Once again in the scrambled Ivy League race, the Crimson football team enters a game with a definite chance for the League title. This afternoon at 1:30 in Soldiers Field the varsity, in its most important game to date, takes on a slightly favored Princeton eleven.
In sharp contrast to the last stadium contest, the field should be dry and the weather clear. A crowd of 35,000, the largest of the year, is expected to watch the varsity endeavor to maintain its threat for first place honors. To do so, Harvard must stop or outscore the Tigers, and the first alternative is most unlikely.
Thus the only chance for John Yovicsin's forces lies in their questionable ability to launch a strong offensive. Whether they can after last week's supreme effort against Pennsylvania is doubtful.
With a 2-2 record in the league, the Crimson must win all its remaining games (Princeton, Brown, Yale), to threaten, and of these, today's contest with Princeton will unquestionably be the toughest. Brown has Choquette but little else; Yale racked up an impressive unbeaten, untied, and unscored on record, but lost it against relatively soft opposition. There is nothing weak, however, about the Tigers.
In what promises to be a high scoring contest, the varsity will struggle against the single wing, an outmoded anachronism in this age of the quick opening T formations. With the proper personnel, however, it is a formation capable of moving slowly but inflexibly towards the goal line through any opposition.
Scott to Give Crimson Trouble
Coach Dick Colman has the proper personnel. Tailback Hugh Scott, though not exceptionally fast, has proved an extremely powerful and canny runner as well as a capable passer. At present he is third in the league in total offense with 358 yards.
Available for intermittent use is the Tigers' real pride, Danny Sachs. Possessing tremendous speed, though prone to all varieties of injuries, Sachs will enter the game when long yardage is imperative. When he's in, the Crimson ends must play at top form to prevent repeated, crushing gains down the sidelines.
With Dan Sullivan ready to relieve these two, and with Mike Iseman and Ron Goldman at wingback, the Tiger backfield is among the toughest the Crimson will face this season. In the same manner that Ravenel has deceived the opposition this year by having halfback Chet Boulris throw sporadic passes, Princeton will deceive the Crimson. The tailback, the strong man of the backfield, normally throws 90 per cent of the Tiger aerials as well as performing much of the running. For a change of pace, though, Iseman will take the ball, fake a reverse, and throw deep to Ed Kostelnik, second All-Ivy choice last year. Most important to the success of the single wing offense, is a big, strong, and durable line. While the Tiger forwards are outweighed by their Crimson counterparts, it is questionable whether they will also be outplayed by them. Captain and center, Frank Szvetecz will return to fulltime active duty after a three week absence. His return will give Princeton the services of perhaps the best center in the league, and will bolster a line which to date has held its opponents to 20 yards less per game than the Crimson. Specializing in a particularly devastating pass rush, the forwards have also shown crunching, precise, double teaming, good enough to let the backfield pile up the best offensive record in the league. On the basis of their strengths, the Tigers have been made a four point favorite. Penn, however, was a twelve point favorite, and the Crimson in its unpredictable manner managed to beat them by two touchdowns. The Crimson, on paper, has the strength to gain its second consecutive upset victory. In each game Boulris has improved, and at present seems to be the best back in the league. Thirteenth in the nation in rushing offense, he is the only Ivy back among the national leaders. Against Penn, however, he was injured, and has sat out practice during the last week. As Coach Yovicsin said, no one can be expected to be at top form after laying off a week. Nevertheless, he brings speed and power to the Crimson lineup. With Ravenel, Sam Halaby, and Larry Repsher to share the running, the Crimson backfield is certainly the Tigers' equal. Most encouraging though was the performance of the line at Penn. Tackle Eric Nelson, end Bert Messenbaugh, voted the game's outstanding lineman, and Pete Eliades all turned in excellent performances. If inspired, they and the rest of the forwards will not be pushed around However, not given to consistency, the team has yet to prove that it deserves the title. Second half lapses and a terrible day against Dartmouth have hurt badly, and an occasional upset is certainly not grounds enough to call a team great. But if the Crimson can go out today and win, it would indicate that last week's victory over Penn was not an upset. To date the team has been unable to get 'up' for successive contests, and today is their last chance. If they can, it could mean the title.
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