone has said the video hasn’t been very useful. He said punches were thrown, but he’s relying more on memory than video.

“For me to say what an individual person was doing ... there was too much going on,” he said.

Slide show
Image: AEK Athens' Nemeth reacts after a Europa League soccer match against BATE Borisov in Athens
  Week in Sports Pictures
Flying on the hardwood, racing on the rink, getting physical on the gridiron, and much more.

more photos

Harper said she has concluded her investigation and turned information over to Dartmouth’s dean for review.

Acting Dean Daniel Nelson says if his review finds sanctions are warranted against individuals or the team under Dartmouth’s standards of conduct, the matter will be handled through the normal disciplinary process.

Holy Cross will not discipline its players, sports information director Charles Bare said.

“We did not see anything from any Holy Cross players that warranted disciplinary action,” Bare told the Boston Herald.

© 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Sponsored links