Potent Crimson running game spoils football's Homecoming

"We haven't been a dominant team," Harvard head coach Tim Murphy said. "We've just been an extremely resiliant, mentally tough football team."

Based upon the Crimson's performance during Saturday's 39-14 win against Princeton (4-2 overall, 2-1 Ivy League), Murphy may be guilty of understatement. The Tigers were outmatched and outplayed as Harvard (6-0, 3-0) continued its supremacy both within the league and over Princeton.

In a game that was billed as a showcase for the Tigers' defense and Harvard's league-leading offense, it was the Crimson defense that made the biggest impact. Princeton barely broke 200 yards of total offense and failed to capitalize on any of its 13 third-down conversion chances.

"The score shows that we had our tails kicked today," Tiger head coach Roger Hughes said. "We had our opportunities early in the first half, and then we turned around and gave them the ball in great field position. You can't do that against a great team."

In the first quarter — after Harvard's first drive ended in a field goal — the Princeton defense forced a punt on the Crimson's second march down the field. The snap went over punter Matt King's head, and Tiger sophomore defensive back J.J. Artis recovered the ball and ran it back to the Crimson 35-yard line.

Princeton could only advance it four yards on its subsequent drive's first three downs. Hughes elected to go for it on fourth down. Junior wide receiver Monte McNair ran a fade route down the right sideline, and senior quarterback Matt Verbit's throw fell into McNair's arms for the touchdown.

On Harvard's next possession, wide receiver Brian Edwards ran a reverse to the right sideline. As junior linebacker Abi Fadeyi went for the tackle, he plunged his helmet into the crook of Edwards' arm and dislodged the ball. Senior nose guard Peter Kelly recovered the fumble at the Crimson 22-yard line, and Princeton again started with great field position.

Senior tailback Branden Benson took the first handoff and picked up 11 yards. He equaled that total on his next touch, receiving Verbit's option pitch and scooting untouched up the left sideline for the touchdown to put Princeton up 14-3.

The Crimson responded in the second quarter. Quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick employed his favorite receiver (Edwards) and rusher (Clifton Dawson) as the team marched downfield. Harvard secured first-and-goal from the Princeton two-yard line, setting the stage for an easy touchdown for Dawson. Although kicker Matt Schindel missed the extra point, the Harvard offense seemed to be on track.

The Tigers went three-and-out deep in their own territory on their next possession. On fourth down, junior punter Colin McDonough could not hold onto a high snap, and he desperately drop-kicked the ball out of bounds at the Tigers' 20. The kick was ruled to be illegal, and Harvard took over at the one.

Dawson ran up the middle for his second touchdown of the day and 13th of the season, tying Harvard's single-season record. The Crimson failed to score on their two-point conversion attempt, but they still seized a 15-14 lead with 5:07 left in the half.

Princeton's next drive started strong with two first downs. That momentum ended on third-and-10 from Harvard's 45. Verbit looked left and deep downfield but was picked off by linebacker Doug Hewlett. Hewlett returned the interception 33 yards to the Princeton 41.

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From there, Fitzpatrick piloted his team to the 10-yard line. On third down, his offensive line gave him plenty of time to find wide receiver Corey Mazza on a post pattern in the end zone. This touchdown put the Crimson up by eight, 22-14, with 12 seconds remaining in the half.

The Tiger defense held Harvard scoreless in the third quarter, but the Princeton offense could barely stay on the field for more than three downs at a time.

"Our defense played a lot of snaps," Hughes said."There wasn't a whole lot happening on the offensive side of the ball."

Any hope of a Homecoming comeback was crushed by the Crimson's 17-point offensive explosion in the fourth. Dawson capped a 201-yard day on the ground with an 80-yard touchdown scamper with 6:46 remaining in the game.

"You can sulk for about 10 minutes," junior cornerback Jay McCareins said."Then you have to get over it and get ready for next week."