Completing just two-of-11 passes in the final two quarters, Schires’ ineffectiveness allowed the Lions to overload the box against Dawson, cutting his productivity by half.

In return, with Dawson unable to make any inroads into the Columbia defense on the ground, Schires continued to force passes into tight coverage, throwing balls behind and over the heads of receivers. Though he threw only two interceptions, had the Columbia defensive backfield been any stronger, the total could easily have been three times as many.

With Schires’ poor play slowing the Crimson offense, Murphy’s formerly high-flying attack managed just those 13 points—none of which were scored in the final 42:43 of the game.

The most proficient offense in Division I-AA was shut out for nearly three consecutive quarters by one of the worst defenses in the nation.

“I think the bottom line is that we, today more than any other day I can remember in years, we really struggled to throw the football,” Murphy said. “There’s no excuse. Whoever’s healthy and ready to go, we’ve got to get it done.”

And in the three weeks prior to Saturday’s debacle, Schires had done exactly that. He’d gotten it done, particularly in leading the Crimson to victory over Lafayette and an overtime triumph over Princeton.

“They gained 500 yards against Lafayette with Schires playing, they gained 500 yards against Princeton with Schires playing, scored 40 points and scored 545 yards last game against Dartmouth last week,’’ Columbia coach Bob Shoop said. “That’s not our problem. Schires is an excellent football player.”

He just didn’t show it on Saturday.

The result may have changed in a New York minute, but for Garrett Schires and the Harvard offense, things got strange early and stayed that way.

—Staff writer Timothy J. McGinn can be reached at mcginn@fas.harvard.edu.