By Steven A. Conn
Associate Athletics Director and Director of Sports
Publicity, Yale University
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| Yale topped Harvard 21-14 in their 133rd annual meeting. |
BOSTON, Mass. – In a rivalry that is known as The Game, Saturday’s
contest could easily go down as one of the true classics in the 133 years of
the Yale-Harvard football rivalry. Defensive back Jason Alessi batted down a
fourth-down pass in front of the Yale sideline with eight seconds left to secure
the Bulldogs’ 21-14 victory, preventing the Crimson from securing a piece of
the Ivy League Championship.
In a battle of
teams with opposite records, the Elis registered a milestone win with heroes on
both sides of the ball and on special teams. The senior class leadership and
performance was crucial today, but it’s hard to overlook the impact of the Yale
youth.
Freshmen scored
all three touchdowns, and a rookie quarterback, Kurt Rawlings, threw a pair of
scoring passes to Reed Klubnik. The last one was the game-winner with 6:47 left
in the fourth quarter, a three-yard play that capped a 14-play, 80-yard drive
that won’t soon be forgotten.
Yale took over on
that game-winning drive after Crimson placekicker Jake McIntyre was wide left
from 35 yards out. Rawlings, who completed five of seven passes on the
possession, mixed in timely tosses with runs by classmate Alan Lamar and junior
Deshawn Salter. The longest play of the drive was a Rawlings 13-yard run that
gave the visitors a first-and-goal at the Harvard 10.
Lamar, who scored
from a yard out in the second quarter to tie the game at 7-7, carried the ball
to the three before the third-down play that sent half of the packed Harvard
stadium into a frenzy. Rawlings dropped back to pass, looked to one
receiver who was covered, moved away to avoid a sack and then spotted Klubnik
coming across the end zone from right to left. Rawlings, who is likely the only
Yale freshman QB to beat Harvard, got the pass off before getting hit and
Klubnik jumped, secured the pass with both hands and came down in the end zone
a split second before being hit. The ball bounced to the ground, but the catch
and touchdown had already been made.
Alex Galland, Yale’s
double-threat kicker who also had a fantastic day punting, split the uprights
for his third extra point of the day as the noise in the stadium rose to a
level that could only help the Yale defense get into a finishing mode.
The Bulldog D, led
by captain Darius Manora (nine tackles), stopped the Crimson on its next
possession and forced a punt. The Harvard defense then answered with a stop of
its own and got the ball back for one last chance. QB Joe Viviano moved his
team from his own 20 to the 47-yard line before Alessi ended the Crimson’s
title hopes by batting down the final pass.
When you look at
the final score, it would be hard to imagine that the game was scoreless
through the first 25 minutes of play. However, the span included 11 punts and
nine penalties before Harvard cashed in on a penalty and found the end zone to
go up 7-0 with 4:46 left in the half.
The Bulldogs
bounced back with a 10-play, 68-yard drive that ended with Lamar (57 rushing
yards) bursting into the end zone. The drive appeared as if it would end in a
field goal attempt by Galland, but the sophomore lined up wide left and the
ball was snapped to holder Andrew Johnson. Johnson, a junior backup
quarterback, took a step forward and then jumped while throwing the ball over
the Harvard line. Senior tight end Leo Haenni had taken off on the snap and was
near the five-yard line when Johnson tossed the pass. Haenni had to come back
for the pass and landed on the three-yard line.
The fake field
goal was the first of two crucial, deceptive special teams plays, and the
second was just as surprising. Kicking off to start the second half, junior
Blake Horn bounced a perfect on-side kick 11 yards before finishing the play
with the recovery.
Rawlings and
Klubnik made the on-side kick significant by connecting on a 28-yard pass play
that put the Elis up 14-7. The Bel Air, Md., native dropped back and released a
perfect spiral down the right sideline. Klubnik, with a Crimson defensive back
(who got flagged for interference on the play) all over him, leaped to haul in
the throw in the right corner of the end zone. The receiver, who led the Blue with
five catches for 55 yards, got his left foot in before being pushed out of
bounds with 13:46 left in the third.
Prosperity did
not last long for either team. Harvard answered with a score five minutes later
to make it 14-14 entering the money quarter.
BULLDOG BITES
Yale, which leads
the nation in red zone efficiency, was 2-for-2 on Saturday… Kurt Rawlings led
all players with 74 rushing yards and a 7.4 average… The Bulldogs ended a
nine-game skid against Harvard by avoiding any turnovers… Senior WR Myles
Gaines bounced back from an injury at Brown to haul in four important passes…
Deshawn Salter had eight carries and converted a big fourth-down play.
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