Head of the Class

Harvard's Tim Murphy looks to win consecutive Ivy titles for the 1st time


Offense

Harvard's offense is not the kind of unit that will pour 35-40 points on the board every game. But that's not the point. The dominant offensive line and super-experienced quarterbacks simply control the field of play and make things happen when they need to. Nothing more, nothing less.

Notice I said "quarterbacks." That's because Harvard has two top-flight QB's in starter Chris Pizzotti and back-up Liam O'Hagan. They're both back for senior seasons and are both as good as any QB's in the league except for maybe Brown's Michael Daughterty.

There is some attrition as wide receiver Corey Mazza and linemen David Paine are gone, but I expect a big year from big receiver Matt Luft, (43 catches and a 16.8 yards per reception average in 2007), this season and the rest of the offensive line is very strong. No team manhandled the Columbia pass rush as easily as Harvard last season; it was a thing to behold. Tight end Jason Miller is dangerous at times and he may get pushed this season by sophomore Nikolai Schwartzkopf who was tagged as the top incoming Ivy freshmen recruit last season but did not end up seeing much varsity action, (that tells you how deep Coach Tim Murphy's bench truly is).

Lead running back Cheung Ho is probably a bit overrated because of the great offensive line, but he took what was given to him and literally ran with it. It may sound obvious, but not every running back can do that.

Harvard came in just fifth in overall offense and rushing offense last season, but like I said above, the Crimson were more efficient than explosive. There could be some dropoff in scoring overall, but I actually think Harvard will be better offensively this time around and move up the statistical ladder.

Defense

Brad Bagdis is gone, but Matt Curtis is probably the best defensive lineman in the Ivies and he is back. The very talented Peter Ajayi, Carl Ehrlich and Chuks Obi will join him on the line. Harvard will again harrass QB's and stuff the run week after week.

The linebackers are stacked too with 1st Team All-Ivy Glenn Dorris returning here along with Eric Schultz who made the second team. Yikes!

The secondary will not be as good. But Andrew Berry may be the best defensive back in the Ivies right now. The key for opposing offenses will be to get the chance to test the secondary by holding off the furious Harvard rush from up front. Most teams won't get the chance.

Special Teams

Harvard's placekicker, Patrick Long, has the best-ever last name for a placekicker in football history. He is pretty solid, but not the best in the Ivies. The punter, Thomas Hull, is also better than average and that's about it.

Harvard loses its primary and kick and punt returners to graduation , but sophomore wide receiver Marco Iannuzzi showed some flashes last season in those roles.


Intangibles

Tim Murphy has won a lot of Ivy titles at Harvard, but never back-to-back. Whether that serves as motivation to his players is hard to measure. The Crimson must also avoid looking ahead to the Yale game and letting some other up-and-coming team crash their party.


Jake's Overall Take

Harvard not only has the things that most other Ivy teams do not, it has them in abundance. Not one, but two excellent QB's, multiple All-Ivy offensive and defensive linemen, a 6"6 wide receiver and a 6"4 All-Ivy tight end.

It's the depth factor that comes back to you again and again. There is no one player who would sink the Crimson's title hopes by getting injured and knocked out for the year. Yale can't say that. Brown can't say that.

One could quibble with the Harvard offense, which seems to be one lethal weapon short of being unstoppable. But that would be splitting hairs.