Skip To Main Content

Harvard University

Scoreboard

Skip to Navigation
>
>
Harvard football competes at Brown at Brown Stadium in Providence, Rhode Island on September 28, 2024.
Dylan Goodman
28
Harvard HAR 1-1 , 0-1
31
Winner Brown BRN 2-0 , 1-0
Harvard HAR
1-1 , 0-1
28
Final
31
Brown BRN
2-0 , 1-0
Winner
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
HAR Harvard 14 7 7 0 28
BRN Brown 0 10 7 14 31

Game Recap: Football |

Football Falls to Brown on the Road, 31-28

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Harvard Football suffered a 31-28 road defeat in the final minutes at Brown on Saturday in both team's Ivy league openers. With the decision, the Crimson fell to 1-1 on the season and 0-1 in conference, while the Bears moved to 2-0 (1-0 Ivy).
 
Brown, which trailed 28-23, was the beneficiary of a high Harvard snap on a field goal attempt with 45 seconds left in the fourth quarter. The miscue led to a loose ball that was eventually scooped up by the Bears' Nick Hudson. The fumble was returned 33 yards before Hudson fumbled it again and gained another 13 yards.
 
One play later, Jake Willcox found Mark Mahoney for a 27-yard TD and the two later converted the 2-point conversion. With 21 seconds to work with, the Crimson started at its own 25, but was only able to advance the ball to the 50 before time expired.

How It Happened

  • After forcing Brown to punt on its first two drives, Harvard took over on offense with good field position, starting at the Brown 47-yard line. Jaden Craig connected with Cooper Barkate on a 27-yard pass, which put the visitors at the 15-yard line. Four Shane McLaughlin rushes later, including a 7-yard run on 3rd-and-4, put Harvard on the scoreboard. McLaughlin's two-yard scamper into the endzone with 5:55 to go in the first quarter was his second TD of the season.
  • Harvard doubled its advantage right before the end of the first period when Craig found Barkate in the endzone for the 20-yard score. The eight-play, 67-yard drive was highlighted by a 13-yard rush by Charles DePrima and a 15-yard reception from Scott Woods II before culminating with the TD strike.
  • On Brown's opening possession of the second quarter, Jake Willcox hit Solomon Miller for a 56-yard gain, putting the Bears at the Crimson 8-yard line. Harvard's defense, however, stood firm and allowed only a 22-yard field goal with 11:17 left in the half.
  • Harvard answered the field goal with a methodical drive down the field, going from its own 25 to the Brown 16. It was from there, Craig, again, connected with Barkate, this time for a 16-yard TD pass. The 14-play, 75-yard drive, which ate up 5:18 of clock, pushed the Crimson's lead to 21-3.
  • The Bears cut into Harvard's advantage after Elias Archie picked off Craig and returned the interception 44 yards to the Crimson 1-yard line. Two plays later, Nate Lussier broke free into the endzone to make it a 21-10 Harvard cushion with 1:55 left before halftime.
  • Harvard was forced to punt to begin the second half and the Bears looked poised to take advantage. A 20-yard rush by Willcox brought Brown to the Crimson 12, but the Bears' drive stalled at the 7-yard line and they settled for a field-goal attempt. The 24-yard boot, however, was off the mark as Harvard kept its 21-10 lead.
  • The Crimson took advantage of the Brown miscue and was looking at 80 yards to paydirt. After Harvard gained 11 yards on the first three plays, Craig threw a 52-yard pass to a streaking DePrima, setting up Harvard on the Brown 17-yard line. Five plays later, Craig fought through would-be tacklers for the 2-yard TD rush.
  • Facing a 28-10 deficit, Brown needed only 19 seconds to find the endzone. Willcox and Matt Childs linked up for a 75-yard touchdown pass to pull Brown within 28-17 with 5:57 left in the third.
  • The Harvard defense came up big at the start of the fourth quarter when it appeared Brown had found its rhythm offensively. After starting at their own 36 with 4:42 left in the third, the Bears found themselves with a 4th-and-goal situation on the Harvard 2-yard line. Brown tried a gadget play, but its pass in the endzone was broken up by Damien Henderson, who helped Harvard keep its 11-point lead with just under 12 minutes left in regulation.
  • The score held at 28-17, in favor of the visitors, until Willcox and Mahoney capped a 13-play, 69-yard drive with a 9-yard touchdown in the third quarter (5:07). The TD brought the hosts to within five points before the game was decided in the final seconds of the fourth. 

Player Notes

  • Shane McLaughlin (22 att., 48 yds., 1 TD): Led the team in rushing attempts… His 22 attempts were a season high… Scored a touchdown for the second straight game.
  • Xaviah Bascon (13 att., 63 yds): Led all players in rushing yards… Set a career high with 13 rushing attempts.
  • Cooper Barkate (6 rec., 90 yds., 2 TD): Set a season high for receiving yards and receptions… With his two TD catches in the first half, he equaled his 2023 season total of three… His two TDs were tied for the game-high honors among non-quarterbacks.
  • Jaden Craig (12 comp., 178 yds., 2 TD; 4 att., 16 yds.): Passed for two touchdowns, giving him five on the season… Rushed a season-high four times for a season-high 16 yards.
  • Marcus Alexander (11 tkls.): Set a career high with 11 tackles… Entered the season with 10 career stops… The 11 tackles were the most among all players.
  • Damien Henderson (4 tkls., 1.0 TFL, 3 PBU): Had a career-high three pass-breakups to equal his total from a season ago.

Up Next

Harvard plays host to New Hampshire on Friday, Oct. 4. The 7 p.m. ET game will air live on NESN and ESPN+.
 
Print Friendly Version