After 144 years of play, the Harvard football program boasts nine national championships, 14 Ivy League titles, and 20 inductees to the College Football Hall of Fame. It’s hard to be the first to do anything. Last Sunday, however, Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick proved that he’s still in the business of breaking Crimson records.

With a touchdown to tight end Cameron Brate ’14 in the fourth quarter against the Arizona Cardinals, Fitzpatrick completed the first Harvard-to-Harvard scoring pass in NFL history. While the Cardinals earned a 38-33 victory, the score testified to the growing relevance of Crimson players at the professional level.

Last Sunday, Fitzpatrick made it onto the field after an injury to starter Jameis Winston. Midway through the third quarter, the Cardinals held a 31-0 lead. Few could blame Tampa Bay fans for leaving the University of Phoenix Stadium. But Fitzpatrick, Brate, and company still had life.

A third-quarter score reduced the deficit to 31-6. Then, with 13:32 left, the unique event occurred. On third-and-goal from the 10, Fitzpatrick dropped back, scanned the field, and fired a rocket through a pack of defenders.

Another Crimson alumnus was waiting in the end zone. Brate had weaved his way through the Arizona secondary and turned to locate the ball. Hedging a defender with his shoulder, he reeled in the catch and tiptoed inbounds.

The touchdown sparked a larger rally, as the Buccaneers got within 38-33 with 2:02 left. However, the Cardinals recovered the ensuing onsides kick to clinch the contest.

Although nearly a decade apart, Fitzpatrick and Brate had strikingly similar Harvard experiences. The two Dunster House residents guided the Crimson to multiple Ancient Eight championships. As seniors, both players led their squads to 10-0 campaigns.

Fitzpatrick, a Mathematics concentrator, displayed his Harvard roots at the NFL combine, where he scored a whopping 48 out of 50 on the Wonderlic Test. That performance, which assessed cognitive ability, earned Fitzpatrick some pre-draft media attention.

Selected as the sixth-to-last pick in the 2005 NFL Draft, Fitzpatrick has stuck around for more than a decade. Now in his 13th year and on his seventh team, the quarterback has passed for over 26,000 yards and 169 touchdowns.

Meanwhile, Brate graduated from Harvard in 2014 with an Economics degree. Undrafted, he earned a roster spot through preseason tryouts. Last year, “The Brate Train” picked up speed by scoring eight touchdowns.

Having notched four scores already in 2017, Brate looks to further his success—perhaps with the help of a familiar quarterback.

Harvard’s elite contingent of professional athletes continue to make a substantial impact as we near the end of 2016.

JEREMY LIN ‘10

The Nets’ brand-new starting point guard and lone Ivy alum in the NBA, is off strong start in his seventh year in the league. Through four games, Lin is averaging 16.3 points, 6.5 assists, and 4.3 rebounds, all of which would be good for career-highs. A down year in Brooklyn figures to give Lin the opportunity to cement himself as a centerpiece of the team.

RYAN FITZPATRICK ’05

The former Crimson standout's struggles have been well-documented through the first eight weeks of the 2016 NFL season. A dismal performance against the Chiefs in Week 3—a game in which he went 20-for-44 in the air and threw six picks—helped lead to his league-leading 11 interceptions and lowest completion rate (56.1%) among QBs with at least 200 attempts. With replacement Geno Smith out for the season after tearing his ACL in Week 7, Fitzpatrick regained the chance to turn around the Jets disappointing 3-5 start after a 2015-16 resurgence.

JIMMY VESEY '16

The New York Rangers’ is tied for second in the NHL with six goals, trailing only Tampa Bay’s Steven Stamkos. Vesey’s rookie campaign is off to a flying start, and with nine points, the Boston native is already skating with the first line. The breakout left wing tallied three points last night against the Blues, scored and assisted in a 5-2 dismantling of his hometown Bruins Oct. 26, and netted two goals four days earlier against the Caps. It figures to be a race between Vesey and Toronto’s first overall selection Auston Matthews for the Calder Memorial Trophy, awarded to the rookie of the year.

While freshman standout Bente van Vlijmen earned Athlete of the Week honors for her three-goal weekend performance on the field hockey pitch, other Crimson athletes had solid games of their own.

PAIGE KEBE, OUTSIDE HITTER, WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL

In its first Ivy League matchup of the season, the Harvard women’s volleyball team defeated rival Dartmouth with an offensive performance from junior outside hitter Paige Kebe.

Despite losing the conference opener to Dartmouth (6-5, 0-1 Ivy) in the two seasons prior to this one, Friday’s match was won handedly by the Crimson (3-7, 1-0) in three sets (27-25, 25-16, 25-23). Kebe led the team in kills with 11, while teammates sophomore Christina Cornelius, freshman Maclaine Fields and freshman Grace Roberts Burbank each added seven of their own. Kebe also tallied a dig, a block and, with her 26 total attempts, a hitting efficiency of .346. Overall, the junior hitter led the team with 11.5 points on the match.

With the win, Kebe’s kills for the season rise to 76, the second best for the team behind only Cornelius, who currently sits at 83. Now with 270 total attempts, her hitting efficiency has risen to .167 and her total points to 82.5, the third highest for the team.

This Friday, the women’s volleyball team looks to maintain their undefeated Ivy League record in a match at Princeton. The Tigers (7-3, 1-0) are also looking to sustain an unblemished conference record as they are coming off a close five-set victory against Penn.

DEFENSIVE BACKS, FOOTBALL

Traveling to Providence to play Brown in their annual Homecoming game, the Harvard football team (2-0, 1-0) held its pass-happy opponent to only three touchdowns through the air in the path to a 32-22 victory.

The Crimson’s defensive backs played a heavy hand in holding Brown (1-1, 0-1) standout senior receiver Alex Jette to 79 yards, in addition to intercepting quarterback Kyle Moreno on three separate occasions. The first of these came early in the second quarter at the hands of senior safety Kolbi Brown. Grabbing the ball at the Brown 45, the Crimson safety returned it to the 20, giving the offense the opportunity to capitalize on the turnover with a field goal.

Up 32-16 at the beginning of the fourth quarter, the Crimson defense struggled as the Bears marched down the field. As Brown drove to the Harvard 19, their offensive push was stopped with a well timed interception by junior safety Tanner Lee on the Crimson’s own two-yard line. Lee would return the ball 21 yards to the Harvard 23. However, the drive would end in a fumble for Harvard.

Again, Brown charged down field, stopped by yet another interception, this time by sophomore cornerback Wesley Ogsbury on the Harvard 37 yard-line. It would be these two late interceptions that kept the Brown offense at bay throughout the fourth quarter, securing the win for the Crimson.

Crimson fans can add another color to their wardrobe.

As of a few weeks ago, the Cleveland Browns have emerged as a possible darling of the student body, filling their front office with a selection of Harvard graduates. Sashi Brown, Paul DePodesta, and Andrew Berry compose what is likely the most intriguing management in professional football—and, perhaps, a new bandwagon team for Crimson fans.

(Continued)

The opening whistle of the 2016 college football season may be nearly eight months away, but as of last week, the Harvard program has confirmed its schedule.

For the first time since the Ivy League was founded in 1956, the Crimson will play three consecutive road games, at Holy Cross, Princeton, and Dartmouth respectively. This mid-year gauntlet looms as a serious test for Harvard as it pushes for a fourth consecutive league title.

Other challenges menace in more typical places. As per usual, the Crimson will face off against Penn--the lone team to beat Harvard in 2015--and end the season against Yale.

The quest for a historic fourth championship will begin on September 16, when Harvard kicks off against Rhode Island at home. Last year, the Crimson beat the Rams 41-10 in the season opener.

This home game will be the first of three non-conference matchups, as Harvard will host Georgetown in week three and visit Holy Cross two weeks later.

Traditionally the Crimson has faced the Crusaders early in the season, but last year, for the first time since 1976, the two teams did not play. They will renew their non-conference rivalry in 2016.

Throughout the season, Harvard will match up against all seven Ivy League teams, starting in Providence against Brown in the second week of the season. The team will then play Cornell at home in week four.

In 2015, the Crimson handled both these opponents with ease, but the 2016 conference schedule toughens up as the year progresses. Harvard will close out the season with five straight Ancient Eight matchups, consecutively playing Princeton away, Dartmouth at home, Columbia at home, Penn away, and Yale at home.

Based on last season’s results, the Big Green and the Quakers stand out as the toughest tilts. Three months ago, the Crimson bested Dartmouth, 14-13, by scoring all 14 points in the fourth quarter. Then, against Penn, Harvard gave up an early lead en route to its only loss of the year.

The 2016 schedule culminates with the 133rd playing of The Game. Harvard has won nine in a row against the Bulldogs, including last season’s 38-19 thumping in New Haven. This year’s contest will take place in Cambridge, and the Crimson will look to extend the longest winning streak in the history of the Game.