When the Crimson rugby team opens its fall season at M.I.T. this afternoon, it will take the field as possessors of the Intercollegiate Cup and a three game losing streak. The Engineers, who were routed 22 to 0 by the Crimson four games ago, scored their first victory since 1954 last Saturday by edging the Barbarlans Rugby Club of Montreal, 3 to 0.

If today's match is played on a muddy field, the Crimson should duplicate the result, if not the score of the last meeting. A powerful and experienced pack of forwards will almost certainly outclass M.I.T.'s scrum. A firm dry ground, however, with the resulting emphasis on backfield play, might prove awkward if the Engineers' three-quarter line exploits the inexperience of the fast Crimson backs, who have been practicing together for only two weeks.

The match will start at 2 p.m.