With momentum on its side, and the realization that a win could seal up at least a share of the Ivy title, Harvard pressed forward. Balestracci made a one-handed interception of a Hoffman bullet, and four plays later, on a fourth down, Rose found Morris on a "flag" pattern near the end zone for a touchdown. That made it 35-27 going into the final minutes of the fourth quarter, before all the final craziness.

Coupled with a Cornell win over Columbia, Harvard's chances for a share of the Ivy title died with Wright's kick. On a day of blustery, strong winds at Franklin Field, there wasn't solace in knowing that, at the very least, Yale wasn't going to win the Ivy either.

"We put ourselves in position to win the game," Murphy said. "But we didn't make the plays we had to."

In any case, the only things Harvard can come away with are records (either Rose's passing mark or the team's overall points scored in a season, the most since 1894). Redemption comes to Cambridge next week in the form of the Elis Always a memorable contest, The Game can erase all of the season's previous mistakes.

But the football team's thoughts will also be drifting towards happening hundreds of miles way in sleepy Ithaca, N.Y., where Penn plays Cornell. It is the de facto Ivy League championship, between two teams that each beat Harvard by only one point.

Beating Yale can only help so much.