Josue Ortiz, football defensive tackle, dominates as Harvard clinches Ivy title

Defensive tackle Josue Ortiz came up big in the Penn game, where Harvard clinched the Ivy League title.

Josue Ortiz

Standout defensive tackle Josue Ortiz, a first-team all-Ivy player last year who was profiled this fall in Harvard Magazine, had  a huge game against the University of Pennsylvania on Saturday, November 12, as Harvard vanquished Penn, 37-20. The Crimson clinched this year's Ivy League championship outright when Dartmouth took down the only remaining rival, Brown, 21-16, the same afternoon.

The Harvard Crimson's feature on Ortiz, who has also drawn attention from the Boston Globe, narrrates his outsize performance in the Penn game, which included two sacks in the first quarter (he leads the Ivy League with nine sacks on the season), a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery to go with 10 tackles—despite Penn's double-teaming attempts to contain him. He was named the Ivy League Defensive Player of the Week for his outstanding effort, and will bring that mantle with him into The Game at the Yale Bowl on November 19.

Related topics

You might also like

How Women Are Changing the NBA

From coaching staffs to front offices, female leaders are bringing new strategies to men’s basketball.

How a Harvard Hockey Legend Became a Needlepoint Artist

Joe Bertagna’s retirement project recreates figures from Boston sports history.

Harvard Students, Alumni to Compete at the 2026 Olympics

Six Crimson athletes are headed to the XXV Winter Games in Milano Cortina. 

Most popular

AI Outperforms Doctors in Emergency Room Tasks, New Harvard Study Shows

Researchers say the technology could help physicians with triage, diagnosis.

Martin Nowak Placed on Leave a Second Time

Further links to Jeffrey Epstein surface in newly released files.

‘Don’t Hold Your Breath’ for the Return of Low Interest Rates

Harvard economist Kenneth Rogoff discusses the global forces driving up borrowing costs.

Explore More From Current Issue

Woman in historical dress standing in front of green foliage, smiling brightly.

This Harvard Graduate Brings Women of the Revolution to Life

Historical reenactor Lauren Shear reveals tricks of the trade for playing Tory loyalists, Revolutionary poets, and more.

A man holding a revolver and lantern, wearing a hat and coat, appears to be walking cautiously.

Scoundrels, Then and Now

On con men, Mark Twain, and the powers of the Harvard name

Woman with long hair, smiling, wearing a black sweater, in a textured beige background.

For This Poet, AI is a Writing Partner

Sasha Stiles trained a chatbot on her manuscripts. Now, her poems rewrite themselves.