Harvard Tops Columbia in Ivy Opener

Harvard's superb halfbacks, Vic Gatto and Ray Hornblower, rambled through the Columbia line for 237 yards Saturday to offset an otherwise undistinguished team performance and provide the margin for a 21-14 Ivy League victory.

In the finest performance of his career, Gatto, the Harvard captain, gained 144 yards, scored one touchdown, had another called back by a penalty, and blocked like a tackle. Gatto's yardage moved him within 50 yards of the alltime Crimson rushing leader, Dick Clasby.

In general, however, Coach John Yovicsin could not have been wild with delight about the afternoon. Quarterback George Lalich, perhaps keeping the wraps on a little with Cornell scouts in the stands, was not impressive as a passer. He threw just eight times, completing four for 33 yards.

As in the team's first two games, Lalich's strength was his leadership. He scrambled most of the game, evading hordes of Lions on two occasions in the first half, and eventually threw the winning touchdown pass to Pete Varney early in the fourth quarter.

Defensively, Harvard met Columbia's early rushing challenge and beat it back, but had trouble containing the Lions' very talented passer Marty Domres, an accurate short thrower. Columbia's strategy was the strangest part of this day's game.

In an attempt to establish a running game and force the Harvard defense to tighten up, thus opening the air waves for Domres's soft flips, Columbia stayed completely on the ground for the first 23 minutes of the game.

Hard Rush

The ground game never was effective, so Harvard's front line kept a hard rush on all afternoon. Domres was forced to carry the ball 18 times, with only a very few rushes intentional. Late in the first half, after Gatto and new fullback Gus Crim had scored, Domres passed the Lions to a touchdown, climaxing a 45 yard drive with a pretty 28 yard completion to star end Bill Wasevich.

The 6'-5" senior finished the game with 206 yards, hitting 16 of 21 passes.

For the most part, Harvard moved the football very well from 20 yard line to 20 yard line, but had trouble putting it in the end zone.

In the first quarter, for example, Harvard took the opening kickoff and mounted a sustained drive in 16 plays from its own 27 to the Lion 12. Then a holding penalty got in the way, and the Crimson wound up punting.

Columbia ran four plays and kicked. Harvard had similar problems and dropped into punt formation. Center Ted Skowronski snapped the ball ten yards over Gary Singleterry's head, and the ball rolled back to the Harvard 13.

Fortunately, Columbia's strategy on the play had been to set up a good return rather than to block the kick. Single-terry had time to chase down the ball, run forward a few steps, and get the kick away.

Harvard got the roll, all the way to Columbia's 15 where, for some other-worldly reason, Lion receiver Rick Rose briefly fondled the ball and then walked away. Harvard tackle Fritz Reed alertly fell on it, and two plays later Gatto followed good blocking around the left side for the first six points of the game. Tom Wynne followed with the first of three conversions.

Midway through the second period, Harvard's Marine-turned-safety, Pat Conway, fell on a Domres fumble--induced by Mike Georges' hard hitting--at the Columbia 26. Gatto and Hornblower alternated plays to the two and then Crim rammed it home, behind the blocks of Reed and Tom Jones.

Neither team scored in the third period, but there were a couple of exciting minutes. With about six minutes left, Lalich had to eat the ball, was hit hard, and had to leave the game temporarily. Sub Frank Champi pitched wide to Gatto whose option pass bounced off several players, including Harvard's Varney, before Rose intercepted it.

Five plays later, Domres overthrew Wasevich and Conway made a fantastic interception. Sprawled full length on the field, the senior bumped the ball into the air off his forearm and then pulled it in only a few inches from the ground.

Columbia's 17,000 rooters took some heart in the final period. After Lalich hit the sophomore Varney for a 12 yard score--Varney has caught two passes in the last two games, both for TD's--making the count, 21-7, Domres moved the Lions to their second touchdown. He went over himself from the one with just over five minutes left.

Gatto may have saved the day on the ensuing kickoff. Taking the ball at his own six, he sped 40 yards 'to give the Crimson safe field position. Domres had another chance late in the game, but his drive stalled at midfield--and Harvard had won its Ivy League opener.