Harvard Stifles Dartmouth Rally, 17-10

Hanover, N.H.--They completely dominated the second half. They outgained Harvard by a huge 242-42 margin in yardage during that time span. They put together three solid drives in the final 20 minutes, and pushed the Crimson defense to its breaking point in the final minute of play. They didn't win the game.

For Dartmouth, Saturday's dramatic 17-10 loss to the defending Ivy League champions from Harvard was the one that got away. In a final five minute flurry that sent the local partisans into a state of frenzy, the Big Green drove to within one foot of pulling off a television script comeback, only to be turned back in the final 52 seconds--a minute that will be long remembered by those who saw the game.

For Harvard, it was another in a long list of "How did we do it?" victories experienced under the magical reign of Joe Restic, a coach blessed with a knack for winning the big ones. His team was pushed back, down, and around in the waning minutes, but the net result was the desired one: a Crimson win, a Big Green loss.

The first half was all Harvard, the third quarter a standoff and the final period a death spiral for the tiring Crimson. After an opening 30 minutes of intermittent success in which Jim Kubacki put two touchdowns on the board, the Harvard offense slowed to a crawl with nothing but a Mike Lynch 28-yard field goal in the third quarter, and came to a dead stop in the fourth.

Kubacki, bottled up for most of the afternoon, stung Dartmouth early with a 49-yd. scoring pass to halfback Bob Kinchen along with the left sideline at 3:12 of the first period. Following the early strike, however, the senior signalcaller managed only eight more completions in the game for just 55 additional yards.

With no coherent or lengthy offensive drives to speak of for the entire afternoon, Harvard nevertheless managed another score at 14:11 of the second, when Kubacki bucked through the line to cap a 39-yd. series, giving the Crimson a 14-0 lead. The drive, short as it was, originated when Green punter Steve Terrell collected only 11 yards for his mid-field kicking effort.

Though Dartmouth appeared to be teetering at the brink of collapse, it had no one to blame but itself. Putting six fumbles down for grabs (losing four in the process) and unloading punts which were poor by grade school standards, the Big Green spent the first three periods setting itself up for a killing.

Yet while Harvard was gradually becoming less and less effective as the afternoon wore on, the Dartmouth offense was busy trying to put some pieces together. By early in the final period, things were beginning to fall into place.

In the meantime, while the offense was on the sidelines muttering about the frustrating events of the day, the Big Green defense was busy keeping the ship afloat, hoping for some sparks of life. Those sparks were slow to come, though kicking specialist Nick Lowery did provide the Hanover crowd with something to cheer about as the second quarter drew to a close.

Displaying the soccer style that prc scouts love so much, Lowery boomed a moon shot field goal of 51 yards just one second before intermission, pumping some life into his distraught teammates. Prior to the 66-yd. drive which set up the long field goal, the Big Green offense had amassed negative two yards in total offense against Harvard's stingy defense.

The sparks of life grew into flame during the third quarter, though, and Dartmouth's running attack, featuring an injured but effective Curt Oberg and a speedy halfback named Sam Coffey, began to move the ball.

A drive begun at the Big Green 17 with three minutes left in the third period culminated in a touchdown at 1:20 of the fourth, when quarterback Kevin Case fought off a Harvard blitz and speared wide receiver Harry Wilson on a 29-yd. look-in pass play.

Wilson, who gave Harvard captain and cornerback Bill Emper fits all afternoon, found himself open in a space vacated by blitzing safety Bill Wendel, and when Emper slipped and fell behind him the Dartmouth senior waltzed into the end-zone unattended. Harvard 17, Dartmouth 10, and the Big Green on the move.

The Crimson's disabled offense showed momentary life on the next series when halfback Tom Winn busted up the middle for 33 yards, but the drive bogged down on the Harvard 43 and another Scott Coolidge punt was in order.

Coolidge, in the midst of an excellent afternoon, nailed a 52-yarder which fell dead at the Dartmouth five-yard line, and another Green drive got underway. This one moved smoothly to the Harvard 49 before stalling out on incomplete passes.

Punts have played an interesting part in Harvard's football fortunes this season, and the one by Terrell which followed was no exception. Unnerved by his previous flub, Terrell sent up a wobbler which fell to earth just eight yards upfield, providing the Crimson offense with some much needed breathing room.

Kubacki and the offense squandered some of that room with a bunch of penalties (one nullifying an important third down completion to split end Larry Hobdy), and a Coolidge punt set up the Big Green at the Crimson 44 with 4:57 left to go.

The final surge began with Coffey sweeping right end for 15 yards, followed soon thereafter by Case completions to ends Jeff Nadherny (to Harvard's 18) and Wilson on their feet in a state of shock: With a first down and goal to go at the Harvard three-yard line and 0:52 remaining on the clock, Dartmouth failed to score.

In the tension of the moment, the Big Green's thrusts were obscured by fan speculation on what the team would do after it scored the touchdown. A one point conversion would tie it, though most believed that Jake Crouthamel would opt for the daring and send his team in for a two-pointer and the kill.

He never got the chance.

On first down, the hard-hitting Oberg sliced through the line for a two-yard gain, and the ball lay inside the one-yard line. The clock ticked down to :27, as Oberg got the ball again and bucked into the line.

This time, however, Crimson adjuster Lou Rice led a defensive charge that stopped the star fullback cold at the one-foot line. Following a Dartmouth time out with 23 seconds showing, Case brought his team out one more time.

All spectators knew what was coming, and the Big Green's play selection did not disappoint them. Case took the ball from center, moved right, and began the hand-off to a charging Oberg. Ball, runner, and defense came together at the same instant, and Harvard was afforded one has miracle.

The football squirted out from between the quarterback and fullback -- apparently the result of indecision on the option -- and skittered back to the ten-yard line where Dartmouth back Jimmie Solomon fell on it. It was the only thing that could go wrong.

An illegal procedure penalty stopped the clock at :01, one last reprieve remained for a stunned Dartmouth team. Case took things into his hands, sprinting wide to the left with a rollout option.

Momentarily, the wide side of the field appeared to offer clear sailing for the potential hero. But Crimson linebacker Tom Joyce was equal to the task, corralling the runner nearing the endzone flag and dragging him out of bounds on the two-yard line. Before most spectators could digest what had happened, a jubilant team from Harvard was all over the field celebrating its incredible 17-10 victory.

The statistics for the game are far from impressive: Kubacki with a negative 33 yards rushing, Harvard with 180 yards total offense (Dartmouth 306), and fumbles galore. The Crimson offense managed only 19 plays in the second half, leaving the defense to fend for itself most of the game.

But the style of the victory was typically Ivy League, and marked another classic showdown between Harvard and a Dartmouth team that had reached an emotional pitch matched only by the frenzied Hanover student body.

With the Ivy championship back on its mind, Harvard moves on to its game with Princeton next Saturday, while Dartmouth contemplates the distance that one fumble put between it and an excellent chance at the league title.

It was the only thing that could go wrong. And it did.