ITHACA, N.Y. — The crimson-and-white jerseys trickled out from behind Schoellkopf Field, where they’d met as a team after their stunning 17-14 loss to Cornell on Saturday afternoon. Then, the players stopped walking.
They had come to a disjointed group of Crimson fans and parents. A few members of the group clapped unevenly and briefly. One player ran his hand through his hair before ducking by and walking away. One player shrugged solemnly to his mother and father. The three stood there, saying nothing for about a minute.
“We out-Harvarded [Harvard],’’ said Cornell coach David Archer. “We pounded the ball, we were tough, committed to the run game, took shots when we had to, were gritty, took care of the football, and made plays when we had to.’’
The Crimson (2-2, 1-1 Ivy League) arrived having not allowed 100 yards rushing in a game to the Big Red (1-3, 1-1) since 2005. Then, Cornell ran for 233 yards. The Crimson arrived winners of 11 straight against the Big Red, who were winless, with twice as many turnovers (12) as total touchdowns (six). Cornell turned the ball over only once and quarterback Jake Jatis scored on a pair of 2-yard rushing touchdowns.
The Crimson departed having lost the game they were never supposed to lose.
“[Cornell] had a lot of opportunities,’’ Harvard coach Tim Murphy said. “We have to stay on the field longer as an offense. It’s a team game in that respect. The bottom line is that their game plan clearly was to milk the clock, limit the possessions of our offense, and make it a tight game.’’
Harvard’s quick-strike offense presented no problems at first. With darts up the seam to big targets, Harvard freshman quarterback Jake Smith swiftly worked his team into scoring position. A 34-yard completion to Ryan Reagan put Harvard deep in Cornell territory, where Lavance Northington polished off the drive with a 1-yard touchdown. Then, with 9:43 to go in the second stanza, Smith hit Jake Barann for a 36-yard score and a 14-0 lead.
Yet that left Harvard’s defense on the field for long stretches. None of the Crimson’s 10 drives lasted longer than four minutes, and Cornell countered by playing selfish, its offense plodding and churning with zone reads. Six of Cornell’s 10 drives lasted 3:56 or longer.
Cornell switched quarterbacks based on its scheme — bringing in Jatis for regular starter Dalton Banks in running situations — and pounded the ball at a defensive line that was missing key rotation players Stone Hart and DJ Bailey. The Big Red constantly shoved their three-headed running back monster — Chris Walker, Harold Coles, and Jack Gellatly — down Harvard’s throat. Each had at least 12 carries and 49 yards.
“I thought for sure they were going to try to run the ball,’’ Murphy said. “If for no other reason than that they’d had so many turnovers in the pass game and got beat in so many games by turnovers.’’
Throughout the game, Harvard’s defensive line seemed to run to the line of scrimmage slightly slower than before. The big men in white and crimson began leaning on their kneepads. Then, early in the third quarter, Harvard’s lefty kicker, Jake McIntyre, pushed a 43-yard field goal attempt wide left and, run by run, Harvard yielded the advantage it had built. After Jatis snaked into the end zone with 5:35 to go in the third quarter to tie the game, it had disappeared.
“When a team is running the ball at you every single play . . . ’’ Harvard safety Tanner Lee said, trailing off. “We’ve always been able to stop the run. That’s what we pride our defense in. They did a great job today running it right at us and being consistent and running straight downhill.’’
One quarter after McIntyre’s miss, early in the fourth, Cornell kicker Zach Mays drilled a 27-yard field goal for what ultimately became the game-winner. On Harvard’s ensuing nine-play possession, a rested Cornell front sacked Smith three times.
The Big Red received the ball back with 6:03 remaining, clinging to a 3-point lead, and did what they had done so well all game. They ran, converting two third downs, including one third-and-9 with a 13-yard Walker rush.
Harvard got the ball back with 35 seconds left. Smith dropped back to throw, desperate to find a receiver downfield from inside his own 20-yard line. The Big Red defensive line swarmed with pressure, running him down.
