Friday, November 06, 2009

Scouting Harvard


Harvard is looking to clutch the title trophy again this year

The one word that really jumps out at you when you look at the 2009 Harvard Crimson is "balance."

The squad that Head Coach Tim Murphy would be a "pass first, run second" team, has actually been attacking teams with equal amounts of running and passing, and equal amounts of run stopping and pass breakups.

This Crimson team is a very good sum of all its parts.

It doesn't have a single running back as great as Clifton Dawson who tore up the Ivy record book from 2003-06. But the two-headed monster of Gino Gordon and Treavor Scales, (plus Cheng Ho when he's been healthy), is putting up big numbers game after game. In fact, both Gordon and Scales broke the 100-yard mark last week versus Dartmouth.

Harvard doesn't have a QB as great as Chris Pizzotti or Ryan Fitzpatrick. But Collier Winters is extremely effective. He has 11 TD passes, just five interceptions, and a 56% completion percentage.

The wide receivers aren't burning up the record books, but seven of them have caught TD passes and six are averaging more than 10 yards per catch.

The offensive line is extremely experienced and has allowed fewer than two sacks per game despite the fact the the team's QB doesn't exactly have a quick release.

The defensive line doesn't have Brad Bagdis or Matt Curtis anymore, but the front four of Carl Ehrlich, Chucks Obi, John Lyon and Victor Ojukwu are getting the job done well enough.

The linebackers and secondary, two units that looked a bit questionable by Harvard standards this summer, have picked off 10 opponent passes so far.

The kicking game is solid if not spectacular.

Put this all together, throw in the Crimson's killer instinct to win tight games, (on display in the victory over Brown in week 2), and add the coaching chops a veteran like Murphy brings to the table, and you have what looks like a championship team in any season.

As much as it is a balanced team, it's not a good idea to understate the running attack and the offensive line. When you have so many backs gaining as many yards rushing as the Crimson do, you know the offensive line is doing a great job and can control games. The only team that was able to stop Harvard's running attack was Lafayette, and the Leopards did that mostly by getting a big early lead and taking the ground game away from the Cantabs.

The team seems pretty mentally tough as well. But there may be some looking ahead going on at Wien Stadium Saturday as the Crimson must be thinking a little about their huge showdown at Harvard Stadium against Penn the following week.

The Lion walking wounded will probably have to strike early and catch the Harvard crew off guard to get their best chance to win.

15 Comments:

At Fri Nov 06, 12:57:00 AM GMT+7, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Lafayette basically dominated Harvard. Lafayette thinks we were the best Ivy team they faced all year. We've ahd some crummy breaks, mistakes, etc. but definitely have the talent to beat Harvard so long as we don't beat ourselves.

 
At Fri Nov 06, 01:19:00 AM GMT+7, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Agree with previous poster. If we don't beat ourselves, we have what it takes to win. This should be a good one.

 
At Fri Nov 06, 02:01:00 AM GMT+7, Anonymous Anonymous said...

If we play with the intensity that we brought to the Lafayette and Princeton games, hold onto the ball, and avoid mistakes, we will win. #1--we must at all costs avoid turnovers.

 
At Fri Nov 06, 03:49:00 AM GMT+7, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Lafayette didn't see the real Harvard. Who knows why?The Harvard team on display last week absolutely and thoroughly overpowered a Dartmouth team that had its way with Columbia. Harvard doesn't have the star power at the skill positions it has had in the past but it is a physically imposing team. This one will be won or lost in the trenches.

 
At Fri Nov 06, 04:29:00 AM GMT+7, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Columbia didn't show up for Dartmouth. I don't know why, but it is the one crummy game we played all year. Our other losses were caused by mistakes, not by lack of intensity. But htese comparisons are basically useless. I have no idea which Columbia team will show up on Saturday, but I have a pretty good idea that Columbia has the talent to play with anybody on its schedule.

 
At Fri Nov 06, 04:29:00 AM GMT+7, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Who is out fo rus this week?

 
At Fri Nov 06, 05:04:00 AM GMT+7, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Considering the large number of first-stringers who didn't play at all against Yale due to injuries, I thought the performance of the team was amazing. On offense, we were missing at least Olawale, Rangel and Stephens. On defense, we were missing at least Fraser, Gross, Otis and Huggins. Moreover, Mehrer went down with an injury at the beginning of the critical fourth quarter. Yet, the team played its heart out and nearly won a tough game with Yale. Some of the players who saw significant varsity action against Yale are now battle-ready for Harvard and the following two Ivy-League games. That will surely help the Lions. Of course, it would be great if the some of the injured, can play on Saturday.

 
At Fri Nov 06, 07:14:00 AM GMT+7, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Cheng Ho is done for the season, career, according to the Crimson: "... with a lisfranc (mid-foot) sprain suffered last week during practice.."

 
At Fri Nov 06, 08:32:00 AM GMT+7, Anonymous Anonymous said...

that's too bad as he was a solid player. Don't wish that injury on anyone let alone a rb. Hope he gets healthy soon.

 
At Fri Nov 06, 08:08:00 PM GMT+7, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Two deep is out; some surprises again. Good thing we have some depth.

 
At Fri Nov 06, 08:57:00 PM GMT+7, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Has NW shut down some guys like Frazer for the year? If so, does this mean an extra year of eligibility? My recollection is that Frazer, for example, went down after just a few plays in the Fordham game.

 
At Fri Nov 06, 08:58:00 PM GMT+7, Anonymous Anonymous said...

PS, are thee any surprises on the Harvard two deep?

 
At Fri Nov 06, 10:06:00 PM GMT+7, Anonymous Anonymous said...

"Has NW shut down some guys like Frazer for the year? If so, does this mean an extra year of eligibility?"

Unless the player goes to the school beyond a BS degree, I would think most Ivy players wouldn't even consider a 5th year. Same reason you don't see red shirt playrs.

 
At Tue Nov 10, 01:25:00 AM GMT+7, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Unless the player goes to the school beyond a BS degree, I would think most Ivy players wouldn't even consider a 5th year. Same reason you don't see red shirt playrs.

You can't play in the Ivy League after receiving your bachelors. However, a GREAT many players do in fact come back for a fifth year because of a "medical redshirt."

 
At Tue Nov 10, 02:58:00 AM GMT+7, Blogger dabull said...

Players will skip a second semester and finish school a half semester later than normal. That's how they get a fifth year in.

 

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