It would be hard to imagine a worse start to the season for Harvard quarterback Collier Winters.

In the final minutes of a season-opening loss to Holy Cross, the fifth-year senior dove into the end zone on a two-point conversion and pulled his hamstring.

“It was a weird injury,” Winters says. “At first, I did not think it would be that much of a problem, and then I got over to the sideline and it got tight. It felt sore, and I couldn’t put a lot of weight on it.”

Winters would finish the game, but the Crimson offense failed to mount a comeback, falling to the Crusaders, 30-22.

“The first game was definitely a tough loss for us, but it also was a reality check for us and made us focus in for the rest of the season,” Winters says.

Despite the injury, Winters hoped to play in the next game, the Ivy League and home opener against Brown.

“I spoke to [Harvard] coach [Tim] Murphy and the trainers throughout the week and tried to convince them that I could play,”

Winters says. “I convinced myself that I could play, but in reality, I don’t think I would have been able to do a lot that game.”

Fearing the injury was more serious than Winters let on, the coaching staff rested the senior in favor of junior Colton Chapple. In three previous starts during his sophomore season, Chapple had gone 2-1, but he had little Ivy League experience.

“With Collier going down, I knew I’d have to step up in a big game,” Chapple says. “I knew I didn’t have to do anything spectacular. I just had to play well enough to win and give our playmakers the ball.”

Amidst the rain that hit Harvard Stadium that night, Chapple stepped up in a big way, throwing for 207 yards and two touchdowns in a 24-7 win over Brown.

With a big Ivy win under his belt, Chapple’s self-confidence grew greatly.

“I knew that I could play starting quarterback in this league and be successful [after the Brown game],” the Alpharetta, Ga. native says. “That gave me a huge boost of confidence.”

From the team’s perspective, the change in quarterback did little to disrupt the overall game plan and team dynamic.

“Both [Winters and Chapple] throw the ball very well, [and] they both run the ball very well,” says junior tight end Kyle Juszczyk. “We all trusted Colton and his preparations. It was a pretty seamless transition between the two of them.”