The junior tailback has 697 yards on 146 carries this year and has scored five touchdowns (four rushing, one receiving). Against Yale he led the Quakers to a surprisingly easy 23-7 win by rushing for more than 200 yards and scoring two touchdowns.

Tailback Chris Flynn--who doubles as a punt returner--and fullback Mike O'Neill shore up the Penn attack which, like the Crimson's runs on about two-thirds of its plays.

When the teams take to the air today, it will be strength against strength and weakness against weakness.

Harvard quarterback Brian White has had flashes of brilliance this year--including a five-for-five performance on a critical drive last weekend--but his overall statistics (63-for-142, 1025 yards, 5 tds., 5 ints.) betray his inconsistency.

Meanwhile the Penn defense--which has probably the best front seven in the Ivy League--is weakest in its secondary where several quarterbacks, including Princeton's Doug Butler, have been able to punch holes.

Quaker signalcaller Jim Crocicchia (88-for-171, 1059 yards, 9 tds., 9 ints.) is second only to Butler among league quarterbacks. Although he isn't the ground threat that White is, the senior provides an excellent balance to Penn's Comizio-led ground game.

But in the Harvard secondary, Crocicchia faces his stiffest test of the season. Led by cornerback Lee Oldenburg and safety Cecil Cox (each with five interceptions), the Crimson defensive backfield is the main reason Harvard has a chance to share the title.

The Crimson is plus-12 in the giveaway-takeaway ration, and the defense's 15 interceptions are the main reason why.

Harvard's defense has been, above all, opportunistic, and it is opportunism that has characterized the entire Crimson squad--allowing it to outgain its opponents by a total of just four yards on the season while compiling the 6-2 record.

And that intangible opportunism is Harvard's best chance to derail the Berndt express this afternoon.