Dawson Sets All-Time Ivy League Rushing Record

Clifton Dawson became the Ivy League's all-time career rushing leader on his second carry today against Penn. [See full game coverage.] With just under ten minutes to play in the first quarter, the senior running back from Scarborough, Ontario, carried the ball 55 yards down the left sideline, breaking by three the record of 4,715 yards held by Cornell's Ed Marinaro since 1971 and setting up a Harvard touchdown at the Penn 8-yard line.

Dawson's electrifying run gave him 4,718 yards for his career. The achievement was met with little fanfare at Penn's Franklin Field, as Penn's public address announcer gave no indication that the record had been broken until halftime. The game's broadcasters on CN8, a sports cable network, did recognize the achievement.

The Crimson scored two plays later on the drive when junior quarterback Liam O'Hagan found sophomore tight end Jason Miller in the end zone for a 5-yard score, giving Harvard a 7-0 lead. The Quakers tied the score at seven on their ensuing drive.

Dawson broke the record on 920 career carries, two more than Marinaro's 918 attempts.

But as Dawson rose above Marinaro's mark, Harvard fell, 22-13. That dropped Harvard's Ivy League record to 4-2.

Harvard can only gain a share of the Ivy title now if the Crimson beats Yale at the Game and Dartmouth upsets Princeton next weekend.