Exactly how close did Harvard come to winning its second Ivy title in four seasons? Closer than some may remember, but ultimately too close to soon forget.

Two points stood between the Crimson (5-5, 4-3 Ivy) and a share of the 2000 Ivy Championship. Two last-second field goal attempts, if converted, would have made all the difference between a mundane 4-3 league record and a sterling 6-1 mark. And a mere twelve-point swing would have secured Harvard its second undefeated Ivy season in the 128-year history of the program.

"We had a legit shot to win the championship and if we had managed to kick game-winning field goals in the final seconds of Cornell and Penn we would have had championship rings," said Head Coach Tim Murphy. "We didn't lose those games because of missed [field goals], but they would have salvaged victories for us."

Although special teams was certainly an area of concern and widely derided for its inability to perform in the clutch, the two one-point losses to Cornell and Penn should not be solely attributed to the placekickers.

After a dominant 28-0 lead at halftime against Cornell, the Crimson inexplicably allowed 29 unanswered Big Red points and could only watch helplessly as Cornell senior wideout Joe Splendorio blocked the game-winning field goal attempt as the clock expired.

"We became very complacent in the second half and assumed that Cornell would roll over for us," said sophomore wide receiver Carl Morris. "But as we learned the hard way, you must fight for 60 minutes and never assume a team is done."

Despite the heartbreaking loss to Cornell, the Crimson remained flawless in its next three Ivy games. The Crimson turned in a gritty performance on the road to beat Princeton 35-21 in late October, and followed up with dominating 49-7 and 34-0 wins against Dartmouth and Columbia, respectively.

Heading into the Penn game, the Crimson controlled its destiny. Two more wins would secure at least a share of the Ivy title. It was the most important game of Harvard's season and the Crimson came out fighting like champions. But fate had other designs and the Crimson endured another painful loss.