NOTEBOOK: Football Offense Erupts After a Slow First Half

This Saturday in Cambridge, Harvard’s 42-7 win over Princeton was not perfect, but it was certainly remarkable.

From an atypically slippery ball to an unusually dominant Andrew Fischer, the Crimson made several different headlines as it powered past the Tigers.

NEVER LET ME GO

Heading into its matchup against Princeton, Harvard had committed a lone turnover—an interception by senior quarterback Scott Hosch against Rhode Island. The next stingiest FCS team was South Dakota State, which had lost two fumbles.

Well, after Saturday’s contest, fans of the Jackrabbits can rejoice. The Crimson fumbled the ball four times, losing possession twice.

“I think our guys take great pride in ball security,” Harvard coach Tim Murphy said “It’s good to learn from your mistakes one time, but this is something we’ll get better at.”

Despite these errors, though, the Crimson conceded no points off turnovers, turning the Princeton bench from ebullient to more subdued.

The zaniest sequence began with 4:09 left in the first quarter and the Crimson on its own 31.

After a rush by senior running back Paul Stanton went nowhere, Hosch found senior tight end Ben Braunecker, who leapt down the right sideline, possessed the ball, and then fumbled the ball harmlessly out of bounds.

Three plays later, Hosch targeted Braunecker again—and the ball came loose again. This time the mistake had more serious consequences, as the Tigers’ Matt Arends scooped up the ball.

That was the second fumble that Princeton had recovered. The first came off the opening kickoff, when a long gain by freshman wide receiver Justice Shelton-Mosley ended with the ball bouncing on the ground.

In both these cases, however, the Crimson defense held strong. Despite the short rest, Harvard limited the Tigers to a pair of three-and-outs following the fumbles.

“As a defense, we were kind of excited, honestly,” captain Matt Koran said. “We know we can stop them even if we’re backed up. All the guys step up and make big plays during big situations.”

FISCH PERFORMS SWIMMINGLY

Andrew Fischer’s return to the gridiron after two weeks of inaction did not get off to a smooth smart.

The senior wide receiver, who had been sidelined by an unspecified upper-body injury, received the opening kickoff as usual. But on this occasion, a trick play-call had Fischer pitching the ball to fellow return-man Justice Shelton-Mosley, who caught the pass but fumbled a few seconds later.

So it was that Fischer trudged off the field after 11 seconds of playing time.

However, the disappointment was temporary, as by the end of the first half, Fischer had grabbed six catches for 110 yards.

After 30 minutes and 14 targets, these statistics increased to 190 yards on 10 receptions. He also scored a touchdown.

“After [Fischer] catches the ball, he does a great job of getting yards after the catch,” Hosch said.

The performance was so dominant that when Fischer came out for good at the start of fourth quarter, he received a salvo of applause from his teammates.

That appreciation followed a sequence in which the receiver had almost single-handedly dragged the Crimson into scoring position.

Earlier, on a third-and-two from Harvard’s 28, Fischer had hauled in a 27-yard completion.

One play later, Hosch lofted a long ball to Fischer down the right sideline. He leapt backwards, snagged the ball above his head, and landed on his back at the Tigers’ 10.

Fischer’s third-quarter score was similarly difficult. Despite a defender draped over him, the senior held onto the ball in the left corner of the end zone for a 14-yard touchdown.

NOT YOUR AVERAGE SMITH

Five years ago, as a senior in high school, Harvard wide receiver Seitu Smith operated as a slash player, presenting a dual threat out of the backfield and from the wide receiver position.

Since joining the Crimson, the now-senior has spent most of his time in the receiving slot, but he still has the ability to bruise tacklers as a running back.

Against Princeton, he flashed this capacity in bunches, taking 10 carries for 46 yards and a touchdown.

“We’re always trying to find those guys because of versatility,” Murphy said. “Seitu gives us an outstanding running back and a lot of depth at both positions.”

Smith’s increased usage came at the end of a five-game stretch that saw freshman running back Noah Reimers emerge as a serious in-game threat.

Despite tallying six touchdowns and over 220 yards so far this season, Reimers did not see consistent action until the fourth quarter. He ended the afternoon with six rushes for 29 yards.

Murphy attributed Smith’s uptick in usage to the emergence of Shelton-Mosley at the wide-receiver position. As a consequence, Harvard has been able to line Smith up in the backfield more often.

—Staff writer Sam Danello can be reached at sam.danello@thecrimson.com.