Lehigh coach Pete Lembo said after Harvard’s heartbreaking 36-35 loss to the Mountain Hawks that the Harvard offensive line was the “nastiest bunch of guys” he had seen in a long time. The crew is led by senior right tackle Jamil Soriano, a 300-pound stud who might join Morris in this year’s NFL draft class. Senior Nate Torinus has filled in admirably for sophomore center Andy Smith, who tore his ACL midway through the season. The line’s third senior, Jack Fadule, is an All-Ivy First Team candidate. Juniors James Bakken and Joe Traverso have been starters almost all season as the Crimson boasts one of the top lines in the league.

“We’ve really jelled,” Soriano says. “We’ve played real well and we’re ready to go.” Harvard has allowed a league-low 12 sacks, and its rushing attack is second in the league, averaging over 168 yards on the ground per game. Overall, Harvard averages more yards of total offense than any other Ivy League squad.

Yale’s offensive line anchors the league’s top rushing attack and has allowed only 15 sacks this season, third lowest in the Ivy League. Four of Yale’s five starters started in last year’s Harvard-Yale game, including center David Farrell, who earned an All-Ivy Honorable Mention last season. The Bulldogs are good here, but Harvard’s better.

Edge: Harvard

Defensive Line

The Harvard defensive line has made huge strides in the past four weeks to become a dominating unit. Against Columbia, the D-Line was credited with three sacks, two forced fumbles and countless hurries. Senior defensive end Mike Armstrong is All-Ivy material and leads the line with 31 tackles. Junior Brendan McCafferty has three sacks in his last four games with a forced fumble. Junior Brian Garcia had a safety at Penn, the first from a Harvard player since 1997, while seniors Patrick Lavin and Jesse Brush are solid run-stoppers. Harvard has had great success stopping the run against Ivy opponents all year, including Penn, which rushed for only seven yards on 13 carries in the first half last week. All this from a unit that did not have one returning starter from last year’s squad.

The Yale defensive line has also come on strong recently. The Elis gave up only three points to Princeton last week, holding the Tigers to 66 yards rushing on 25 total carries. Senior defensive end Harry Flaster had 2.5 sacks in the game, adding to his league leading total of 9.5. Fellow senior defensive end Stewart Satullo had one against Princeton and has seven for the year, while classmates Jason Lange, a Second Team All-Ivy winner last year, and Mark Patterson each have five.

A key question will be if Harvard’s offensive tackles can stop Flaster and Satullo from getting pressure on Rose. If Rose has time to throw, he is usually deadly. If he is pressured, he can be beat.

Edge: Yale

Linebackers

Junior Dante Balestracci is the best defensive player in the Ivy League. He is the heart and soul of the Harvard defense and potential Defensive Player of the Year in the Ivy League. He leads the team in tackles with 84 and is tops on the roster with four sacks. Senior John Perry is next on the team with 69 tackles. The dynamic duo will be put to the test against Yale’s Carr as the primary stoppers of the run. If Balestracci can swallow up Yale’s running attack with good backfield penetration, it will be a long day for the Elis.

Yale boasts junior Ken Estrera and sophomore Ben Breunig, the team’s two leading tacklers. Estrera has four sacks—as many as Balestracci—but does not possess the size or strength of Harvard’s future NFLer.

“In my opinion we have the best interior linebacking crew in the Ivy League,” Niemczak says. “Any time you have a pair of guys up the middle that can consistently put up 10 tackles a game, you know you have a special group of linebackers.”

Edge: Harvard

Defensive Backs