Lafayette figured to have trouble covering Harvard receiver Carl Morris.
They never thought they wouldn’t belong on the same field with him.
Morris eluded Leopard defensive backs almost at will Saturday, catching nine balls for 123 yards and two touchdowns in about three quarters of work. Had the game been competitive, Morris would likely have been even more productive.
By halftime, Morris caught 7 of the 10 completions thrown by quarterback Neil Rose.
“Sometimes you feel like with everything we got on offense, that there’s not a lot the defense can do,” Morris said.
Can’t Stop Him, Can Only Hope to Contain Him
Morris’s nine catches in the game made him just the fourth receiver (and only the second junior) in team history to amass at least 100 catches in a career.
At his pace, Morris should easily set the all-time Harvard record for receptions of 146, held by Terrence Patterson `00.
At one point, the Leopards apparently decided that it wasn’t worth covering Morris at all. As Harvard lined up to run the ball in a goaline situation, the Lafayette cornerback responsible for Morris forgot to enter the game, leaving the Crimson star wide open on the right side of the field.
A bewildered Morris started jumping up and down to get Rose’s attention, but in his haste to change the play, Rose pulled back from center prematurely, resulting in a five-yard procedure penalty.
The Leopards were sure to put a man on Morris for the next play, but, predictably, it made no difference. Rose found an open Morris in the endzone for his final touchdown pass of the day.
“When things go so well on offense as a team, I feel like I can always get open,” Morris said.
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