... Position by Position

DEFENSIVE LINE:

Harvard: The Crimson's all-senior defensive front has no peer in the Ivy League. Even after the loss of captain Bredan Bibro, Harvard has continued to stop the run and put relentless pressure on opposing quarterbacks. The line has 23.5 of the Crimson's 31 sacks, which means that Harvard has been able to maintain a pass rush without having to blitz often.

End Chris Smith, who set the school career sacks record last week, leads the team with 6.5 sacks and 10 tackles for loss. Tackles Chris Schaefer and Jason Hughes and end Tim Fleiszer consistently prevent other teams from running the ball effectively inside, and this unit has combined for 34 tackles for loss.

Additionally, Harvard has incredible depth at this position with sophomores Brian Howard, Chris Nowinsk and Brian Daigle. This has resulted in a rotation which keeps players fresh late in games.

Yale: The strength of this team is the front seven on defense, and the line has proven itself to be one of the best in the Ivies. Defensive end Isaiah Wilson has eight sacks and 12 tackles for loss. Adam Hernandez and Jim Smith have provided 10.5 more sacks for a defense which, like Harvard, has 31 sacks.

The Bulldogs play a five-man line and have some size, which has made them effective against the run.

ADVANTAGE: HARVARD

LINEBACKERS:

Harvard: Once again, this position is very talented. Last year's Ivy Rookie of the Year, Isaiah Kacyvenski, leads the team with 71 tackles and four fumble recoveries. Playing inside along with him is junior Scott Larkee, who has been solid against the run.

Outside, Harvard has a rotation between sophomore Mike Sands and junior Joe We idle. Sands Possesses great size and is an effective blitzer, while We idle is very quick and also can eat Rice Krispies with a spoon up his nose.

Yale: As mentioned, captain Todd Scott is really a middle linebacker. He is very solid and one of the best in the league. However, the Bulldogs have some youth and inexperience beside him, and Scott's replacement when he needs a breather after playing tailback is a freshman, Peter Mazza.

ADVANTAGE: HARVARD

SECONDARY:

Harvard: This unit, which was solid but not great last year, has matured into a group which covers the pass very well. Junior corner Glenn Jackson has six interceptions, and junior Derek Yank off has three picks on the other side.

Sophomore Aron Natale is as good a strong safety as there is, and he can stop the run, cover and blitz effectively. Even after missing couple of games with a hamstring injury, he is the second-leading tackler on the team.

Senior free safety Jeff compas is the leader of the group, a ferocious hitter who is one interception away from tying the school career record. Compas also has the distinction of being the first-ever four-years starter for Harvard and is six tackles away from being the second-leading tackler on school history.

Yale: The Bulldogs' secondary is porous. This unity is riddled by inexperience and opposing passers. The defensive backs are the weakness of the defense and can be exploited.

Three of the starters are sophomores and one corner is a freshman. They could have a long day because Harvard uses is passing attack to set up the run.

ADVANTAGE: Harvard

OVERAL DEFENSE:

Harvard has been amazing this season, allowing only three Ivy touchdowns for an average of 6.3 points per league game. Opponents have found running the ball to be almost impossible, since Harvard has always made run defense is first priority.

The Crimson ranks second nationally in scoring defense at 12.9 points per game and third in rushing defense with 79.6 yards per game.

This year, the pass defense has caught up with the run defense. In the past four games, the secondary has allowed just 35-percent completions touchdowns versus eight interceptions. This has helped make Harvard's pass efficiency ration fifth best in the country.

While the defensive front seven is the strength of Yale's team, the Bulldogs allowed 52 points to Brown and 37 to Cornell, both passing offenses. Since they are effective against the run, look for Harvard to test the secondary early and often.

ADVANTAGE: HARVARD

SPECIAL TEAMS:

Harvard: The Crimson has had very inconsistent performance from its kicking specialists, though the coverage has been good. The kickoffs have been handled by Jonathan Patton, Ryan Korinken and now Mike Giampaolo, none to the delight of Murphy.

Giampaolo also handles punts and place kicking. Since kicking the game-winning field goal against Princeton, he has not been as effective. A back injury has hurt his ability to get consistent loft on his kicks.

Yale: Freshman Mike Murawczyk handles the place kicking and punting duties for the Bulldogs. While he has only kicked two of three field goals, he has placed 18 punts inside the 20-yard line.

ADVANTAGE: EVEN