On Brown and Buckley: College and Quarterback Come Back

Most of them have arrived by now, The Young and the Chic, having portaged north in their of-course foreign cars. They're easy to spot. Every guy at Brown has a moustache.

No university in the Ivy League, or perhaps anywhere else, has cultivated as complete a reputation renovation as Brown has over the past decade or so. For years the poor step-sister of the Ivy League in academics--the preppie safety--and in football--no more than two wins a season between 1956 and 1972--the school in Providence, R.I., doesn't have to defend itself anymore. Hey, John-John there.

On the Up

Those who scoff at the influence of football on life at a college should check out the concomitant increase in grid victories and application forms at Brown. In 1972, the Bruins went 1--8; in 1973, 4--3--1; and by 1976, they had soared to an 8--1 record and won a share of the Ivy League title for the first time ever.

And while the boys in brown were scurrying with such success on the gridiron, every private school kid in New York City began dreaming of four years on the Providence River. And of bringing their unique life-style with them.

Amid the hanging plants of Andrea's, a campus saloon, you will see them on the right side of Harvard Stadium today--the Wine and Cheese and 'Ludes set. The two most revealing visits you can make at Brown are (1.) to the $3.95-burger-75-cents-extra-with-cheese eaterie, The Gate, where diners prefer to view each other rather than the food, and, (2.) to the University Book Store, an establishment the size of most shoe repair stores.

Touches of the old defensiveness remain: Brown students do not like being reminded that Providence looks like an old boot; they do not like being reminded that the grading system there--failed courses magically disappear from transcripts--bears more resemblance to most kindergartens than to serious universities; and if they major in "organizational behavior," they definitely don't want to talk about it.

But, then again, Brown tends to beat Harvard in football of late, and if the Bruins win this year, the Crimson can forget about winning the Ivy League for the fifth straight year.

What's more, the Bruins arrive in Harvard Stadium today red-hot, having won four straight games after two opening losses. With an explosive offense led by quarterback Larry Carbone and halfback Rich Villetta, the Bruins now stand tied with Dartmouth (3-1), one game behind Yale.

Puddles

But the Crimson should be a different team from the one that stumbled through the puddles in consecutive losses at Dartmouth (30-12) and Princeton (7-3). Senior Brian Buckley, the quarterback who led Harvard (4-2, 2-2 Ivy) to its best start since 1973, will return to the starting lineup today after three weeks out with a knee injury. Harvard's passing attack--dormant for the past three weeks--should return with Buckley although his favorite target, Ron Cuccia, remains questionable.

The Harvard defense will face perhaps its toughest test in Carbone and Co., but, then again, Brown probably hasn't faced a better group either. Captain Chuck Durst, linebacker Bob Woolway and cornerback Rocky Delgadillo anchor a defensive corps almost without weakness. Their iffectiveness will probably prove the difference. To the predix:

HARVARD 26, BROWN 20: A little like the 31-30 Brown victory here two years ago. The Harvard team looks elimination in the eye today, and comes up with its best performance. What the hell is "organizational behavior" anyway?

DARTMOUTH 17, YALE 9. Wishful thinking perhaps, but the Big Green is tough in Hanover. If Yale wins, it means they can afford to lose The Game and still win the Ivies. If Dartmouth and Harvard win, then the race descends into typical confusion and the Crimson is back in it.

CARTER 301, REAGAN 237: The biggest nerd from behind to top American politics' "organizational behavior" major.