The drama was aplenty the last two times Harvard and Princeton faced off on the gridiron. From 29 unanswered Tigers points in the 2012 fourth quarter to a triple-overtime contest last year, Princeton found thrilling and creative ways to defeat its rival.

Things could not have been more different on Saturday, as Harvard dominated from start to finish. Even with the teams’ past history in mind, the outcome of the game was effectively decided by halftime.

“It got away from Princeton, and we’ve all been there,” Murphy said. “We’ve been on the other end of it.”

While the Crimson amassed a school record 698 yards of offense, Princeton only managed 244 after averaging nearly 470 yards in the teams’ last two meetings. Tigers quarterback Quinn Epperly threw for six touchdowns last year, but he posted just 66 passing yards on Saturday.

Harvard’s previous largest margin of victory over Princeton was 34 points—a differential that was shattered in 2014.

“I told the guys in the locker room, it’s probably the best week of practice we’ve had since I’ve been here for Harvard,” Surace said. “Some things you can’t explain.”

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