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Rock Steady

The Ballad of Jim Kubacki

(Sung to the tune of "Teen-Angel")

That fateful day on Franklin Field,

Our team was well ahead.

You could have handed off to Winn,

But you ran it instead.

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Kubacki, can you hear us?

Kubacki, can you see us?

Will you lead us over Brown,

And will we wear the Ivy Crown?

What was it you were looking for,

When you were hurt that day?

They say you clutched the Nation's stats,

As you were helped away. [refrain]

The Princeton game, and now you're gone.

Mike Lynch will take your place.

It's up to him to win the game.

And keep us in the race.

It's all in the hands of Jack Fadden and Mike Lynch now.

Those dreams of Ivy glory that seemed to shatter along with Jim Kubacki's shoulder on the artificial turf of Franklin Field are now residing with Harvard's head football trainer and the number two quarterback.

It is up to Fadden to put together the muscle and bone in the left shoulder of southpaw Kubacki before the crucial final two games against Brown and Yale. "I'm getting treatment from Jack every day," Kubacki said Wednesday, "He's the best there is."

The medical report that Fadden and Kubacki have to work with is not altogether clear at this point. "I've had two different reports," Kubacki said, "One said that the shoulder was separated, the other said it wasn't. It's safe to say it is bruised, and if it is separated, then it's not that bad."

Kubacki, will definitely be on the sidelines for tomorrow's contest against Princeton, but he hopes to return to action next week. "Right now it's a day to day thing," Kubacki explained. "Jack says that there's a chance for me to play against Brown and he seems to think I might be back for the Yale game."

Kubacki has had to watch from the bench before. Freshman year he could not play at all because of his shoulder, and sophomore year he played only two games with the JV for the same reason. His shoulder is becoming as infamous as Jim Plunkett's, who separated his twice this season with the New England Patriots.

"I don't think it's as famous as Plunkett's," Kubacki said modestly, "and I'd just as soon not have that distinction."

So while Kubacki watches the Princeton contest from the sideline, Mike Lynch (Harvard's answer to Steve Grogan?) will be entrusted with keeping the Ivy dreams alive another week. Lynch, who will also be kicking extra points and field goals, will start as quarterback. But coach Joe Restic has left the option open of using his three other QBs in the game if he has to.

"The game plan will be the same as if Jimmy were in there, as far as I can see," Lynch explained. "But I'm a little different quarterback than Jimmy, so if what I do doesn't work, maybe coach Restic will use someone else in certain situations."

Restic has Steve O'Brien, Tim Davenport and Paul Halas waiting in the wings if the stingy Tiger defense proves too much for Lynch. None of the three has seen varsity action this year, while Lynch has run a few plays in the opener and player a little over a quarter of the Penn game after Kubacki left the field, guiding the squad to its final touchdown of the afternoon.

He's stepping into pretty big cleats, as Kubacki has been outstanding in the first six weeks of the season. Kubacki stands third in the nation in total yardage and leads the Ivy League in that department. Kubacki likes to run the option, and stands as the top Ivy QB in rushing, sixth overall.

"Mike doesn't run a lot," Kubacki said of his teammate. "I look to see him throw a good deal Saturday. Princeton has a tough run defense." (second in the league in least yards allowed rushing).

Lynch will have a chance to throw to his former Exeter teammate Jim Curry. That duo was devastating three years ago, but Lynch is not making any brash predictions about how well he will guide the Crimson offense tomorrow.

"Jimmy puts more pressure on the defense with his style," Lynch, a drop back passer, commented. "He puts pressure on the corners when he sprints out. I'm not half as good as that. I hope I can do half the job against Princeton that Jimmy has done for us this season."

And if Fadden can't put Kubacki's shoulder back together in time, Lynch may have to do the other half of that job against Brown and Yale.

It's all in their hands now.

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