Just how costly was the Big Green's loss at Cornell this weekend? Well, depending on how you look at it, either very costly or not very costly at all. With Penn and Princeton falling to Brown and Harvard to drop from the ranks of the unbeaten, Dartmouth still remains just one game back of first place despite their 1-2 mark in league play. However, if the Big Green had managed to pull out a victory, they would be in first-place in the league, albeit in a five-way tie for the top spot.
With the exception of Yale's blowout of Columbia, the rest of the games this weekend in the Ivy League were extremely close. Harvard pulled out a one-point victory at Princeton, Cornell squeaked by Dartmouth and Brown won an offensive showcase against Penn with a last-second touchdown pass in a game that will undoubtedly go down as the best Ivy League game (and possibly Division I-AA game) in 1998.
Brown 58, Pennsylvania 51
Beware of dizziness if you hazard a look at the scoring recap for this game. In a record-setting display of offense on both sides, Brown's first team All-Ivy QB James Perry (Jr., Andover, Mass.) hit WR Steven Campbell (So., Kent, Wash.) on a 24-yard pass with just four seconds remaining to end the marathon and give the Bears their first Ivy League win of the season.
Perry and Pennsylvania RB Jim Finn (Sr., Toms River, N.J.) were the Ivy League's co-Offensive Players of the Week, and here are some team numbers from Saturday's shootout. The 109 combined points scored set an Ivy League record for points in a game, surpassing the previous mark of 97 from Dartmouth's 56-41 win against Columbia in 1982. They also took one of the longer-standing records off the Quakers' record lists, eclipsing the 102 combined points scored in Pennsylvania's 96-6 win against Vineland in November, 1886.
Brown and Pennsylvania combined for 58 points in the fourth quarter alone, believed to be an NCAA record for points in a single stanza. Bears' WR Sean Morey (Sr., Marshfield, Mass.) finished the game with nine receptions for 146 yards, after catching one pass for zero yards in the first half. He also returned three kickoffs for 88 yards, and knocked down Pennsylvania's Hail Mary pass to end the game. Morey moved into sixth place in the NCAA Division I-AA record book with 3,557 career receiving yards, and seventh place in career receptions (224). TE Zach Burns (Sr., Lebanon, Ohio) was dazzling with eight catches for 115 yards.
Brown's 483 passing yards was the most a Pennsylvania defense has allowed in school history, breaking the previous mark of 446 by Princeton's Bob Holly in 1981. Brown's total of 38 completions was the most ever against Pennsylvania, shattering the old record of 27, held by Cornell and Princeton. Perry's 470 yards broke the total offense mark held by Holly, and Perry's 470 and the team's 483 passing yards were the most against Penn since, yes, you guessed it, Bob Holly of Princeton.
Perry's five TD passes is a record for a Pennsylvania opponent, as is the team's total of six rushing touchdowns by Finn. In 12 games as a starting back, Finn he is averaging 130 yards rushing per game. Quakers' QB Matt Rader (Sr., Yardley, Pa.) now has 3,049 career passing yards in just a year and a half, the sixth best total in Quakers' history.
Yale 37, Columbia 14
The nation's third-ranked defense against the run, Columbia entered the Yale Bowl on Saturday having given up a total of 318 rushing yards in five games this season, an average of 63.6 per game. The tables were turned in this game, as Yale totaled more yards than Columbia had given up in all five games combined, finishing with 342 yards on the ground.
The Bulldogs were led by RB Rashad Bartholomew (Jr., Palos Verdes, Calif.), who carried 17 times for 192 yards, including a game-sealing 70-yard TD run in the fourth quarter to put Yale ahead, 34-14. TB Josh Phillips (So., Orlando, Fla.) added 80 yards on 19 carries, and tallied the first TD of his career for Yale's initial score in the first quarter.
Overall, Yale finished with 452 yards of total offense, the third time this season that the Bulldogs have gained more than 400 yards. Also, the 37 points were the most for a Yale team since the season opener vs. Brown in 1995. DB Todd Tomich (So., Long Beach, Calif.), the 1997 Ivy League Rookie of the Year, returned a punt for 57 yards, the longest punt return for a Yale player since Rich Diana in 1980. With his 39-yard FG in the fourth quarter, PK Mike Murawczyk (So., Cherry Hill, N.J.) tied the school record for FGs in a single season, held by Ed Perks '92, with 10.
Columbia also had a standout on special teams. Lions' P Ryan Kiernan (So., Cos Cob, Conn.) punted seven times for a total of 355 yards, good for an average of 50.7 yards per kick. That average broke the school mark for a single game of 47.6, set by George Georges in 1973.
Kiernan's longest boot of the day was 74 yards, three short of the school record. TE Bert Bondi (Sr., Sterling Heights, Mich.) had three receptions for 33 yards, giving him 106 career receptions, which ties him for fourth place on Columbia's all-time list. On defense, MLB Joe Cook (So., Chicago, Ill.) and DT Jim Armstrong (Sr., Sneads Ferry, N.C.) each made 11 tackles.
Harvard 23, Princeton 22
Princeton lost its first game in the new Princeton Stadium in front of 25,388 people on a sparkling Homecoming Saturday afternoon. It was the Tigers who jumped out to the early lead, scoring 10 unanswered points in the early going, including a 14-yard pass to WR Ray Canole (Sr., Minooka, Ill.) from QB John Burnham (Sr., Washington, D.C.).
The Crimson countered with a minute to go in the opening period
when QB Rich Linden (Jr., Indianapolis, Ind.) found TE Chris Eitzmann (Jr., Hardy, Neb.) for a 38-yard score. A two-point conversion failed, but Linden and Eitzmann connected again for a six-yard TD with 4:40 remaining in the second period for a 13-10 advantage.
The Tigers regained the lead at 2:06 before the break on a 19-yard run by RB Derek Theisen (Sr., Avon Lake, Ohio) with the extra point going wide of the goal posts.
This set the stage for PK Mike Giampaolo (Jr., San Marino, Calif.), whose 30-yard FG in the third quarter went through the uprights to knot the score at 16-16. But Princeton refused to remain idle, and PK Alex Sierk (Sr., Bettendorf, Iowa) kicked a 20-yarder through to regain the lead. The kick gave Sierk the school record with 34 FGs, and he is now just four off the Ivy record held by Dartmouth's Dave Regula '98.
In the end, it was the heroics of RB Chris Menick (Jr., Port Chester, N.Y.), who erased the Princeton lead when he threw a 41-yard halfback pass to WR Josh Wilske (So., Lakeville, Minn.).
Wilske had a career-high five receptions along with the TD, which was the first of his career. The TD gave Harvard the go-ahead point it needed to seal the win. Princeton had three players rush for at least 82 yards, including Burnham, who was carried 19 times for 84 yards, Theisen, 19-92 and RB Damien Taylor (Virginia Beach, Va.), 10-84. Linden finished 15-of-28 for 186 yards with Wilske leading the receivers 5-for-88.
