Cornell Swamps Crimson, 41-14

ITHACA, N.Y.--Harvard football fans' worst nightmares almost came true today, as the Crimson's third quarterback of the season, Mike Smerczynski, was sacked in the second quarter. Smerczynski limped off the field, but the injury is only a sprain and he may play next week.

In the other news, a frozen and downtrodden Crimson football squad dropped an embarrassing 41-14 contest this afternoon here at Schoellkopf field.

With 9000 fans screaming "Goodbye Harvard," the Big Red twisted the knife ever deeper, adding a 79-yd. touchdown bomb from third-string quarterback Chris Metz to a streaking Jim Burry with less than a minute to play. The final score capped an afternoon that Crimson fans and players will want to forget quickly.

Harvard won the toss and elected to kick off. Cornell's game plan was to match its strength--rushing--against the Crimson's strength--rushing defense.

After four consecutive running plays and a first down, the Big Red struck into Harvard territory with a quick slant pass over the middle from Mike Tanner to tight end Paul Goodberlet.

But the defense toughened up, and after a roughing penalty on Cornell, the Crimson held the hosts motionless and forced them to punt.

Harvard also went to the ground but could not get untracked in its first possession. Duke Millard continued to show improvement, however, booming a 42-yd. punt to keep Cornell out of scoring range.

The defense quickly got the ball back on an impressive series featuring a quarterback sack by linebacker Bob Woolway. The offense stalled after running!for one first down. After a penalty and a sack, the Crimson was pinned deep in its own territory with a third and a mile to go.

Cornell then sent ten men in on Millard and a wall of red shirts slapped the ball into the endzone, where defensive end Kent Craven pawed the ball for the touchdown. Cornell added the extra point to put the Crimson in an early 7-0 hole.

After another uninspiring offensive series by Harvard, Cornell resumed its dominance, driving the ball down the field on the ground to close up the first quarter on the Crimson 31.

On the first snap of the second period, Cornell kicker Ron Rejda made it 10-0 with a booming 47-yd. field goal.

Harvard then started a drive as Ken Beatrice and John Hollingsworth worked left for a first down on two runs to the Cornell 34. But the Big Red smothered the drive when quarterback Brian McFarlin recovered a Smerczyski fumble at the Cornell 43.

Quarterback Mike Ryan, the Big Red's usual second-quarter signal caller, opened up quickly with a 15-yd. keeper to the 28. On third and six from the 25, from Ryan-to-Brad-Decker fell through the receiver's frozen hands with Terry Trusty covering in the endzone.

But the Big Red would not go down quietly, and the cannon-legged Rejda knocked in a 42-yd. field goal to make it 13-0 early in the second period.

With Beatrice working left on pitchouts from Smerczynski, Harvard began to drive upfield. On a second and five from the 47, Smerczynski was sacked and limped off the field. Joe Lahti then entered the game and immediately ossed a 17-yd. bullet that Richie Horner snared with a leaping grab at the sidelines on the Big Red 40-yd. stripe.

The drive then died--again with a Harvard miscue--as Paul Connors fumbled the handoff from Lahti on a slant right. Cornell's Mike Cobb jumped on it at the Harvard 45. The Big Red proceeded to roll once again, racking up big rushing yardage. An incomplete Ryan-to-Decker first-down toss at the Harvard 25 again brought out kicker Rejda for the field goal try. But this time he missed from 32 yards out.

Harvard suffered from footing problems on the slick Schoellkopf Astroturf, and a beautiful Lahti to Callinan screen on first and ten from the 20 died when Callinan slipped and fell. A key third and two at Harvard's 32 became disaster when the Crimson clipped and made it a third and seventeen. Lahti's toss for Horner went somewhere into downtown Ithaca, and Millard came in to kick.

Millard shanked the ball and gave the Big Red possession at the Crimson 42.

But Cornell could generate no offense, and Steve Day came in for his first punt of the afternoon, which Beatrice took on a fair catch at the Harvard 28.

The Crimson then worked from the shotgun but could go nowhere and Millard came on to punt again with 25 seconds to go in the half.

After a half-time show featuring Star Trek music, ROTC propaganda, and Cornell boys passing girls around in the crowd above their heads, football action resumed with Cornell suddenly taking to the air.

After only two completions in ten attempts during the first half, three big gainers within six plays brought the Big Red to the Crimson doorstep. Two quick rushes put the ball in the endzone with Bob Muha going over from the two on a pitch-out to the right. So with 8:26 remaining in the third stanza, Harvard trailed 20-0 and desperately tried to get some back by going to the air. Suffice to say that the most exciting moment of the drive for the Crimson was the announcement in the press box that this was Bob Cavileer's fiftieth year as the Harvard statistician.

Neither team could mount an offense on the next two series, but a holding call on a Millard punt gave Cornell the ball on the 42 with three minutes left in the quarter.

The air attack clicked again as Ryan launched a big gainer to Decker at the 10. From there, Ryan faked everyone out, tucking the ball behind his hip on a keeper to the 3. He then pitched to the fleet Tom Weidenkopf on the option to make the score 27-0. A pointless Harvard series of Lahti incompletes turned the ball back over and again put the defense to the test. On the first play, Ryan burned the lagging resistance, hitting a wide-open Mike Turley for 41 yards to the Harvard 19 before Scott MacLeod collared him.

Rolling left on second and eight, Ryan hit Turley with just enough for the first down at the Harvard 10. On a third and goal, Ryan's incomplete pass to Turley in the endzone became a bonanza when Harvard was called for interference and gave the Big Red a first down at the 1. On the nextplay, Weidenkopf went over the top for an airborn score. The Rejda kick capped a 60-yd. six-play drive that buried Harvard 34-0 with 13:11 left in the torture chamber.

Lahti worked on the ground when Harvard got the ball back and started to move the team. A 16-yd. toss to Horner moved the ball into Cornell territory at the 49, and a Cornell facemask on the following play turned a Beatrice run into a first and ten at the Big Red 32.

A big third and five from the 26 worked well as Connors took it straight ahead for a first down at the 21. On the next play, Lahti took his time, stepped up and hit Horner on a turn-in at the 5 and the fleet-footed receiver waltzed into the endzone for the Crimson's first points. A Dave Cody kick finally gave Harvard 7, making the tally 34-7 at 5:29 in the fourth quarter.

Cody's attempt at an onside kick almost worked as the ball scooted off a Cornell lineman's pad, but the Big Red covered at its own 45.

An ineffective Cornell series and punt gave Harvard a first at its own 45. A Lahti-to-Horner pass and a Cornell facemask gave Harvard the ball at the Cornell 22. Working out of the shotgun, Lahti threw three incompletes and the Crimson faced a fourth and ten. Lahti responded with a bullet to Beatrice for a first on the 10 as the fullback curled in under the linebackers.

Hollingsworth weaved for three, and Lahti kept for three more before the officials ruled his third-down pass for Horner was trapped and incomplete in the endzone. From the shotgun on fourth, Lahti hit Callinan in the gap for Harvard's second score. Cody kicked to make it 34-14 with 5:49 to play.

Another onside kick dribbled into Cornell's hands at the Big Red 45 and Harvard's attempt at a miracle again was set back.

A too-late break as George Jackson intercepted the ball on Cornell's first play, combined with a Horner catch at the Cornell 40 put the Crimson in motion again. The final hopes then died, as Lahti's shotgun pass for Callinan fell into Cornell arms at the Big Red 22, setting up the last Cornell score.