AROUND THE IVIES: Ho Back To Lead Crimson Attack

“Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in.”

If this memorable Al Pacino quote from the otherwise disappointing “The Godfather III” had to apply to one player on the Harvard football team right now, it would be Cheng Ho.

Of course, for Pacino’s Michael Corleone, the line was uttered in frustration over the Don’s inability to legitimize his mob empire and escape a life of crime. If Ho–a junior running back–were to make the same statement, it would probably carry with it a tone of joy and redemption.

Last season, Ho was assigned the unenviable task of replacing the legendary Clifton Dawson ’07 as the Crimson’s starting tailback. After handling the job admirably, running for 746 yards and scoring seven touchdowns in nine games, it would have been reasonable to assume that Ho would reprise his role as Harvard’s No. 1 runner in 2008.

But apparently it was not meant to be. In the Crimson’s first two games against Holy Cross and Lafayette, sophomore Gino Gordon and junior converted safety Ben Jenkins saw the majority of carries, with Ho getting a measly five touches. The results: a nerve-racking 25-24 comeback win over the Crusaders and a messy 24-22 loss to the Bears. Gordon and Jenkins’ combined line: 32 carries, 142 yards, no touchdowns, and two fumbles lost (both Gordon’s).

Apparently this was enough to remind Harvard coach Tim Murphy that Ho, a guy with a 4.8 career yards per carry average, was pretty good at what he did before he got wiped off the depth chart. In danger of becoming known solely as that guy on the team with the same name as the 15th Century Chinese explorer from your AP World History class, Ho got the nod last Saturday against Lafayette.

20 carries, 108 yards, and a touchdown later, he was back to being Cheng Ho, starting running back for the Harvard Crimson.

HARVARD (2-1, 0-1 Ivy) VS. CORNELL (3-0, 1-0 Ivy)

The Crimson won that game against Lafayette, 27-13. It was a nice statement to make after the Brown loss, but Ivy League games are what count, and Harvard is in store for a tough one on Saturday.

Cornell, the big surprise of the Ancient Eight, appears to be one of those teams that just knows how to win. The Big Red has outscored its three opponents by a total of just five points, and won last week against Lehigh during the last play of the game on Nathan Ford’s 63rd (not an exaggeration) throw of the game. Yet here it stands undefeated. Can Cornell sustain a winning streak this way? I don’t think so, not against the Crimson at Harvard Stadium at least.

Prediction: Harvard 28, Cornell 23

YALE (2-1, 0-1 Ivy) AT DARTMOUTH (0-3, 0-1 Ivy)

Yale has played a sloppy brand of football this season. The Bulldogs turned the ball over four times in their Week 2 loss to Cornell and blew a 21-7 lead over Holy Cross before barely winning in overtime last week.

Fortunately for the Elis, sloppy football is okay when you’re playing Dartmouth. I won’t go as far to call the Big Green awful, because the last time I wrote that about a team Rhode Island destroyed Brown 37-13, but Dartmouth is a really not very good football team.

Prediction: Yale 38, Dartmouth 14

COLUMBIA (0-3, 0-1 Ivy) VS. LAFAYETTE (3-1)

Columbia continues to inch towards that oh so elusive first win of the year. After dropping each of its first two contests by seven points, the Lions pulled within three of Princeton last week to put a scare in the Tigers. Could this finally be the week that Columbia finds itself in the W column?

Nah. Lafayette is a decent team that took a tough loss to Harvard last week but has looked sharp otherwise. If you’re putting money down on a Columbia win…save it. But if you really must, Week 6 against Dartmouth looks promising.

Prediction: Lafayette 27, Columbia 16

BROWN (2-1, 1-0 Ivy) AT HOLY CROSS (1-3)

I no longer know what to make of Brown. The Bears won a game they had no business winning against Harvard and confirmed their status as the trendy Ivy League pick in Week 2. Then they go ahead and get blown out by a 2-4 Rhode Island squad. If the Open Curriculum All-Stars would stop choosing when to win and lose the way they choose classes, maybe my job would be a little easier.

Prediction: Holy Cross 28, Brown 24

PRINCETON (2-1, 1-0 Ivy) AT COLGATE (3-2)

Let’s be clear here. I know nothing about Colgate’s football team except that it has a guy named Jordan Scott who has 814 rushing yards in four games. Yes, as in he averages 203.5 yards per game. That’s the best rate in the country.

Princeton has a nice record, but a few wins against Lehigh and Columbia aren’t going to convince me that the Tigers can stop this guy.

Prediction: Colgate 27, Princeton 20

PENN (1-2, 1-0 Ivy) AT GEORGETOWN (1-3)

There really is nothing to look forward to in this game. Penn is a mediocre team that was fortunate enough to play Dartmouth in its first Ivy League game and so now it sits in a tie for first place in the Ancient Eight despite having a 1-2 record. Now the Quakers are fortunate enough to play Georgetown in a game that means nothing other than a confidence boost for Penn.

Still, Georgetown has spunk, that trait arbitrarily assigned to the truly horrible. Let’s see if by my saying that it will magically come true, the Hoyas will put up a fight tomorrow.

Prediction: Penn 17, Georgetown 10

Last Week’s Record: 4-2

Record to Date: 8-4

—Staff writer Loren Amor can be reached at lamor@fas.harvard.edu.