Palazzo's speedy dashes powered Harvard's second and third touchdown drives, including one that ended in a 1-yard Palazzo run with 1:11 remaining in the first half.

However, the most electric moment in the Crimson ground game came from Rose. On second-and-goal at the Columbia 10, Rose ran a quarterback draw to the left side.

Rose used a 360-degree spin move to elude the lone Columbia defender pursuing him. Rose finished the play untouched and extended Harvard's lead to 14-0.

The quality of play of both teams disintegrated over the next few minutes. McCall backed out of the pocket at the Columbia 50-yard line only to get nailed by Green again. While being taken down, McCall attempted to salvage the play by flipping a pass to a receiver to his right. Junior linebacker Nick Cataldo broke up the play and fell on the ball.

The officials ruled that McCall's pass was a lateral and, consequently, a fumble rather than an incomplete pass. Harvard took over at the Columbia 45, only to promptly return the favor as Columbia safety Phillip Murray picked off Rose on the very next play.

It was the first of Murray's three interceptions on the day.

Although the Harvard offense seemed to make things interesting, the defense would have none of it. Columbia didn't make its first foray into the red zone until the third quarter, and that was only because Murray returned Rose's third interception to the Harvard 11-yard line.