Victory Over Lafayette Puts Harvard at 3-2 Midseason

With the top defense in Division I-AA in town on Saturday, it was no shock that the game turned on a late turnover.

The surprise came when it was Harvard’s defense, not Lafayette’s, that made the big play in the end.

A 91-yard interception return for a touchdown by senior cornerback Steven Williams late in the fourth quarter preserved the Crimson’s narrow lead and helped Harvard (3-2, 2-0 Ivy) hold on for a 27-17 win over the Leopards (4-2) in front of 10,001 fans at Harvard Stadium in both teams’ final non-conference game of the season.

Lafayette, which entered the game giving up just 8.8 points and 210 yards per contest, allowed a season-high 27 points against an efficient Crimson offense.

But it was Harvard’s secondary that finally closed the door on the Leopards’ chances.

With the Crimson clinging to a 20-17 advantage in the late stages of the fourth quarter and Lafayette deep in Harvard territory, Leopards quarterback Mike DiPaola dropped back to pass on a third-and-one. Junior linebacker Glenn Dorris burst through the line and laid a big hit on DiPaola, who avoided a sack by making an ill-advised and wobbly throw that came up well short of the nearest receiver.

“I started running after him, and as soon as I grabbed onto him, I knew he still had the ball, and then I kind of saw him throw it,” Dorris said. “I was thinking, ‘Dang, I didn’t get that sack,’ but then I saw Steve catch it and I thought, ‘You know, I’ll give up a sack for an interception return for a touchdown.’”

The ball landed right into the hands of Williams, who sprinted down the left sideline, using a block downfield from sophomore linebacker Conor Murphy to go 91 yards untouched for the game’s final score. It was the sixth-longest interception return in team history.

“I attribute all that to [Dorris]—that was his interception,” Williams said. “I got to be the beneficiary of, the spotlight of, his hard work.”

In fact, both second-half scores came off turnovers. Tied at 17 heading into halftime, the two teams traded punts and stalled drives throughout the third quarter and entered the fourth still deadlocked.

The first Lafayette drive of the quarter ended early on an interception by junior cornerback Andrew Berry. Berry took the return 33 yards and into Leopards territory, setting up a 40-yard field goal from sophomore Patrick Long.

“I’m very pleased with how we finished,” said Harvard head coach Tim Murphy. “Nothing came easy for us, but we became the type of football team in the last quarter against Cornell, in the last quarter against Lafayette, that we want to be—a team that rises to the occasion and finds a way to win.”

Things started out ominously for the Crimson. After a three-and-out on its opening drive, sophomore Thomas Hull’s punt was blocked after the snap bounced on the ground. Brandon Mitchell recovered the ball and fell down at the one-yard line, setting up a Joe Russo touchdown run that made the score 7-0 just over two minutes into the game.

“We weren’t even trying to block that one,” said Lafayette head coach Frank Tavani of the punt.

The Crimson responded later in the quarter thanks to fullback Noah Van Niel. The senior was instrumental in the offense in the early going, capping off Harvard’s first touchdown on an option pass play. Senior quarterback Chris Pizzotti flicked the ball to Van Niel from three yards out, tying the game at 7 with 5:23 to play in the first quarter.

A number of Van Niel’s runs came on a new formation, with Van Niel lined up at tailback and junior defensive tackle Matt Curtis at fullback.

“That’s what we appropriately call our hippo team,” Murphy said. “Matt brings a real physical, destructive type of force at fullback, and then Noah brings 250 pounds, and you get 260 pounds leading 250.”

The Leopards took a 10-7 lead into the second quarter, but Van Niel scored again under two minutes into the frame, taking a handoff two yards for a score with a nifty spin move.

Lafayette receiver Kyle Roeder caught a nine-yard touchdown in tight coverage at the back of the endzone on the next drive to give his team a 17-14 lead, and after a Long field goal tied the score with 4:35 to play, a threatening Leopards drive was thwarted in the red zone when senior safety John Hopkins picked off a pass at the three-yard line. It was one of two Hopkins picks on the afternoon—the second came on Lafayette’s final drive—and four total interceptions thrown by DiPaola.

By contrast, Pizzotti played his first turnover-free game of the year, going 17-of-29 for 174 yards and a lone score. He also carried on a few designed runs, the most surprising of which netted 19 yards in the first quarter.

Harvard’s tailbacks also had success on the afternoon. Freshman Gino Gordon carried 16 times for 65 yards, though he did fumble once, while sophomore Cheng Ho ran the ball seven times for 34 yards.

“Running wasn’t easy today, but we’re improving,” Murphy said. “We’re going to be a very solid running team or better down the stretch. I really believe that.”

—Staff writer Malcom A. Glenn can be reached at mglenn@fas.harvard.edu.