Losing to Holy Cross at home does not help Harvard in its local recruiting wars. Gone now is the sales pitch that says the Crusaders haven't beaten the Crimson since 1995. Such success against Holy Cross can be crucial in winning players like Harvard sophomore safety Niall Murphy, whose family legacy seemed to destine him to be a Crusader.

Opening against Holy Cross would not be in the best interests of the Harvard football program if the relative strengths of the two programs continue to be distorted by the schedule.

Defensive Gems

One of the biggest question marks going into the game was how the Crimson defense would perform with only three returning starters. Although Harvard was victimized by the rushing attack of quarterback Brian Hall, the defense was otherwise solid.

Harvard did not allow a pass reception longer than 11 yards to any Holy Cross wide receiver and held the top Holy Cross running backs to just 72 yards on 25 carries.

"I thought our defense played well overall," Murphy said. "Under the circumstances I thought we hung in there. The fundamentals were pretty solid."

It was a big day for the defensive line duo of senior R.D. Kern and junior Phil Scherrer. The two teamed up to kill the Crusaders' first drive of the day into Harvard territory. On first-and-5 from the Harvard 38, Kern rolled over his lineman and nailed Hall for a seven-yard loss. On the subsequent play, Hall momentarily bobbled the ball while rolling left. Scherrer, taking advantage of the distraction, managed to get into Hall's face just as he recovered and sacked him for a five-yard loss.

On the opening play of Holy Cross's second drive in the third quarter, Kern and Scherrer teamed up again for the first Crusader turnover of the day. Upon penetrating the backfield, Kern downed Crusader back Giancarlo Cerrigone, and the ball popped up towards the hands of Scherrer. Showing quick reflexes, Scherrer grabbed hold of the ball and returned it three yards to the Crusader 18. The play would lead to Harvard's second touchdown of the day.