Blee-ve It!

Captain Chris Eitzmann hung his head, Coach Tim Murphy looked wearied and senior linebacker Isaiah Kacyvenski stared ahead, still in shock.

They were all thinking of what Saturday's game, a 21-17 loss to Penn, and the season could have been. Harvard (5-4, 3-3 Ivy) is much better than its record, which will be either 6-4 or 5-5 after the Game. It doesn't take much imagination to see that Crimson could also be 6-0 in the Ivy League heading into its showdown with Yale.

Harvard's defense is fantastic, almost as good as its '97 version. That year, the Crimson allowed only four touchdowns in Ivy games, none of which came on the ground. All but the most masochistic opposing coaches gave up on the run early, and Harvard finished 9-1, 7-0 Ivy.

This year, Harvard's last three opponents have run 77 times for 64 yards. Penn ran the ball 37 times and got only 19 net yards. Part of the reason for Penn's ineffectiveness was that its stud running back, Kris Ryan, left at the beginning of the second quarter--but since he got hurt on a rushing attempt into the heart of the Harvard defense, you have to give the Crimson full credit.

Harvard started nine seniors Saturday--three of its defensive linemen, its three linebackers and three of its defensive backs. They played their hearts out on Senior Day in their last home game, but just when it looked like they would pull out a come-from-behind win, they had their hearts broken.

To get the negative part out of the way, Harvard's pass coverage has been a problem all year. There have been holes in the zone, and the corners play too soft, giving up lots of passes in front of them with five or even 10 yards of cushion. There has also been a lot of bad luck, however.

This weekend, Harvard rallied from a 14-0 deficit and was up 17-14 when it forced Penn into a fourth-and-10 from midfield. Penn quarterback Gavin Hoffman scrambled forward, possibly crossing the line of scrimmage ("From my vantage point, he was over," Murphy said), and heaved the ball to the goal line, where Brandon Carson turned and made the catch for the shocking win.

Carson had stop-and-go'd senior Kane Waller 15 yards downfield and was three yards behind him when Hoffman threw the ball. Waller recovered but had his back turned the whole way and never saw the ball.

"There aren't many good fourth-and-10 calls," said Penn Coach Al Bagnoli. "It was a great play by the quarterback and receiver."

"I heaved it up--it was the only thing I could do," Hoffman said. "I had no idea where the line of scrimmage was."

That call could have gone either way, and if it had gone in Harvard's favor, the Crimson would still be only a game back in the League. Against Cornell, a 24-23 loss, bad luck victimized Harvard on fourth down again. Kacyvenski made what seemed to be a game-sealing interception with Harvard up 23-10. Instead, a bad defensive holding call on Waller gave the Big Red new life, and Cornell scored two quick touchdowns to win that game.

And you certainly can't blame last week's 17-10 loss at Brown on the defense, considering it held the Bears to only 230 yards, less than half its per-game average.

I wonder if this game made Murphy reconsider his decision not to guarantee Hoffman the starting job this summer when Hoffman was looking to transfer from Northwestern. Hoffman completed 29-of-48 passes for 348 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.

"I thought I was going here, but things didn't work out," Hoffman said. "There was no resentment or extra incentive to win for me."

Meanwhile, Murphy's two quarterbacks, seniors Brad Wilford and Rich Linden, combined for four interceptions. Wilford had four last week and added three Saturday, even getting pulled for Linden for two second-quarter series. Linden threw an interception in the end zone to kill a great scoring opportunity just before the half.

Harvard's offense didn't need to do much to win. After Penn's opening-drive touchdown, Harvard's defense dominated. When Wilford threw an interception at the Crimson 29, the defense did not allow a first down, and the Quakers missed a field goal attempt. Penn took over its next possession at the Harvard 45, and on the first play, senior linebacker Jeff Svicarovich destroyed tight end Benjamin Zagorski, forcing a fumble.

Wilford promptly threw another interception that gave Penn the ball at the 47, and the Quakers took advantage this time, with three third-down and one fourth-down conversion to take a 14-0 lead. Linden came in, and Harvard lost 28 yards on his first series. The Crimson defense forced a three-and-out, but then came the series ending with the interception in the end zone--Linden had a couple of open receivers yet threw into coverage.

The Harvard defense gave up only two combined first downs on Penn's first six possessions after the half. During that span, three plays after senior Mike Giampaolo missed a 30-yard attempt, Kacyvenski made an interception to give the offense the ball at the Penn 30, and Harvard scored to make it 14-7. Another three-and-out followed, and senior Terence Patterson returned a punt 77 yards to tie the game, 14-14.

Harvard's defense created another turnover two players later when Kacyvenski crushed Carson, forcing a fumble recovered at the Penn 28. Harvard took a 17-14 lead with a field goal. Svicarovich intercepted Hoffman on the next series at the Harvard 41, and with 2:51 left to go, it looked like the defense's persistence had finally paid off.

But the Crimson offense couldn't hold on. Freshman Brent Chalmers, in because senior Chris Menick suffered a knee injury and because the next three back-ups were injured as well, did a good job, but his lack of experience playing with Wilford hurt. On third-and-2 at the Penn 31, Chalmers ran too close to Wilford, and they collided. The ball popped out, and Penn recovered at its 37. The game-winning drive followed.

Now, a potentially-championship team has to stake its season on ruining Yale's bid for a title, not exactly the stakes it was hoping for earlier this year. However, the Crimson's recent offensive inefficiency and single defensive deficiency--its tendency to give up large chunks of passing yards late--have cost it three winnable Ivy games.

"For the first few games, we were rolling on offense," Eitzmann said. "Now we're frustrated, and we feel we're letting the defense down. They're playing so hard, and they're so good. I feel bad for the defense more than anything."

I do, too.