"They played well way better than we did today," head coach Buddy Teevens said after the game. "We spotted them a bunch of points early on. We played better in the second half, but it wasn't enough to close the gap."
It did not take long for the Crimson to take control of the game, as junior quarterback Collier Winters marched his team down the field on the opening possession and carried the ball into the endzone himself on a one-yard run to secure an early lead. Winters' play continued Dartmouth's seven-game streak of letting the opposing team score on its first possession.
Harvard scored a touchdown on its next possession as well with another scramble from Winters and finished the quarter with 14 points and a 100 percent conversion rate on third down, going a perfect 7-for-7. The Crimson (5-2, 3-1 Ivy) scored on all of its first four possessions.
The Dartmouth offense played nearly as poorly as its defense, failing to score a single point in the first half. The team's lone touchdown came on an 82-yard punt return by Shawn Abuhoff '12 in the second quarter.
Two of the Big Green's offensive leaders had poor showings against Harvard compared to their previous performances this season running back Nick Schwieger '12 only managed 69 yards rushing and quarterback Conner Kempe '12 threw three interceptions.
"[Kempe] was fine," Teevens said. "Some plays were left out there. Obviously, the interceptions hurt us, but we were just inconsistent the whole football game. Harvard played a strong, physical game."
Aside from the interceptions, Kempe notched 3,000 career passing yards with his final completion of the game, making him the seventh quarterback in school history to accomplish the feat.
Schwieger went down with an apparent leg injury during the game and did not return from the sidelines. Teevens said he did not know the extent or the nature of the injury, but said that Schwieger was held out for purely cautionary reasons.
Wide receiver and tri-captain Tim McManus '11 said that even though it is especially difficult to lose on Homecoming weekend, it is important for the team to try to find the silver lining.
"Obviously, it's really disappointing for the team and the school, especially with it being Homecoming," he said. "It's kind of our opportunity to put an exclamation point on the weekend, and that didn't happen. But that's life, and things don't always happen your way."
McManus had a strong game with 126 all-purpose yards. He made several important catches down the sideline and wreaked havoc from the quarterback position in the Wildcat formation a strategy that was perhaps underused in the face of a stifling Crimson defense.
"We don't go back and question that after the fact," Teevens said. "It was productive when he was in there, but I feel that [Kempe] put us in a good position as well."
The crowd was treated to a bit of extra entertainment when several members of the Class of 2014 rushed the field from the stands during halftime, mingling with Harvard's band and stealing one of the Crimson cheerleaders' signs the "D" with the male members of the Harvard squad in hot pursuit.
The loss comes as a blow to those who expected the game against Harvard to be a statement that Big Green football has returned to the upper echelons of the Ivy League, but Teevens said he feels his team still has a chance to overcome this setback and prove that Dartmouth can play with the best teams in the conference.
"We're closer," he said. "It wasn't what it has been in the past. I thought that with our guys it was a different approach from last year. We just gave some things away."
Even with Dartmouth's difficulties in the first half, the deficit was not insurmountable at the start of the third quarter. It appeared that the Big Green could claw its way back after showing some offensive consistency at the beginning of the half, but two consecutive interceptions and a missed field goal prevented any drive from yielding points.
Finally, at the start of the fourth quarter, timely receptions by Michael Reilly '12 and Tanner Scott '11 put Dartmouth deep in the red zone. Dominick Pierre '14 cashed in with a five-yard run into the endzone to earn the only Big Green offensive touchdown of the day.
Dartmouth's hopes were fully extinguished when the offense turned the ball over on downs in the endzone with 2:51 left in the game, making it an easy task for Harvard to run out the clock.
"We came into the game wanting to win," defensive tackle Mark Dwyer '12 said. "We're still fighting for the Ivy League title, and, obviously, this is a setback, but we hope to come back with a strong week of practice and win out."
The Big Green travels to Ithaca, N.Y., this weekend to take on Cornell University. Last year, Dartmouth emerged victorious over the Big Red with a 20-17 double overtime win.
The Homecoming crowd of 9,142 was the largest recorded at Memorial Field since a Dartmouth victory over Yale University in 1998.
