Suddenly it was a one-possession game to start the fourth quarter. But Harvard returned to the run on its second possession of the frame, culminating with its third touchdown score—all but sealing the win.

Starting at the Cornell 37 with 9:34 left in the game, the Crimson began the drive with two runs from Gordon for nine yards. But an illegal formation penalty called on Harvard put the Crimson back where it stared the drive in a third-and-10 situation. Opting to stay with the ground attack, Gordon busted a 15-yard rush up the middle, which moved the chains and kept the clock ticking.

“[Harvard’s] front guys on that [offensive line] and tight ends pushed our [defensive line and] linebackers around and moved the ball effectively,” Knowles said.

Scales took over at the Cornell 20. On his first rushing attempt of the drive, the rookie earned the Crimson another first down, and on his third rush of the drive, he scored his second touchdown of the game, giving Harvard a safe 21-10 lead with 6:35 remaining.

Winters iced the win with a rushing touchdown of his own, taking the ball in from 15 yards out with just nine seconds remaining in the game.

“We probably don’t get a lot of style points [Saturday],” said Crimson coach Tim Murphy, who earned his 100th career win with Harvard with the victory. “But again, when our back was to the wall in the second half, we responded with a lot of grit and found a way to finish a very, very tough, aggressive, hard-nosed Cornell football team.”