Harvard vs. Columbia, 1877-1959

Veteran spectators who watched Cornell pull out a last-gasp triumph over the varsity last Saturday may have recalled another game with a similar unhappy ending -- the Columbia contest of 1956. In that game little Claude Benham tossed a 69-yard scoring pass to halfback Ed Spraker with less than three minutes remaining and gave Columbia a 26-20 victory.

The win, Columbia's last to date, came in one of the most exciting encounters in a series that dates back to 1877. Despite the span of 82 years, only 17 games have been played in the ancient rivalry, with Harvard winning 10 and the Lions seven.

In the 1956 meeting, the varsity took a seemingly secure 20-19 lead at 11:04 of the fourth quarter when John Simourian went over for a touchdown and Walt Stahura kicked the extra point.

Benham, the Lions' 5 ft., 8 in. quarterback, tried a short pass, which was almost intercepted by Harvard captain Ted Metropoulos but merely fell incomplete. Thus reprieved, Benham went to the air again, heaving a pass from his own 31 to the Harvard 33. Since everyone in New York's Baker Field was expecting a pass, Crimson safety man Matt Botsford was in position to deflect the ball. Deflect it he did--right into the hands of Spraker on the 25--and the Lion halfback covered the last 25 yards without a hand laid on him.

Columbia was not so fortunate in its first game against the Crimson in 1877. In those days before point scoring became the rule, the Lions lost to the varsity, six goals and eight touchdowns to nothing, and went down to three more losses from 1880 to 1882 without making a tally.

In 1882, football at Harvard was just beginning to capture the fancy of the undergraduates; it was in that year that the Crimson promoted the sport to a place in its "Sporting Column," lifting it from the department entitled "Brevities." On the eve of the Columbia contest, the Crimson observed, "The men do not fall on the ball enough; they must get accustomed to throwing themselves on the ball, instead of dancing round outside of a scrimmage, and expecting the ball to be kicked out to them ... Our men do not tackle hard enough; they should try to throw their man every time, and prevent his passing the ball ... our Team ought to have no difficulty in defeating Columbia today."

Indeed the varsity had no trouble at all with the Lions, tallying two goals and four touchdowns and shutting out Columbia. The next week the Crimson whipped Dartmouth by four goals and 19 touchdowns to nothing.

The series resumed after a 18-year break in 1900. Harvard won that year, 24 to 0, and in 1901, 18 to 0. Then the rivalry lapsed for 47 years, until 1948, when the two teams, ranked among the weak sisters of the Ivy League, engaged in one of the wildest games in Harvard history.

As Crimson mentor Art Valpey's debut neared in 1948, the veteran Columbia squad, coached by Lou Little and paced by quarterback Gene Rossides and halfback Lou Kusserow, was a solid favorite. The Lions rolled up 26 first downs, a record for the school, and 480 yards gained, but this was not enough. Harvard scored four of the first six times it had the ball, on a 60-yard run, a 16-yard pass after a running play had covered 54 yards, an 18-yard rush after a backfield fumble, and a 36-yard touchdown throw. The score at the half was Harvard 27, Columbia 10. The explosive Lion offense roared back in the second half, but could not overcome the varsity's early lead.

Six straight Columbia triumphs followed in the next six years, as Harvard football plunged to an all-time low. But the long years of suffering were nearly at an end. In 1955, the Crimson soundly whipped the Lions, 21 to 7, in the rain and mud at Baker Field. Benham engineered the varsity's defeat in 1956, but with his graduation passed an era in Columbia football.

In 1957, the varsity was on the long end of a 19-6 count. And last fall the Crimson won by the biggest margin it had ever run up in the series since point scoring came into effect. Columbia came to the aid of the varsity's faltering offense by fumbling eight times, with four of the bobbles being recovered by Harvard. Quarterback Charlie Ravenel bounced a pass off end Hank Keohane's chest and into the hands of center Pete Eliades on the Lion one-foot line to set up the first score. Ravenel tallied first, followed by Tom Lawson, Albie Cullen, and Glenn Haughie on a pass from Ron Johanson. Halfback Chet Boulris' punting kept the Lions at bay, and Boulris gained 66 yards rushing on 12 carries.

Today will mark the 18th meeting between the two teams. It has been a long time since either carried much weight in the Ivy League race, but the rejuvenated Crimson and the spirited Columbia squad with its revamped offense are rising to prominence again. A note of warning to the Lions: after its heart-breaking defeat by Benham and Co. in 1956, Harvard bounced back to outscore powerful Dartmouth 28 to 21. The varsity will be out for blood again this afternoon. Harvard Squad PROBABLE STARTING LINE-UP NO.  NAME  POSITION 80  CAPPIELLO, DAVID L.  E 84  KEOHANE, HAROLD J.  E 71  NELSON, K. ERIC  T 70  PILLSBURY, ROBERT L.  T 60  LENZNER, TERRY F.  G 68  WEIDLER, JERRY L.  G 51  ELIADES, PETER G.  C 40  BOULRIS, CHESTER J.  B 12  CULLEN, ALBERT F., JR.  B 44  HAUGHIE, GLENN E.  B 24  RAVENEL, CHARLES D.  B 10  Damis, John J.  B 11  Williams, Roy.  B 14  Repsher, Lawrence H.  B 15  Hunter, Robert L., Jr.  B 20  Watts, H. Grady, Jr.  B 21  Boone, Thomas H.  B 22  Ullyot, James R.  B 23  Adams, Myron J., Jr.  B 25  Halaby, Theodore  B 30  Halaby, Samuel A., Jr.  B 31  Bamford, Gilbert  B 32  Reed, Charles L., Jr.  B 33  Ward, David B.  B 34  Burke, Stephen S.  B 34  Barthelmes, Richard B.  G 35  Nelson, James A.  B 41  Leamy, Charles D.  B 42  MacIntyre, Bruce B.  B 43  Shipman, John S.  B 50  Watters, Edward A.  C 52  McLaughlin, Thomas C.  C 53  Christensen, Jon H.  C 61  Swinford, William S.  G 62  Hurley, William T., III  G 64  Baker, Richard H.  G 65  Gaston, Thomas L.  G 66  Wilson, Roger K.  G 69  Waterman, George H., III  G 72  Sheridan, C. Michael  T 73  Noel, Harlan M.  T 74  Greelish, William T.  T 76  Wile, Darwin C.  T 77  Brown, Kenneth R. Jr..  T 78  Nichols, Sargent  T 79  Ruschhaupt, David G.  E 81  Kirk, Paul G., Jr.  E 82  Boyda, Robert J.  E 83  Aadelen, Richard J  E 85  Jordan, Gerald R.  E 86  Hart, Alex W.  E 87  Cohen, Stephen B.  E 88  Messenbaugh, Robert L..  E 89  Juvonen, Harold J.  E

Columbia Squad PROBABLE STARTING LINE-UP NO.  NAME  POSITION 81  BOB FEDERSPIEL  LE 76  BOB ASACK  LT 61  TONY RADANO  LG 50  BOB McCOOL  C 66  GERALD BRODEUR  RG 79  ED LITTLE  RT 85  DICK HASSAN  RE 28  TOM VASELL  QB 33  DON SAVINI  LHB 34  STEVE ZISK  RHB 24  HARVEY BROOKINS  FB 14  Migliorisi  QB 18  Lombardi  HB 19  Congram  QB 20  Nozzolio  FB 21  Haggerty  HB 23  Cassidy  FB 24  Brookins  HB 26  Sakala  QB 27  Kirik  QB 28  Vasell  QB 29  Silver  QB 31  Darlington  FB 32  Maschio  HB 33  Savini  HB 34  Zisk  FB 35  Roche  HB 44  Warren  HB 47  Gerstein  FB 50  McCool  C 51  Galdo  C 52  Urban  C 55  Black  C 61  Radano  G 62  Forlano  G 63  Werben  G 64  DeLutis  G 65  Sheveck  G 66  Brodeur  G 67  Campbell  G 68  Blanchard  G 69  Holloway  G 70  Amkraut  T 72  Reilly  T 73  Minotti  T 74  Stanley  T 75  Sefcsik  T 76  Asack  T 77  Nauen  T 78  Schorer  T 79  Little  T 80  Reilly  E 81  Federspiel  E 82  Smith  E 83  Snavely  E 85  Hassan  E 87  Green  E 88  Anderson  E 89  Williams  E

Columbia Squad PROBABLE STARTING LINE-UP NO.  NAME  POSITION 81  BOB FEDERSPIEL  LE 76  BOB ASACK  LT 61  TONY RADANO  LG 50  BOB McCOOL  C 66  GERALD BRODEUR  RG 79  ED LITTLE  RT 85  DICK HASSAN  RE 28  TOM VASELL  QB 33  DON SAVINI  LHB 34  STEVE ZISK  RHB 24  HARVEY BROOKINS  FB 14  Migliorisi  QB 18  Lombardi  HB 19  Congram  QB 20  Nozzolio  FB 21  Haggerty  HB 23  Cassidy  FB 24  Brookins  HB 26  Sakala  QB 27  Kirik  QB 28  Vasell  QB 29  Silver  QB 31  Darlington  FB 32  Maschio  HB 33  Savini  HB 34  Zisk  FB 35  Roche  HB 44  Warren  HB 47  Gerstein  FB 50  McCool  C 51  Galdo  C 52  Urban  C 55  Black  C 61  Radano  G 62  Forlano  G 63  Werben  G 64  DeLutis  G 65  Sheveck  G 66  Brodeur  G 67  Campbell  G 68  Blanchard  G 69  Holloway  G 70  Amkraut  T 72  Reilly  T 73  Minotti  T 74  Stanley  T 75  Sefcsik  T 76  Asack  T 77  Nauen  T 78  Schorer  T 79  Little  T 80  Reilly  E 81  Federspiel  E 82  Smith  E 83  Snavely  E 85  Hassan  E 87  Green  E 88  Anderson  E 89  Williams  E