Harvard's Disciplinarian of the 'Nastiest'

When senior tailback Nick Palazzo went down with a shoulder injury early in last Saturday’s battle against Columbia, freshman Ryan Tyler was suddenly thrust into Harvard Stadium’s glaring spotlight as the Crimson’s feature back. For many wide-eyed freshmen, the pressure of such a situation can be overwhelming. But as Tyler was about to find out, he was in good hands—the 10 monstrous hands of the Harvard offensive line.

Their names—Fadule, Traverso, Torinus, Bakken, Soriano and others—are much less familiar than those of well-publicized stars Carl Morris, Neil Rose, Dante Balestracci, Palazzo, and now even Tyler. But the offensive linemen are the silent warriors of the Harvard football team, the unspoken heroes of a championship squad that has now won 13 straight league games.

“The line’s success has been crucial to our winning the past few years,” says captain and All-Ivy quarterback Neil Rose. “Without controlling the line of scrimmage, you can’t win football games and you definitely can’t win a championship.”

For the Harvard trenchmen, the Columbia game marked just the latest in a long line of clutch performances. Their run-blocking has been superb throughout this season, catapulting the Crimson backs to nearly 170 rushing yards per game—good for third in the Ivy League—all while holding opponents to a league-low eight sacks. Most impressively, the offense has converted 9 of 11 fourth-down attempts this year, yet another testament to the line’s awesome strength.

But for all their accomplishments, the cohesion on this fall’s line was not entirely expected. A season after losing consensus All-American Mike Clare ’01, the Crimson graduated four starters from last year’s championship line, all of whom had received All-Ivy recognition. Many publications cited the offensive line as a potential problem area for the 2002 squad, and on paper they were right. But those close to the team knew better—they realized that Crimson offensive line coach Jim Turner is one of the nation’s best, and that his no-nonsense approach would not allow for mediocrity.

A Storied Past

When Turner joined the Crimson prior to the 2000 season, his reputation preceded him. A local boy out of Braintree High School, he walked on to the Doug Flutie-led Boston College squad as a freshman. By his senior year, Turner’s hard work and dedication as a fullback had earned him the respect of his teammates, as he was named captain of a 1987 team that included current Oakland Raiders linebacker Bill Romanowski. To date, he is the only walk-on captain in Eagles’ history.

After serving four years as an infantry officer in the U.S. Marine Corps, Turner spent five years coaching at Northeastern before aiding the nation’s top passing attack as an assisrant at Louisiana Tech. And while he does not immediately remember exactly why he left the Division I-A program for Harvard, citing only a desire for a wide body of experience, the Crimson is glad he did.

“He’s the best coach on the staff,” says 6’3, 270-pound senior center Nate Torinus, who has gained Turner’s admiration since filling in for injured sophomore Andy Smith.

“He gets respect from running backs, receivers and even defensive guys because he’s such a good motivator,” adds senior right tackle Jamil Soriano. “He tells things like they are, and gives confidence to a lot of people.”

A stern leader, Turner calls upon his military background in preaching discipline as the key to good offensive play.

“The only way people will work within roles is if they know discipline, so that’s the biggest thing,” Turner says. “Discipline and overall toughness and just teaching the kids that being tough as hell on every down is really going to be the difference on whether or not you’re a good offensive line.”

Given this approach, Turner can of course be quite intimidating as a coach. But as any veteran lineman will tell you, he is a straight shooter who is fair in his criticism.

“I used to be afraid to go to meetings because he would just rip me—he was on my back more than anyone I’ve seen here,” Soriano says. “But now, in retrospect, he’s on me like that because he knows I can be a good player. It’s not a personal issue, and he makes that clear.”

Not Just a Mad Man

But constructive criticism and high expectations are not his only forms of motivation—each year, he derives creative techniques to inspire his players.

Realizing that the opportunities to distinguish oneself—especially statistically—are few and far between for a lineman, Turner this year established the “Nastiest O-Lineman in the Country of the Week” award, each week presented to the best-performing and “meanest” Harvard lineman. He keeps a special tape of some of the most vicious plays, and uses the tape as motivation for all players.

“There really are times when you’re out there on that field, and it comes into your mind that you can make a play that can go on that tape,” Torinus says. “Honestly, when you’re in a situation like that, you get the extra motivation to take that next step and really finish your man off.”

Ultimately, Turner succeeds because he respects his players, and treats them like professionals. The mutual admiration between him and the members of the line fosters a situation conducive to success.

But despite all the players’ praise, Turner goes out of his way to deflect any commendation for the line’s performance.

“Give those guys all the credit,” he says. “The kids on this team right here are as unselfish a group of players as you’re going to get, and that’s why they succeed.”

And unselfish they are. Despite receiving a disproportionately small amount of credit for the Crimson’s success, they remain satisfied.

“If Neil has a good day, Carl has a good day, or Nicky P [Palazzo] has a good day, you know that you did a good job, just because they did so well,” says Soriano. “We all benefit from each other.”

And while their contributions may go largely unnoticed by many Harvard fans and in these pages, the same cannot be said for NFL scouts. Soriano and Jack Fadule, both imposing senior tackles, have drawn significant attention from multiple professional teams. Some have even suggested that the 6’4, 300-pound Soriano may be selected higher in this spring’s league entry draft than highly touted All-American receiver and Payton Award candidate Morris.

As far as Rose is concerned, it is due praise for his personal guardians.

“If the line is giving me time in the pocket, I know that we are going to win,” he says. “They allow me to do my job instead of worrying about protection.”

So if the Crimson’s big-name stars prevail this weekend to secure the team’s second straight Ivy title, they will do so because they have been standing on the shoulders of giants—or at least running behind them.