Chris Smith and the Crimson lead the nation in rushing defense (Gil Talbot).
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Harvard football steps back out of conference play and will visit Holy Cross at Fitton Field on Saturday, Oct. 19. The 1 p.m. game will broadcast live on the Patriot League Network and be carried over the radio on Bloomberg WRCA (1330 AM/106.1 FM) and WHRB (95.3 FM) in Boston.
The Crimson improved to 2-0 in the Ivy League (3-1 overall) by downing Cornell, 35-22, while the Crusaders (3-3 overall) earned a 47-31 road win at Brown last week.
How to Follow
Broadcast – Patriot League Network (Talent: Kevin Shea, Andy Lacombe, Brenna Wilson) | International Stream
Audio - Bloomberg Radio (Talent: Bernie Corbett and Mike Giardi '94)
Live Stats – Holy Cross
Twitter: @HarvardFootball
Game Notes: Harvard | Holy Cross
Podcast: Click here for audio
What to Know
• Harvard, which comes into the game leading the nation in blocked kicks, blocked punts, sacks and rushing defense, completed a perfect 3-0 homestand by holding off Cornell, 35-22, last week. James Herring blocked two punts, Jon Sot averaged a school-record 56.3 yards per punt, and Jordan Hill, the Ivy League Defensive Player of the Week, recorded 10 tackles, including 2.5 tackles for a loss. The Crimson has held all four of its opponents under 100 yards rushing this season.
• Since the 2006 season, Harvard owns a 45-11 record (.804) in games played during the month of October.
• In Harvard's 35-22 win over Cornell (Oct. 12), Jon Sot averaged 56.3 yards per punt, breaking the school record for single-game punt average (min. 3 punts), previously held by Jacob Dombroski '13 when he averaged 49.8 yards at Dartmouth in 2012.
• The Crimson takes a number of impressive streaks into this week's game. Harvard has won 10-straight games when leading at the half, 29-consecutive when scoring 30 or more points and seven-straight when allowing opponents to score 20 points of less.
• As a team, Harvard leads the Ancient Eight in scoring offense (40.5), rushing defense (65.0), sacks (5.25), first downs (24.2) and red-zone offense (.889). Truman Jones paces the conference in sacks (4.0) and tackles for a loss (8.0), and Nasir Darnell is tops in fumbles forced (2) and fumbles recovered (2).
At The Helm
In his 26th season, Harvard's all-time winningest head coach, Tim Murphy, enters this week's game with a 177-76 record with the Crimson and a 209-121-1 overall head coaching record, which includes five years at Cincinnati and two years at Maine. Since the formation of the Ivy League in 1956, only one Ivy coach (Yale's Carm Cozza) has compiled more wins than Murphy's 177 and he is just one of nine coaches to win 100-plus games. Murphy also owns 124 Ivy League wins, second-most all-time. Murphy has led Harvard to nine Ivy League championships (1997, 2001, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2011, 2013, 2014 and 2015).
Up Next
Harvard will remain on the road and visit No. 16/17 Princeton in a key Ivy League matchup Saturday, Oct. 26 at 1 p.m.
