Big Green Next Test for Football

Ask a week ago, and any member of the Harvard football team would have said Princeton represented its biggest game of the year. Seven days and 49 points later, that answer no longer remains valid.

After the Crimson (6-0, 3-0 Ivy) cruised to a blowout win against the Tigers last Saturday, the most formidable obstacle in the team’s pursuit of an Ivy League title becomes Dartmouth (5-1, 3-0).

Both teams enter the weekend undefeated in conference play. With the Ancient Eight season rounding the halfway point, the Saturday afternoon battle in Hanover is not only for first place, but also for firm control of the conference driver’s seat.

“[Dartmouth] is a very good football team,” Crimson coach Tim Murphy said. “It’s a football team that’s a championship caliber team, and we’re going to have to play our best game of the year by far to win. They just don’t have any weaknesses.”

While Dartmouth no doubt is a balanced team—its offense and defense both rank in the top half of the conference—the most intriguing matchup of the day will occur when the Big Green has the ball. The Dartmouth offense has demonstrated its explosiveness throughout the year, but the Harvard defense has shown it can hold any opponent in check.

Led by a fierce defensive line and captain Norman Hayes in the secondary, the Crimson defense has allowed a league-best 10.5 points per game. Even more impressive is the fact that the starting unit has surrendered just two touchdowns in the last five games.

But Harvard will be pushed to its limits come Saturday. Led by the dynamic Dalyn Williams at quarterback, the Dartmouth offense is staffed by veteran players who know how to move the chains.

In an early October matchup at Yale, the Big Green found itself trailing by 14 points midway through the second quarter. Dartmouth climbed back into the game and captured a 38-31 victory with a late two-yard Williams run.

The junior quarterback, who threw three touchdowns in the victory, is as much of a threat with his arm as he is with his legs. Williams has repeatedly demonstrated his ability to turn a seemingly hopeless play into a gain by scrambling away from oncoming tacklers.

“He came into the league as a great athlete, and he’s now become a great quarterback,” Murphy said. “He’s now got that confidence and swag that not only allows him to be one of the best players in the league, but it also makes everybody around him better.”

Williams, however, is not the only veteran quarterback who will draw on his athleticism to make plays on Saturday. Senior Conner Hempel demonstrated that ability in sparkling fashion against Princeton, throwing for a career-high 382 yards and three touchdowns, along with rushing for an additional two.

The game was Hempel’s first since a back injury he incurred in the season opener, and it also featured the return of senior tight end Tyler Hamblin. Finally at full strength and fueled by a first-rate offensive line, the Crimson offense hopes to build on its record-setting performance in New Jersey.

“I think we always have the capability to [play that well],” Hempel said. “If we do it once, we can do it again. But executing like we did last week is difficult. It all starts with preparation, both in practice and in the film room.”

In 2013, a last-minute field goal was the difference in a 24-21 Crimson win over Dartmouth. If Harvard has what it takes to contain the rapid-fire Big Green offense and earn a road victory, it will find itself alone at the top of the Ivy League standings with just three games to go.

“As an older guy, as a leader on the team, you have to teach the young guys how this sprint works until Thanksgiving,” junior linebacker Jacob Lindsey said. “It’s big on your seniors and juniors who have played to continue that motivation and drive in practice.”

—Staff writer David Steinbach can be reached at david.steinbach@thecrimson.com