Today's Harvard-Yale varsity clash will grab all the attention, but the two schools' freshman teams battled it out yesterday on mudsoaked turf at Soldiers Field.

The freshman Elis (4-1) rode the strong passing game of Robert Verduzco (9 of 17 for 133 yards and two touchdowns), and a potent running attack lead by Reginald Sellars to a 27-0 victory over the Crimson (2-3).

Harvard entered the second half trailing 14-0, and running back Sellars drove the final nail into the Crimson's coffin when he returned the opening kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown that gave the Elis a comfortable 20-0 lead.

The hosts did not pose a true threat to score until late in the fourth quarter, when they brought the ball inside the Yale 5. The Crimson could not, however, punch the ball into the end zone and was halted on four tries.

Bogged Down

Coach Don Allard attributed the loss to the Elis' clutch play and the horrendous field conditions. "Offensively, our main strength has been running the ball. With the field in this condition we just couldn't get going," said Allard.

The coach added, "This is the best quarterback we've seen all year. I thought he was the difference."

"This game really hurts. It would have made our year," said Allard, a Crimson standout of the early '80s. "To lose this game was the low point of our season."