No room for error

As the football team seeks to end its two-game losing skid and establish a dominant position in this season's Ivy League race, this weekend will be all about making a difference.

"We haven't made that play to make the difference in [past games against Harvard], and that's going to be our focus this week, to make sure that we try to make those plays, those two or three crucial plays that will turn the tide and help you win," head coach Roger Hughes said.

Harvard (3-2 overall, 1-1 Ivy League) and Princeton (3-2, 1-1) have had drastically different fates in the Ivy League recently, but their past four games in Cambridge have been decided by a total of only fourteen points. The Crimson, however, is riding a nine-game win streak against the Tigers.

Not since Princeton's 1995 Ivy League Championship season have the Tigers defeated Harvard. But that's not to say the battles have been anything short of epic.

Two years ago, Princeton lost, 43-40, in overtime on a four-yard touchdown pass by the Crimson. Then-sophomore kicker Derek Javarone missed a 42-yard field goal that would have won the game in regulation. Combined, the teams amassed an amazing 1,081 total yards of offense in what was possibly the best league contest that year.

That loss still haunts some players on the team, especially given the fact that none of the current Tiger footballers have beaten Harvard.

"It's definitely motivating — I do not want to graduate without having beaten Harvard," senior offensive lineman Ben Brielmaier said. "Definitely, when I practice, when I'm watching film, when I'm studying my blocking techniques and assignments, that's all in the back of my mind to go out there and get a league win and beat Harvard."

Brielmaier noted that Cambridge is a "very unique" place to play, but hopefully for Princeton, it won't be too unfamiliar. The Crimson runs a very similar defensive scheme to that of Brown, which dealt the Tigers a 31-28 loss last weekend.

However, as Hughes pointed out, that similarity also means that Harvard got a preview last week of what to expect from the Princeton offense. One thing that severely hampered the Tigers last weekend was an inability to stop Brown's devastating running game, led by star tailback Nick Hartigan. The Crimson players are sure to take notice of that, particularly running back Clifton Dawson.

In the words of defensive coordinator and defensive line coach Steve Verbit, Dawson is in a league of his own when it comes to running, even compared to Hartigan. Verbit described Dawson as being about "three steps faster" than the Bears' Hartigan.

That doesn't bode well for Princeton, who lost 120 yards to Brown last weekend on missed tackles alone. Concerned that too many players have been going for big defensive plays instead of sticking to their assigned roles, the Tigers' coaching staff has emphasized patience this week in an attempt to diminish big-game jitters before this weekend's contest.

Harvard, however, is far from infallible. The Crimson had poor turnover ratios in its several losses so far this season. Moreover, the team's personnel predicament hasn't been so different from Princeton's — in fact, they may be worse off.

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Harvard lost a large chunk of its defensive unit this year and has been plagued by injuries at the wide receiver position. Quarterback Liam O'Hagan is a first-time starter this season and did not have his first interception-free game until a 24-17 win over Lafayette this past weekend. Previously, he had thrown nine picks in the first four games this season.

With a strong secondary that includes senior cornerback Jay McCareins, the Tigers are sure to pounce on any mistakes Harvard commits in the air. Considering the sunny and dry forecast, McCareins' and the team's speed will be a major factor in the outcome of the game.

"Clearly, we're built for speed on both sides of the ball, and when we got into those [muddy and rainy] playing conditions [last weekend], I thought it negated some of the advantages we had. Hopefully, on a dry field, we'll be able to recoup the use of our athleticism," Hughes said, noting at the same time that he didn't wish to make excuses for last week's loss.

If Princeton is to come home from New England with a win, the Tigers will need to recover the intensity, skill and poise with which they won the first three games of the season. If they can find a way to get the small edge that they've been grasping at for the past several years, they'll still have their Ivy League destiny in their own hands.