Two plays later, defensive end Phil Scherrer kept the shutout intact by intercepting a pass from Columbia backup quarterback Scott Hunsberger.
The play set off a sloppy series in which the two teams combined for turnovers on five straight possessions, including a pair of Crimson fumbles.
"The bottom line is that we can win some games that way, but we can't win a championship that way," Murphy said. "It's as simple as that."
Fortunately for Harvard, the defense rose to the occasion after every offensive miscue. After Rose fumbled a snap at Harvard's 37-yard line, Fitzgerald pounced on a
mishandled Columbia exchange on the ensuing possession to return the ball to Rose and the offense.
Later, when Morris slipped and lost the ball after catching a Rose strike up the middle, junior end Mark Laborsky single-handedly killed Columbia's next drive.
Laborsky batted down two passes and combined with Green for a sack in an electrifying sequence late in the third quarter.
If the defense had the greatest impact on the stat sheet, the kicking game provided Harvard with its greatest emotional boost. The Crimson's special teams unit had struggled missing eight straight field goals going into Saturday's game. The kickers' futility had prompted Murphy to adopt a "four down" offense.
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