New Hampshire 2015 Football Season Preview

Life in the Granite State can be serene, but play on the gridiron is still as fierce as ever, with a number of collegiate teams taking the field every Saturday during the Fall. Chief among them is a member of the Ivy League, the Dartmouth Big Green. Not to be left out, professional football also has its fans, with most of them focused on the everyday doings of the New England Patriots. While that connection has been there for more than a half-century, it's a hold that's only gotten tighter through four Super Bowl titles, including the most recent one in February 2015.

Dartmouth Big Green 2015 Football

Head coach Buddy Teevens has had two stints at Dartmouth, the first coming from 1987-91 and the second beginning in 2005. In the past 11 years, Teevens has righted the ship after five rough years, including an 8-2 finish overall in 2014. One of the key architects of Teevens' offensive unit is quarterback Dalyn Williams, who is dangerous both passing and running. During the 2014 college football season, Williams threw for over 2,100 yards and 21 touchdowns, while also finishing with 444 yards rushing.

Williams made sure his passes were sharp, completing just over two-thirds of his 268 passes and throwing a mere three interceptions. Accuracy like that is one reason why the Big Green can be considered a strong contender for the Ivy League title. The team's leading rusher, Kyle Bramble, is also back after gaining 655 yards and scoring five touchdowns. What makes Bramble especially valuable to the Big Green offense is his pass catching ability.

The top three receivers from 2014, Ryan McManus, Victor Williams and Bramble, will all return, with McManus the key component of this group. Last year, he caught 68 passes for close to 900 yards and cross the goal line eight times. On defense, Cody Fulleton figures to provide plenty of support on the line from his end position, while the linebacking unit stands as the strength of this side of the ball. That's because the top two tacklers in Will McNamara and Zach Slafsky are joined by big play man Folarin Orimolade.

McNamara and Slafsky were involved in a total of 148 tackles during the 2014 college football season, with McNamara adding two interceptions and Slafsky a pair of sacks. Meanwhile, Orimolade led the team with both 6.5 tackles-for-loss and 4.5 sacks, notable numbers considering he only had 18 tackles for the entire year. In the secondary, cornerback Vernon Harris brought down 50 opposing ball carriers, knocked away eight passes and intercepted three passes. At strong safety, Troy Donahue deflected six passes and collected 46 tackles on the year to go along with his team-high four interceptions.

NFL Teams Supported by New Hampshire Football Fans

Since NH doesn't have an NFL team, most fans look to New England to enjoy some New Hampshire online sports betting action. Simple geography would show that the New England Patriots are the NFL team that most residents of New Hampshire root for when they watch NFL action. From Manchester, it's just over 100 miles to Gillette Stadium, with other cities even closer. Such is the support for the Patriots in the state that the University of New Hampshire will actually have a class for the fall 2015 semester devoted to the Deflategate scandal, which will be part of the Social Science department. Given the fact that no other NFL team will be located anywhere near New England in the future, the chance of the Patriots losing their New Hampshire fan base seems remote.