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ITHACA, N.Y. – In one of the most action-packed games played at Schoellkopf Field in many years, Harvard took advantage of the few miscues Cornell made in the second half and rode the effort to a 41-31 victory on Saturday afternoon. Harvard piled up 544 yards of offense in improving to 3-1 (2-0 Ivy), while the Big Red slipped to 2-2 (0-2 Ivy) despite scoring the most points against the Crimson this season.

The Big Red offense was able to move the ball throughout the game in the air, amassing 322 yards and three touchdowns in the passing game behind the strong arm of sophomore Jeff Mathews. Mathews completed 21-of-35 passes, including all three touchdowns. Senior Shane Savage recorded his second straight two touchdown game en route to his second career 100-yard game. He hauled in eight passes for 152 yards and two scores. Junior Luke Tasker also hauled in a touchdown among his four receptions for 88 yards and Ryan Houska scored once on the ground.



While Mathews was slinging it around for the second 300-yard game in his young career, Harvard's Colton Chapple did him one better, tossing for 414 yards and four touchdowns. The passing yardage total is the second-highest in school history. His main targets were Alex Sarkisian (seven catches, 112 yards, 1 touchdown) and Chris Lorditch (four catches, 103 yards), but four different players had four catches apiece. Treavor Scales and Zach Boden were solid in the running game, combining for 112 yards on 28 carries, with Boden scoring once.

For the Big Red defensively, senior Rashad Campbell had a sack, an interception that he returned for 62 yards and eight tackles. Classmate Brandon Lainhart notched a game-high 14 tackles, while sophomore Josh Barut had 12 tackles and a pair of pass breakups. Sophomore Brett Buehler also reached double figures with 11 stops. Brad Greenway put points on the board with a field goal and four extra-points while averaging 41.6 yards per punt on seven kicks.

Harvard's defensive line, which asserted itself late in each half, posted seven tackles for loss and four sacks. Josue Ortiz led the way with a pair of sacks, while Alex Gedeon had seven tackles and an interception.

The teams exchanged points in the first half, and Cornell trailed by just three entering the break. The Big Red fought to the end, but the Crimson defense seemed to get better as the afternoon progressed. Harvard recorded four sacks on the afternoon, tripling the total allowed by Cornell all year entering the contest. Mathews was sacked on consecutive plays midway through the fourth quarter, essentially sealing Harvard's sixth consecutive win in the series.
 
The contest started out much more promising for the home team.

On a warm Ithaca afternoon, Mathews moved the Big Red down the field quickly. Cornell's opening drive moved 70 yards in just three plays, with Mathews completing three passes. The last pass, a 42-yard strike to Shane Savage, ended with the receiver running uncovered into the end zone to give Cornell an early 7-0 lead.

Cornell attempted some trickery on its third drive when Mathews completed a flea flicker for 23 yards to Savage, but the drive ended three plays later when a Mathews pass was intercepted after getting deflected downfield.

The Crimson tied the game with 3:50 left in the first quarter on a fade route pass from Chapple to Adam Chrissis, capping a six-play, 81-yard drive in just over two minutes.

At the start of the second quarter, Harvard took its first lead of the game thanks to a 42-yard field goal by David Mothander. The Crimson drove 30 yards in seven plays to get into field goal position, and the Red's defense was able to stop Harvard from getting into the end zone.

Cornell stormed right back, though, scoring its second touchdown of the day on a screen pass from Mathew to Savage. The Harvard defense blitzed its safety, and Savage had nothing but open field in front of him after catching the short pass. He sprinted 39 yards untouched for the score to put the Big Red ahead 14-10 early in the quarter. Cornell drove 70 yards on four plays in just under two minutes.

Rashad Campbell made his presence known midway through the second quarter when he intercepted a Chapple pass inside the Red's 10-yard line, ending a drive where Harvard looked ready to score. Campbell returned the interception all the way to the Crimson's 31-yard-line, setting up a 31-yard field goal by Brad Greenway that put the Big Red's lead at 17-10.

Harvard came right back, however, as Chrissis caught a 41-yard pass down the left sideline that brought the Crimson within eight yards of the end zone. Two plays later, Zach Boden ran the ball up the gut for a two-yard touchdown that tied that game at 17-17.

Just before halftime, Harvard drove down the field and hit a 26-yard field goal to put them ahead 20-17 at the break. When the ball sailed through the uprights, the clock showed 9.8 seconds, and Cornell had no time to equalize before the second quarter ended.

In the first half, Cornell failed to convert any of its third-down attempts, resulting in three punts from Greenway. Though Greenway was able to pin the Crimson deep with his 44.7-yard average per punt, Harvard's offense put up 296 yards in the half and converted five of 10 third-down attempts to keep its offense on the field.

Cornell was unable to get its rushing game going, trying 13 running plays for just 24 yards.

After the break, Harvard could not complete a third-down conversion thanks to a sack by Campbell, and Cornell got the ball back at its own 20. The Big Red proceeded to drive the length of the field, aided by a defensive pass interference penalty that set the team up inside the Crimson 20. Cornell again went to a tricky play, running an end around to Luke Tasker, and the receiver brought Cornell to the 2-yard line. Ryan Houska capped the 80-yard scoring drive with a touchdown run, putting Cornell ahead 24-20 in the middle of the third quarter.

The back-and-forth battled continued, with Harvard retaking the lead toward the end of the third quarter. The Crimson drove 53 yards in just 59 seconds with most of the yardage coming on a 42-yard touchdown pass from Chapple to Sarkisian over the middle of the field. With the extra point, Harvard held a 27-24 lead.

Harvard got a big break late in the third quarter when Greenway received a low snap on a punt attempt. Greenway put his knee down on the field to retrieve the ball, and the referee ruled him down and the play dead. Harvard got possession at the Big Red's 38 and made good on the field position. Chapple found Cameron Brate for a 27-yard touchdown to give Harvard its biggest lead of the afternoon, 34-24.

The Crimson put the game away with Chapple's fourth touchdown pass of the game, this one a 26-yarder to Kyle Juszczyk with just under 11 minutes remaining. The Crimson went ahead by 17, 41-24, and Cornell couldn't catch up with so little time left.

Cornell scored late on a 44-yard pitch from Mathews to Tasker, capping a six-play, 82-yard drive that took under two minutes. The Big Red's on-sides kick was recovered and the Crimson ran out the clock to secure its third straight victory.
 
The Big Red returns to action next Saturday with a 1 p.m. contest at local rival Colgate.