Harvard looks to score first Ivy victory in crucial game against Cornell | Sport

As the Harvard football team put the finishing touches to an improbable 28-23 loss to No. 16 New Hampshire last Friday, head coach Andrew Aurich was already looking ahead and thinking about improvements for the next game.

Aurich’s squad heads to Ithaca, N.Y., to take on Cornell University (1-2, 1-0 Ivy) for a crucial conference matchup under the lights Friday night, as the Crimson hopes to earn its first Ivy League victory season and retain the title. championship hopes are alive.

In the history of the Ivy League, no team has ever been the only champion with two losses. Only in three seasons has there been even a share of the Ivy title in which the champions suffered two losses: 1963, 1982 and 2023. Last year, Harvard limped to a 5-2 conference finish and tied with Dartmouth. and Yale — a fact that, oddly enough, could provide comfort to the team early in the 2024 campaign.

Harvard (2-1, 0-1 Ivy) came close to winning its Ivy League opener against Brown University in Providence, but a botched snap that sailed over rookie punter Kieran Corr’s head on a routine field goal attempt led to a game – winning touchdown for the Bears.

The Big Red had a stronger start in conference play. Cornell defeated the Yale Bulldogs 47-23 two weekends ago, as the Big Red handily defeated the Ivy League’s preseason pick to win the title.

But Cornell will look to regroup Friday after an embarrassing loss of its own last week, allowing the University at Albany to gain 500 yards in a home loss to its in-state rival.

However, the Crimson will roll into Ithaca with momentum following their rebound win against the University of New Hampshire, featuring a breakout performance from sophomore running back Xaviah Bascon.

Now Aurich hopes his team can build on that win to secure the first win of his young head coaching career against an Ivy opponent.

But Aurich won’t be the only one in Ithaca looking to prove himself as a first-year head coach.

There will be a familiar face on the Aurich sidelines on Friday: Cornell’s new head coach Dan Swanstrom. The former University of Pennsylvania offensive coordinator took over the reins of the program after former head coach David Archer was relieved of his duties following a disappointing 3-7 finish to the 2023 season.

The pair of first-year coaches have a shared history.

“I know Daan very well. I have known him since he was at Johns Hopkins as the offensive coordinator,” Aurich said. “He came to camp when I was working at Princeton.”

“He’s a very good guy, a very, very good football coach and a great offensive mind,” Aurich added.

To keep the dream of exclusive possession of the Ivy League crown alive, Harvard must march into Ithaca and take down an explosive Cornell team.

Junior quarterback Jaden Craig acknowledged the Ivy League’s intensity in an interview before the Cornell game.

“When you play an Ivy League team, it’s a championship weekend,” Craig said. “You can’t afford to lose games.”

The Big Red are ready to attack the Crimson with experienced offensive players and a tenacious defensive line.

Cornell’s senior quarterback Jameson Wong, who posted the highest completion percentage in the Ivy League and ranked third in passing yards last season, threw for 278 yards and four touchdowns in the win over the Bulldogs.

Wong’s top targets, sophomore wide receiver Brendan Lee and senior Samuel Musungu, each caught five passes for more than 75 yards.

“Their quarterback hasn’t turned the ball over once. He is a very good player,” Aurich said. “We have to disrupt him and get the ball out.”

In addition to Harvard’s defensive challenges, Wong is a threat on the ground, rushing for 55 yards and a touchdown against Yale. Joining Wong is speedy sophomore running back Ean Pope, who rushed for 72 yards and a touchdown on just 11 carries in the same game.

Aurich emphasized the importance of ball security in a hostile environment.

“The most important thing is to make sure we perform at a high level, that we handle the ball in attack and that we create takeaways,” he said. “We do a ball-to-ball protection circuit two days a week and we make it very difficult for them. We challenge them.”

Harvard will get a boost on both sides of the ball as senior captain and running back Shane McLaughlin and senior defensive back Gavin Shipman, both key players for the team, return to the field.

The offensive line will be crucial in determining how effective McLaughlin will be now that he can get his hands on the ball again. After struggling in the second half of the Brown game, the line looked strong against UNH, giving Craig vital protection and giving sophomore running back Xaviah Bascon a chance to maneuver past the line of scrimmage.

Senior Charles Deprima will be another addition to the team. The former quarterback has been deployed as a wide receiver, which has resulted in chunk plays over the past three games, and his flexibility has been Harvard’s secret weapon in confusing opposing defenses.

McLaughlin summed up the importance of this moment, saying: “I think if we’ve proven anything to ourselves this year it’s that we have all the talent in the world, and the one time we fail is the execution is when we make mental mistakes in our end. It doesn’t necessarily have to do with a better opponent. We are not worried at all. Every Ivy game is more or less a championship game, so that’s how we look at this game.”

In this crucial conference matchup, the Crimson will travel to Ithaca, NY, and take on Cornell on Friday, October 11 at 6:00 PM, streaming on ESPN2.

—Staff writer Jo Lemann can be reached at [email protected].

—Staff writer Praveen Kumar can be reached at [email protected].