Craig Powers Harvard to First Ivy League Victory With 38-20 Win Over Cornell

Updated October 11, 2024, at 10:48 p.m.

Junior quarterback Jaden Craig threw four first half touchdowns as he powered Harvard (3-1, 1-1 Ivy) to a 38-20 win over Cornell (1-3, 1-1 Ivy) in Ithaca, N.Y., on Friday, earning the Crimson its first conference victory and its first win on the road.

The lights shined bright as Harvard (3-1, 1-1 Ivy) faced off against Cornell Friday night in front of a national audience, but no one shined brighter than Craig, who consistently found senior wide receiver Scott Woods II and junior wide receiver Cooper Barkate, who caught 10 and seven passes, respectively, for a combined 206 yards.

It was an impressively balanced performance for the Crimson air attack, with a number of typically unsung contributors seizing the spotlight; eight different receivers recorded at least one reception. Sophomore tight end Seamus Gilmartin produced the best performance of his collegiate career, catching two passes for 74 yards — both of which found paydirt.

The victory marked a milestone for Andrew Aurich, Harvard’s first-year head coach. Aurich earned the first victory of his career during the Crimson’s season opener against Stetson University at home, but a stunning last-minute loss to Brown University on Sept. 28 forced Aurich to wait until the fourth week of the season to earn his first win against an Ivy League opponent.

Harvard’s strong offensive performance erased any doubts about the team’s ability to compete in the Ivy League this year, and the road victory against Cornell will give the Crimson an important confidence boost ahead of its game on Oct. 26 against Princeton University — a team Harvard last defeated in 2015.

Despite easily defeating the Big Red on its home turf, there is some concern about captain and running back Shane McLaughlin, who limped off the field in the second quarter with an apparent leg injury. McLaughlin was sidelined for the Crimson’s upset win last week over the University of New Hampshire, and his return to action this week was quickly cut short.

In his absence, sophomore running back Xaviah Bascon, a rising star for the Crimson, continued to hold down the fort in the backfield as he recorded 23 carries for 99 yards against the Big Red.

The game, however, didn’t start so smoothly for Harvard. On the opening drive of the game, Cornell’s offense stormed down the field past an outmatched Harvard defense.

Scrambles, coupled with repeated quick throws from senior quarterback Jameson Wang to open receivers — including senior Samuel Musungu and sophomore Brendan Lee — led to a 10-play, 83-yard touchdown drive, capped off by a four-yard catch by tight end Ryder Kurtz, who waltzed into the end zone with 10:14 left in the first frame, giving the Big Red an early 7-0 lead.

Harvard’s offense wasted no time responding. Craig displayed his chemistry with his roommate Barkate, as the pair connected for a 47-yard strike on the second play from scrimmage. After being stifled in the end zone, the Crimson settled for three points as freshman Kieran Corr continued his perfect season and kicked a 27-yard field goal through the uprights, cutting the lead to 7-3 with 7:46 left in the first quarter.

Junior wide receiver Cooper Barkate hauls in a pass from senior quarterback Jaden Craig during a game against Cornell. By Nicholas T. Jacobsson

On its second drive, the Big Red continued to drive down the field without resistance. Two receptions by Musungu enabled Cornell to quickly cross the 50-yard line into Harvard’s territory.

On a big third-and-4 at the 39-yard line, Cornell attempted an end around with Musungu, who was swiftly met by junior safety Ty Bartrum, ending the Big Red’s hopes of creating a two-possession game.

With momentum in its direction, the Crimson continued to distribute the ball to its playmakers. Woods caught five quick throws on the drive, which culminated in a 21-yard strike from Craig to a wide-open Barkate to put Harvard up 10-7 with 51 seconds left in the first quarter.

To start, the Crimson’s defense made crucial adjustments in the secondary — utilizing a tighter press coverage on the outside receivers. With this alteration, Wang struggled to find open receivers, resulting in a quick three-and-out for the unit.

After a failed fourth-down conversion from the Crimson on the ensuing possession, Cornell leaned into its complementary football and marched down the field via a trick play and a pass interference call against senior defensive back Gavin Shipman, retaking what would be its last lead of the game, 14-10.

As the offenses continued to gel, the pace of the game picked up. For the third lead change of the half, Craig found a wide open Gilmartin, who sprinted down the sideline and past the pylons, putting the Crimson back up again 17-14 with 8:36 left in the first half.

On the next possession, this time it was Cornell who found itself with a fourth-and-4 at Harvard’s 44-yard line. Wang scrambled out of the pocket and dove for the line to gain, but he landed just short of the chains, giving the Crimson’s defense a big break and the offense an opportunity with 5:15 remaining in the half.

Coming off the turnover, Harvard’s offense came out rolling. Craig quickly found McLaughlin for an 18-yard gain, who subsequently exited the game hobbling gingerly on his right leg.

The potential for McLaughlin to miss more time early in the season is a cruel twist of fate in what was expected to be a capstone season for the four-year team veteran. In his absence, Bascon continues to excel and push for a more even distribution of carries, even when McLaughlin is at full capacity.

Against Brown, the only game of the season where the pair were the two primary feature backs, McLaughlin had 22 attempts for just 48 yards. Meanwhile, Bascon had 13 touches for 63 yards of his own, finding more success with his patient approach. Just a season ago, McLaughlin ran through the Bears’ defense - posting a statline of 16 carries for 152 yards and a touchdown.

Before exiting the game today, McLaughlin had six carries for 18 yards, averaging three yards per carry compared to Bascon’s 4.3 against the Big Red’s strong defensive front.

With 1:45 left in the half, the Crimson found itself in yet another fourth-and-short situation, this time from the 20-yard line. On an impressive route, Gilmartin shook off the linebacker and safety in coverage as Craig found him for the touchdown — the tight end’s second of the game — and extended Harvard’s lead to 24-14.

Harvard football players celebrate a touchdown during a game against Cornell University on Friday, Oct. 11, 2023. By Nicholas T. Jacobsson

After stopping Cornell in its two-minute drill, the Crimson got the ball back at its own 49-yard line with 44 seconds remaining. Craig delivered two accurate spirals to Barkate, including one that found him again in the end zone with only five seconds remaining in the half, stretching Harvard’s advantage to 34-14 heading into the locker room.

After the break, both offenses punted on their first possession. Woods — who continued to add to his massive day — returned a punt all the way to the 27 yard line of Cornell. With strong field position, the Crimson ran it up the middle with Bascon several times.

Facing fourth and one from the six yard line, senior quarterback Charles DePrima rushed up the middle to the four yard line for a first down, continuing a trend in recent games where DePrima has been taking snaps under center in the red zone.

DePrima’s versatility has been especially valued in this area of the field, where motions and constant movement across the line enable the Crimson to create space for the ball carrier. On the ensuing goal-to-go series, Cornell’s stiff defensive line prevented Bascon from punching the ball in three straight times.

On fourth down, Aurich stayed true to his fearless attitude and attempted to put the game out of reach for good. DePrima, playing in place of Craig, rolled to the right and found junior tight end Ryan Osborne for the two yard score to put Harvard up 38-14 with 4:58 left in the third.

Junior wide receiver Cooper Barkate tumbles into the end zone for a touchdown against the Big Red. By Nicholas T. Jacobsson

The Big Red had no intentions of bowing down without a fight. Wang orchestrated a seven-play, 75-yard touchdown drive down the field and tossed another touchdown to Musungu. Aiming to narrow the game to two possessions, Cornell went for two but ultimately fell short after an incomplete pass with senior linebacker Eric Little Jr. in coverage. The score remained 38-20 with 1:43 left in the third frame.

In the midst of an 11-play drive in the fourth quarter, senior defensive end Jacob Psyk sacked Wang just as Cornell was gaining some offensive momentum with nine minutes left in the game — effectively putting the nail in the coffin for the Big Red.

Forced to punt with 6:46 remaining, the Big Red didn’t see the ball again. A poised DePrima led a drive consisting of several chunk running plays to seal the win, representing Harvard’s first in the Ivy League this season.

With the win, the Crimson moved to 1-1 in the Ivy League, with Brown, Columbia, and Dartmouth all sitting atop the standings at 1-0. Out of that trifecta, only the Big Green play in-conference this weekend, taking on the Yale Bulldogs on Saturday. However, after next weekend, every team will have an all-Ivy schedule for the last five weeks of the season.

The Crimson returns home to face off against Holy Cross at noon on Saturday, Oct. 19 on ESPN+ in its final non-conference matchup of the season.

—Staff writer Praveen Kumar can be reached at praveen.kumar@thecrimson.com.