By “it,” Rose means his football career, but Harvard’s trainer was able to pop the aggravated nerve right back into place. Rose started the Brown game and went 5-for-5 before a vicious hit upended him, and the fire returned to his legs.

“That was the worst there ever was,” Rose says about the pain he felt lying on the locker- room table. “There was no position I could get in without being in pain.”

Sophomore Ryan Fitzpatrick, who had taken over for Rose during the 2001 season a few times and also at the end of the Holy Cross game, finished off Brown. Fitzpatrick also played the entire next game against Lehigh while Rose tried to recover from his sciatic nerve condition.

The sophomore backup also got the start against Cornell, even though by that point Rose says he was healthy enough to play. Fitzpatrick masterminded the 52-23 blowout over the Big Red while Rose paced frantically along the sidelines, waiting for a chance to come in.

“Basically three times during the game [Murphy] tells me, ‘No promises you’ll get in, but warm up’,” Rose recalls. “I would’ve taken anything, but in the fourth quarter, Coach looks at me and says, ‘You’re not a mop-up guy.’”

Just the opposite. Murphy awarded Rose the start the next week against nationally-ranked No. 14 Northeastern. It was a disaster from the start. Rose played tentatively and had no time in the pocket to throw, and when Fitzpatrick entered the game in the second quarter and led Harvard to a score, the sophomore remained for the duration of the game.

The captain benched?

“The thought came across my mind [that I wouldn’t get to play again],” Rose says. “I just felt bad for letting the team down, and I was questioning whether or not I’d be able to be productive again.”

Rose from the Ashes

Rose’s wild ride continued the next week at Princeton. Fitzpatrick was given the starting nod, but Rose was promised at least one series in the second quarter. Nothing came of that drive, but Harvard offensive coordinator Jay Mills and Murphy talked it over and decided to keep Rose in anyway. The Crimson eventually won, 24-17, and the fifth-year senior was back in business.

“It was a load off my shoulders,” Rose says of the Princeton game. “The world was right again, from my weird point of view. I knew I could play, I knew we would win. I’ve always expected more out of myself than others have.”

Since the Princeton game, Rose has continued to be one of the league’s best players, dominating Dartmouth and Columbia, though he had a subpar day last weekend against Penn. Even if Harvard is able to clinch a share of the Ivy title against Yale, Rose knows that some of the team’s success has happened without him.

“It’s been very disappointing personally,” he says about his performance over the season. “But it’s not something I dwell on. I came in expecting everything. I was going to come back and be the best quarterback in the country, and Carl Morris was going to be the best receiver in the country.”

But the nagging injuries and subsequent benchings took a toll on Rose beyond just the playing field.

“I felt bad for not being judged the best QB on the team—I thought it was my fault,” he explains. “I think my leadership took a dip—you’re supposed to lead by example.”