Despite Win, Defending Champion Crimson Shows Room for Improvement

With more reporters than expected showing up for the Harvard-University of Rhode Island tilt, the front row of the Meade Stadium press box was probably about 10 feet too short and 10 degrees too hot to be comfortable for any of the media.

But if there was a silver lining to being pressed up against the door leading to the URI coaches’ booth—and seeing the coaches’ athletic abilities as they leapt over my chair anytime they wanted to leave said booth—it was definitely the thin walls and the ensuing entertainment value.

It began early. Just three minutes into the game, senior quarterback Scott Hosch threw a short screen to junior tight end Ryan Halvorson, who powered forward for seven yards and the first down. As soon as Halvorson caught the ball and turned, shouted expletives—presumably from the defensive coaches—emerged from the closed door, continuing well after the tight end was dragged down past midfield into Rams territory.

A brief moment of quiet followed. And then, on the next play, Hosch dropped back, gazed around the field with ample protection, and—to the dismay of my next-door neighbors, who began shouting ‘No!’ repeatedly before the ball had even left the hands of No. 3— found Halvorson again, this time streaking down the far sideline en route to a 45-yard touchdown.

It soon became apparent that just as one could watch a tennis player’s spouse during a US Open match to gauge his or her performance without ever looking at the court, one could just as easily have listened to the URI coaches’ bellowing to discern the ebb and flow of the game.

But the most telling moment wasn’t when my laptop was literally vibrating from the banging of fists one room over. It happened in the final seven minutes of the game. As the clock ticked down, if you hadn’t heard the ruckus for the past two hours, you might not have known anyone was in the room until the door opened and the coaches jumped over me to head down to the locker room.

The Crimson’s backup quarterback, Jimmy Meyer, on his first-ever collegiate pass, hit rookie receiver Justice Shelton-Mosley on a fly route. In his first-ever collegiate catch, Shelton-Mosley danced into the end zone, giving the visitors the 41-10 advantage, effectively de-horning any Rams attempt at a comeback. The silence was almost more deafening than the long string of curse words let loose after a blocked URI punt was returned for a touchdown—a sign of surefire surrender.

And yet, despite the lopsided score that hung over the field when Meyer took a knee to end the game, I can’t help but think that whoever was sitting on the other end of press row probably got an earful as well.

Of course, a 41-10 showing appears on the surface to be the sort of domination expected from a team undefeated last year that returns the majority of its starters. But the 31-point trouncing is a bit misleading—the game was very much in contention until the final quarter, a surprisingly tough battle for the first three quarters given URI’s past mediocre performances and the expectations set for this year’s Crimson squad.

Hosch looked sharp out of the gates, completing his first five passes, and the box score makes the senior’s day appear mighty impressive, as he ended the day with over 300 yards passing, three scores and just one pick—good enough to take home the Ivy League’s Offensive Player of the Week.

However, with an offensive line that gave him years to throw and six starts under his belt, Hosch underperformed in my eyes. The stat sheet doesn’t capture the fingertip catches Harvard receivers were forced to make when the ball was thrown just a little too high or far, or passes that sailed out of the reach of wide-open receivers.

And for a defense that prides itself on stopping the run, Harvard’s inexperienced defensive line gave up 95 yards to Rams back Harold Cooper—the same guy who had a grand total of -1 yards two weeks prior against Syracuse. Tack on a missed PAT, and you have to wonder if the minor missteps are indicative of the Crimson simply shaking off preseason rust, or of more deeply rooted issues that, innocuous against a team that won just one game last year, will hurt when Harvard takes on league powerhouses near the end of the season.

In the postgame press conference, captain Matt Koran recognized the necessity for the team to return to “fundamentals” this week in practice. Against Brown—a more formidable foe than URI—the Crimson will need to do so and clean up play on both sides of the ball if it hopes to silence the Bears’ coordinators in the Harvard Stadium press box on Saturday.

—Staff writer Samantha Lin can be reached at samantha.lin@thecrimson.com.