Fordham Turns It Around After 20 Minutes

The Harvard players jogged--no, in fact, they sprinted--to the locker room at halftime. Even though up 21-7, they sensed a changing of the guards. After a near-flawless 20 minutes of football, the Crimson's domination began to falter and it was running for cover.

After easily streaking up the field for their third touchdown of the day, Harvard appeared to be in the midst of a blowout. The next drive, however, began what turned out to be an entirely new game. In just 4:56, the Fordham Rams broke through the unsteady Harvard defense for a quick seven points. Then after a brief Harvard possession, the Rams regained control and drove down the field to the Harvard two yard line. Stopped only by the halftime whistle, the Rams were definitely on a mission.

The second half turned out to be an even bigger nightmare for the Crimson. Fordham outplayed Harvard both defensively and offensively and turned a sure victory for the home team into a fierce battle. The 5,000-plus crowd on hand appeared stunned by the quick shift of momentum.

Unbeknownst to the fans, however, the cause of this sudden turnaround started much earlier than the second quarter. Captain linebacker, Justin Frantz, admitted that even before the game, the Crimson showed signs of complacency.

"We went into the game with a bad attitude," Frantz said. "We just thought we were just going to be so much better than them that we wouldn't even have to show up to play."

At halftime, the Crimson was awakened by the Fordham intensity and sudden rush of confidence, but by that time it was too late. Spearheaded by quarterback Joe Moorhead's 367 passing yards and running back Charles Davis' 91 yards rushing, the Rams outscored the Crimson 17-0 in the second half.

For two straight home games the Crimson have showed signs of true dominance, but have also allowed leads to dissipate. Clearly distraught over the loss, Harvard coach, Tim Murphy, gave credit to the tenacious play of Fordham, but was also dismayed at his own team's performance.

"They clearly outplayed, out-coached, and most disturbingly out-hustled us," he said, "We didn't maintain the mistake free football which we needed in order to win."

As the the players ran off the field after the game, they were no longer trying to run from the other team, but rather, they were running from their own demons. In order for Harvard to become a consistent squad, it needs to control and maintain intensity throughout each game. Only then can it control its own destiny.

Speaking for his team, Frantz could only mutter.

"I guess this just shows how foot-ball is such a game of emotions," he said.