A Year to Remember: Crimson Excels in '75

Trailing Yale 16 -14 late in the fourth quarter, Crimson quarterback Milt A. Holt '75 led his team onto the field for one desperate final drive.

The objective: to score against Yale's top-ranked defense, which was as yet unbeaten and which allowed only 5.8 points per game on the year.

Several plays and 91 yards later, Holt dived into the endzone, completing an improbable upset of the heavily-favored Bulldogs.

"I remember my brandy bottle biting the dust with just the sheer shock of it," says Mark E. Segall '75, who watched the game at Harvard Stadium.

Harvard's come-from-behind victory over its arch-rival is generally considered to be the second most memorable moment of The Game ever, trailing only undefeated Harvard's 29-29 slaughter of previously undefeated Yale in 1968.

With the 1975 victory, Harvard completed a 9-2 season and claimed a share of the Ivy League title.

Yet Harvard's football success was only the beginning of a remarkable sports season, considered by many observers as one of the school's best ever.

Men's hockey had its most successful season in years, finishing fourth in the nation for the second consecutive year.

Harvard swept through its Eastern College Athletic Conference schedule, going 17-0, while defeating most of its opponents by multiple-goal margins.

In all, the Crimson finished 23-6 with three of its losses coming to powerful Boston University, a team led by future "Miracle on Ice" hero Mike Eruzione.

Men's crew was even more dominant, sweeping seven out of eight races at the Eastern Sprints. Varsity heavyweight crew also won a major west coast meet in San Diego and broke a 40-year-old Charles River record.

Radcliffe crew also swept its conference championships, continuing its string of dominance that began with its national championship in 1973.

On to the Pros

Perhaps no one achieved as much sports-related success as football wide-receiver/punter Patrick J.McInally '75. Setting nearly every school receiving record, McInally won All-America honors in 1974, the first Harvard football player to do so in more than 30 years.

The Cincinnati Bengals selected McInally in the fifth round, making him the highest-drafted Harvard player ever, a record he held until the fourth-round selection of Isaiah Kacyvenski '00 this year.

McInally is also the only person ever to earn a perfect score on the Wonderlick test, the NFL's version of an IQ test given to all potential draftees.

McInally played 10 solid seasons for the Bengals, achieving the most success as a punter, making the Pro Bowl and twice leading the league in punting.

Yet McInally may be best known for his success after football. In 1986, McInally created Starting Lineup, a toy company famous for its figurines of sports stars still popular with kids.

In the Stands

Students in the Class of '75 eagerly followed their teams' success, especially in football, and to some students, sports were at the center of social life. Jackson says weekend parties often centered around Saturday's football game.

"It was a great mixer and a great way to meet people from other classes and alumni," says Wendy B. Burton '75.

"Spirit was always good for Harvard football games," she adds. "You scrambled to get tickets. Even if we were losing."

Many members of the Class of 1975 say they are surprised that sports, especially football, no longer receives the same degree of support.

"I regularly attended home football games," William R. Glass '75 wrote in an e-mail message. "I am surprised they don't now. A generational difference I think."

Other sports didn't receive the same level of attention as football. Segall says that, although football games regularly sold out, support for other sports was only "so-so."

Forman, a member of that championship varsity football team, says that Harvard students take pride in their lack of sports enthusiasm.

"Harvard's always taken a perverse pride in downplaying the sports and yet doing well," Forman says.

Yet whatever the reason behind the lack of school spirit, many Class of '75 alums say that today's students only hurt themselves by failing to back their teams more.

"You're all missing out on some good fun," Burton says.