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On the very first play of its first drive in its Ivy League opener against Brown, Harvard football incurred a delay-of-game penalty, pushing the ball back to the Crimson’s own 15.

After 15 full minutes of play, this lapse of concentration seemed like a metaphor for the team’s play. Harvard failed to score in that first quarter and trailed the Bears, 3-0, a year after cruising to a 53-27 victory.

But a look at the scoreboard at the end of four quarters betrayed the real narrative: Harvard was still producing at an impressive level on both sides of the ball.

For the rest of the game, the Crimson picked up the pace and rolled to a 32-22 victory, spoiling Brown’s homecoming weekend in Providence, R.I.

“For me this was a typical Brown game at Brown in that nothing came easy,” coach Tim Murphy remarked. “We just made a few more plays than they did, and that was the difference in the game.”

Following a 30-point rout of Rhode Island the previous week, the Crimson offense limped out of the gate, looking out of sync and struggling to convert on third downs. Even after making some progress toward the end zone on its second drive, sophomore running back Noah Reimers fumbled on a screen play. The turnover was the first of the season for Harvard.

Toward the end of the opening quarter, however, the Crimson broke its streak of unproductive drives. A 12-yard completion to senior tight end Anthony Firkser was followed by a run and a slide by senior quarterback Joe Viviano for a gain of 21.

The second quarter began with a continuation of this drive, and eventually junior running back Semar Smith slipped by a potential tackler, diving with his hands outstretched to break the plane and put Harvard on the board.

This touchdown ignited a second quarter in which the Crimson’s offense efficiently and relentlessly punished the Bear’s front seven and secondary. Harvard accumulated 25 of its 32 total points in this quarter alone.

The Crimson’s ground game ended up as its key to success in the red zone against Brown, as Viviano and Smith combined for four rushing touchdowns. Coach Tim Murphy primarily utilized his receivers to pick up big gains and advance the ball downfield to set up scoring opportunities.

Sophomore wide receiver Justice Shelton-Mosley was slow to integrate himself into the aerial attack this week, but he ultimately tallied a solid 69 yards on six receptions.

Shelton-Mosley and Firkser were Viviano’s preferred targets for the second straight game. Firkser complemented Shelton-Mosley with four catches for 78 yards.

As the second quarter was winding down, Viviano spotted a streaking Shelton-Mosley near the sideline. The quarterback lofted the ball up for the second-year wide receiver, and he laid out at full extension, hauling the ball in just inches above the turf.

“I’d missed him a few times before, so I knew I had to get him that time,” Viviano said. “He just did a good job beating man coverage and going to make a play on the ball.”