Comparing the Campaigns
Harvard came in to the season as the defending Ivy League champion, but with a very tough schedule including non-conference games against Northeastern, Holy Cross and Lehigh.
The Crimson opened the season with two closely contested and gritty victories 28-23 and 26-24, over Holy Cross and Brown, respectively.
Harvard then lost a one-point heartbreaker to No. 4 Lehigh on the road—its first loss since the 2000 Yale game—before responding with a 52-23 trouncing of Cornell in Cambridge.
The Crimson stumbled again the next week against No. 14 Northeastern at the Stadium, before taking to the road and recording back-to-back Ivy wins over Princeton (24-17) and Dartmouth (31-26). Harvard then tuned-up for the Penn showdown with a 28-7 romp over Columbia to push its Ivy record to 5-0.
While Harvard has not lost two straight games at any time this year, Yale’s 2002 season has been one of streaks.
The Bulldogs began the year with Cowan at quarterback, and the junior amassed an astonishing six touchdowns—three running and three passing—in a 49-14 season-opening victory over the University of San Diego.
But Cowan fractured his fibula in the following week against Cornell and was relieved by Mroz, who led the Bulldogs to a 50-23 win over the Big Red.
Yale then won at home against Holy Cross to run its record to 3-0 before dropping tough road tilts at Dartmouth and Lehigh and a home contest versus Penn.
The Bulldogs got back into the win column one week later with a resounding 35-7 victory over Columbia and continued their run with dramatic wins over Brown and Princeton.
“This football team has probably improved more during the season than any team I have coached,” Siedlecki said. “The difference between winning and losing in this league is very small and our season is a great example.”
Bracing for Battle
If Harvard’s victorious performances in games following a loss are any indication, the Crimson will come out fired up to play Yale this weekend after its debacle at Penn.
“There are three things we have to do to stop Yale’s winning streak,” Murphy said. “First, we have to protect the football—turning the ball over never wins you football games. Number two, we have to score more points than we did a week ago against a very tough Yale defense. Finally, we have to stop the Yale running game, because that is what gets them going on offense.”
Players on both sides recognize how much this game means to everyone involved. Students, faculty, and alumni look to their football teams to provide bragging rights for a whole year in one of the nation’s oldest sports rivalries.
Yet many players prefer to downplay the magnitude of The Game to maintain their ability to execute without nerves playing a factor.
“I’ve never played in the Harvard-Yale game before, but that’s all I hear about from the older guys, and I know this game is huge,” Mroz said. “But right now I just have to look at it as a normal football game and go out there and try my best to win this game.”
For the first time in a couple of years, both teams are in the upper echelon of the Ivy League and looking to finish first or second in the league at the end of the day.
There is no denying that The Game could be even more hotly-contested this year than in years past.
“The fact that both teams are playing very well just makes The Game that much more important,” Mroz said.