Dartmouth to honor pioneering late coach Buddy Teevens

From 1975-78, Teevens played quarterback for the Big Green, leading them to the Ivy League championship in 1978. After graduating from Dartmouth in 1979, he coached the Maine Black Bears for two years before returning to his alma mater in Hanover, N.H. to embark on the first of two head coaching stints at Dartmouth.

Teevens was at the helm of the Big Green from 1987-91, leading the team to Ivy League championships in 1990 and 1991. He then took the head coaching job for the Tulane Green Wave from 1992-96. 

After that, Teevens went out west and coached the Stanford Cardinal for three years, before returning back to Dartmouth in 2005, where he coached the Big Green for the next 18 seasons.

In his 23 years coaching Dartmouth, Teevens became the Big Green’s all-time leader in wins, with a 117-101-2 record.

More than for his prowess on the gridiron and sidelines, however, Teevens will be remembered for his concerted advocacy for the health and safety of student-athletes. 

While winning consistently, he championed safety innovations. For example, in coordination with the university’s engineering department, he led the development of a robotic tackling dummy, “the Mobile Virtual Player (MVP),” that has since been used by NFL teams and other college football programs. The robot reduces unnecessary contact and injuries during practice.

Announcing the posthumous honors the university will bestow upon Teevens on Friday, Dartmouth president Sian Leah Beilock stated:

“Buddy had a passion for helping student-athletes discover their best selves and perform at the highest levels possible, on and off the field. We will carry his life-long commitment forward through the new Teevens Center by sparking collaboration, research, and innovation for the benefit of young people nationally.”