Although the Bears won the time of possession battle again in the second quarter, the Crimson’s offensive efficiency rendered that stat irrelevant for the time being. In the quarter, Harvard racked up 167 total yards to Brown’s 50. Three touchdowns on three drives, plus an interception returned for a score, had completely turned the game around.

THE PENALTY BOX

On some instances, the flags put the Crimson in undesirable situations.

On the first play of Brown’s third drive, senior linebacker Conner Loftus was penalized for a facemask that moved the Bears into striking distance. And just three plays later, Donnelly found a receiver in the corner of the end zone for the touchdown.

With Harvard on defense later in the quarter, Wilson intercepted a pass and ran it back for the Crimson score. But the senior was hit with an unsportsmanlike conduct call for diving into the end zone, and Brown received even better field position after another penalty forced Harvard to kick off from its own 15. Luckily for the Crimson, the defense was able to ensure a quick stop.

In the second half, a big kickoff return by sohpomore Andrew Fischer was negated after a block in the back, and a sizable gain by sophomore running back Paul Stanton was brought back in the fourth after another flag.

In total, Harvard committed 12 penalties costing the team 89 yards—something the team will need to cut down on as the conference schedule continues.

—Staff writer David Steinbach can be reached at david.steinbach@thecrimson.com.