CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - No. 15/12 (coaches/media) Harvard is set to welcome Dartmouth to Tim Murphy Field at Harvard Stadium on Saturday in what is its second straight pivotal Ivy League game. The Crimson sit atop the conference standings at 3-0, while the Big Green enters the week in a four-way tie for second place at 2-1 (Dartmouth, Penn, Yale, Princeton).

Quick Hits

Harvard comes into its game with the Big Green sitting at a perfect 6-0 after earning a 35-14 road win at Princeton last week (first win at Princeton since 2016). The Crimson and Tigers were both tied for first in the Ivy, along with Penn, at 2-0. With the successful trip to The Garden State behind it, Harvard is 6-0 for the first time since 2015.

- One of six undefeated teams in the country, Harvard climbed two spots in both national polls on Monday. The Crimson's No. 12 ranking in the Stats Perform poll is its best since 2015, and its No. 15 position in the coaches top-25 is its best since 2016. Dartmouth, meanwhile, is receiving votes in both polls, effectively No. 29 in the Stats Perform and AFCA rankings. 

- Running back Xaviah Bascon led the Harvard offense at Princeton, eclipsing the 100-yard mark for the first time this season. The junior rushed for 101 yards on 13 carries, finding paydirt once. Bascon's touchdown came with 18 seconds left in the second quarter, capping an end-of-first-half sequence that saw Harvard score 11 points in the final 1:05. The 11-point swing turned a 14-10 Harvard deficit into a 21-14 Crimson lead at halftime. The 11 points were part of a larger 25-0 Harvard run to end the game.

- Bascon was one of six ball-carriers for the Crimson at Princeton and the group totaled a season-high 259 yards on the ground, easily surpassing its previous best of 212 yards at Holy Cross. Harvard's rushing total was its most in a single game since going for 341 yards vs. Howard on Oct. 14, 2023, and its most in a road game since it played at Georgetown (335) on Sept. 18, 2021. The performance was also its most in an Ivy road game since it ran for 272 at Yale on Nov. 23, 2019.

- Quarterback Jaden Craig passed for 216 yards and one touchdown in his home state of New Jersey. The senior connected with Cam Henry on a 69-yard TD pass that gave Harvard a 7-0 lead over Princeton. Craig enters this week's action with 39 career touchdown passes and is two TDs shy of matching Neil Rose '03 for most career passing touchdowns (41). Craig is also closing in on the career passing yards record (4,736 vs. Rose - 5,549) and the career completions mark (334 vs. Rose - 455).

- Harvard's defense continues to impress and Saturday at Princeton was no exception. Outside of shutting the Tigers out for the final 33:50, the Crimson defense recorded the an interception for the sixth time in as many weeks (Jack Kirkwood), tallied three sacks, marking the fifth time this season the Crimson has recorded multiple sacks in a game (Jaeden Kinlock - game-high 1.5), and allowed just 98 yards on the ground. Individually, Sean Line made a career- and game-high 10 tackles, with Ty Bartrum adding eight, and Kirkwood and Xaden Benson each making seven stops.

- The Crimson defense comes into the Dartmouth game ranked first in the FCS in red zone defense (.583), second in total defense (255.5), second in scoring defense (11.5), third in team passing efficiency defense (99.22), fifth in defensive TDs (3), sixth in interceptions (10), eighth in rushing defense (93.8), and eighth in passing yards allowed (161.7).

- On offense, Harvard ranks first nationally in tackles for loss allowed (2.83), fourth in scoring offense (43.2), seventh in passing yards per completion (14.67), ninth in passing offense (278.7), 11th in total offense (475.0), 15th in team passing efficiency (161.65), and 18th in rushing offense (196.3).

- Harvard is 22-4 (.846) over the last three seasons (8-2 in 2023, 8-2 in 2024, 6-0 in 2025). The Crimson is tied for first in the FCS for fewest losses during this time period (South Dakota State - 4). In Division I altogether (FBS and FCS), Harvard is tied for first for fewest losses (Harvard, Oregon, Ohio State, South Dakota State - 4).

- The Crimson has been one of the best road teams in the FCS the last two-decades-plus. Since 1996, Harvard sits behind only North Dakota State in road winning percentage. NDSU has won at a .744 clip (87-30), while the Crimson has emerged victorious 95 times in 133 tries (.714; 95-38). Among all Division I teams, Harvard is behind only Ohio State (.800; 108-27), Georgia (.768; 96-29) and North Dakota State in road winning percentage since '96.

- Harvard has won six straight away from home, which is the longest streak in the country. North Dakota State, Tarleton State and Tennessee Tech are tied for second at five.

- With a win over Dartmouth, Harvard would... notch its 300th Ivy League win, which is the most of any Ancient Eight school... move it to 7-0 for the first time since 2015... give it a 4-0 Ivy League start for the first time since 2016.