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While much is uncertain about the 2016 Harvard football team, one thing is for sure: Anthony Firkser can play football.

With a little over 13 minutes left in the first half, the senior halfback reeled in a deep pass from senior quarterback Joe Viviano, splitting the safeties along the way. He beat the defense to the pylon, scoring a 75-yard touchdown, his second of the game.

But that was only the beginning of the story. At halftime he’d racked up two touchdowns and 134 yards receiving. On four catches.

That production led the way for the Crimson (3-0, 1-0 Ivy) on an evening when the hosts shot to an early lead and held on for a 31-17 victory over Georgetown (3-1, 1-0 Patriot) The result moved Harvard to 3-0 on the year and extended a 16-game nonconference winning streak.

“[Firkser] is tough,” the Hoyas coach Rob Sgarlata said. “He should be playing with his hand on the ground next to the tackle, but they spread him out there, where our corners and safeties have to deal with him.”

With sophomore standout receiver Justice Shelton-Mosley out of action, Firkser had a much larger load to carry this week. The duo had combined for 366 yards through the air before this game.

Yet Firkser and the rest of the receiving corps stepped up in Shelton-Mosley’s absence. Though the 230-pound halfback was the star of the game, the rest of the receivers contributed. Nine different players caught a pass, with five earning 20 yards or more.

“I think our receivers actually stepped up a lot and helped by kind of taking what they gave us with short routes and stuff,” Firkser said. “Once we saw them start biting on some plays I was able to get more movement down the field.”

Along with Shelton-Mosley, starting offensive linemen Max Rich and DJ Mott sat out the game. Because of the lack of experience, the Crimson came out playing very much in-system. Short throws and runs up the middle characterized Harvard’s offensive drives.

The young receivers made big plays for the Crimson, though. On the first drive of the evening, sophomore Brian Dunlap caught a touchdown off a fade from Viviano in the back corner of the endzone. Twisting in midair to reel in the ball, Dunlap had to keep balance while toeing the line a la Larry Fitzgerald in Super Bowl XLIII for the score.

“That’s been sort of the character of the team for a million years,” Harvard coach Tim Murphy said. “Not that it was perfect, not that it was always pretty - but the way that Jonesie at left guard and Danny Laden at left tackle played and having Joey Foster back, all those kids did a great job.”

The game featured three different quarterbacks for the Crimson. Viviano started, played most of the first half, and continued an efficient start to the season. Passing 21 times for 15 completions, he totaled 210 yards and three touchdowns. One went Dunlap, one went for 75 yards to Firkser, and a third came on an 11-yard strike midway through the first period.

After Viviano came out in the second quarter, sophomores Tom Stewart and Cam Tripp completed the battery for Harvard. Stewart ended with 111 passing yards, and Tripp threw a touchdown to freshman receiver Cody Chrest early in the fourth. However, the three-passer system produced four turnovers, including two interceptions from Stewart and one from Tripp.

All the credit shouldn’t go to the Crimson offense exclusively. Coming off a game in which Harvard allowed 22 points to Brown, the defensive unit proved stingier this week, holding Georgetown to 17 points. Ignoring two long scores, the Crimson conceded 116 yards and held the Hoyas to one-of-13 efficiency on third downs.