Roll Over Columbia

A game like this begs the question—why hasn’t a slaughter rule been instituted in the Ivy League?

The Harvard football team (5-3, 3-2 Ivy) scored 41 points by halftime, a school record for first-half output, on its way to a 55-7 rout of Columbia (2-6, 0-5) at Wien Stadium on Saturday.

Sophomore quarterback Liam O’Hagan, assisted by backup Richard Irvin, led the team up and down the field, scoring six offensive touchdowns.

But the real standout plays came from the defense, which added three interceptions and recovered two fumbles.

With its third victory in the last four games, Harvard has begun to show that swagger that led it to a 33-6 mark from 2001-2004. But with Brown’s 38-21 victory over Yale and Princeton’s 30-13 win over Penn, hopes of claiming back-to-back Ivy titles are waning. Both Brown and Princeton have to lose at least one of their final two games for the Crimson to have a shot to tie for first.

This may be asking for a miracle, with Brown facing Dartmouth and Columbia, two teams that have combined for only one win in the league this season.

“We will control the only destiny we can control,” said Harvard coach Tim Murphy, whose 71 wins at the helm of the Crimson tie him for third all-time with Percy Haughton 1899.

In other words, all the Crimson can do is continue to post performances like Saturday’s, combining an efficient offensive effort with stingy play by its defense.

The Crimson defense, in particular, has been a big part of the squad’s strong showing in the second half of the season.

Heading into the game, Harvard was ranked fifth in the Ivies in overall defense. Saturday, in addition to forcing five turnovers, it tallied 10 tackles for loss, including seven sacks for a total of 72 yards. The Lions finished with minus-14 yards total rushing and only 215 yards in the air.

“It’s a combination of experience, continuity, and good health and development,” Murphy said. “We hope that we can continue this trend.”

The Crimson was led by big plays from linebacker Matt Thomas, who recovered a Columbia fumble and returned it 31 yards for a touchdown, and senior safety Robert Balkema, who took an interception eight yards into the endzone.

Harvard dominated the entire game save for an early misstep on special teams, a recurring weakness for the Crimson this season.

On Harvard’s first punt return, freshman Andrew Berry fumbled the ball on the 32-yard line, setting up prime field position to begin Columbia’s second drive of the game.

But the defense came up big immediately. On just the third play of the drive, the Lions were pushed back to their own 47-yard line, thanks to a forced fumble and sack by Balkema. This marked the first of four fumbles by Columbia.

“The last couple of weeks we’ve been working on stripping the ball, not just getting the hit,” Thomas said.

After this hiccup the Crimson came back in full force, charging down the field in seven plays to make it 7-0 on a six-yard touchdown run from junior running back Clifton Dawson.

After breaking the Crimson’s all-time rushing record last weekend, Dawson was able to rest this week, playing only in the first half. Dawson ended with 60 yards rushing and 64 receiving.

One of Harvard’s biggest strengths was its ability to rush the passer and either hit or hurry the quarterback. The Crimson held Columbia to only five first downs in the first half.

Meanwhile, the Harvard offense worked quickly and efficiently. O’Hagan finished the day with two touchdowns in the air on 13-of-16 passing for 165 yards. He also connected with freshman wide receiver Alex Breaux over the middle for an 11-yard touchdown and rushed for a two-yard touchdown.

“They ran the ball with great consistency,” Columbia coach Bob Shoop said. “We actually took Clifton away [from the game] pretty well. That was our plan, to make Liam throw the ball. And Liam did a really good job. He didn’t do anything outstanding. They were able to execute.”

“This week I felt real confident,” O’Hagan said. “The game plan was so sound in all areas, if I got one look I knew exactly what to do.”

Although he finished the day with only three tackles—two solo—Balkema was one of the Crimson’s biggest contributors.

With 10:54 remaining in the first half, he intercepted Lions’ quarterback Craig Hormann on Columbia’s first play from scrimmage deep in its own territory and strolled into the endzone. Two drives later, he forced the fumble that led to Thomas’ recovery and touchdown.

The touchdown, Thomas’ first of the season, put the Crimson up 41-0 going into intermission.

To lead the charge in the second half, second-string players like Irvin and junior tailback Neil Sherlock came into the game. In the fourth quarter, even third-string quarterback freshman Jeff Witt saw some action.

“[It was] a very solid effort across the board from our kids, special teams, defensively, and offensively,” Murphy said.