On Saturday, in the middle of the third quarter at Spec Martin Memorial Stadium in DeLand, Florida, history was made. When Stetson University quarterback Kael Alexander rolled left and tossed a pass to wide receiver Michael Dempsey in the end zone, Florida schools broke a 103-year scoreless streak against Harvard.
Unfortunately for the Hatters, that made the score: Harvard 45, Stetson 7.
Playing the opener of its 151st season, the Crimson tacked on two more touchdowns and cruised to a 59-7 victory. Overmatched Stetson dropped to 1-3. Last year in Cambridge, Harvard had shut out the Hatters 35-0. (In a different time, Harvard had blanked Florida 24-0 in 1922 and whitewashed the Gators 14-0 in 1929).
Saturday’s Stetson-Harvard game served as a nice tune-up for Harvard, a soft opening. The Crimson outgained the Hatters 473 yards to 205. Touted senior quarterback Jaden Craig looked sharp, completing 10 of the 13 pass attempts for 208 yards and two touchdowns. New running backs strutted their stuff, while receivers auditioned to be Craig’s No. 1 target. The offensive and defensive fronts controlled the line of scrimmage. Senior linebacker Jaeden Kinlock was everywhere, piling up a game-high 11 tackles. Best of all, nobody got hurt.
In sum, there was a lot to like for Andrew Aurich as he commenced his second season as Stephenson family head coach for Harvard football. “I was really happy with the first half,” said Aurich. “I thought we executed at a really high level other than one fumble.” (Aurich does have a thing about ball security.) “Our defense was playing at a really high level; I thought we did a good job owning the line of scrimmage. The offensive line was doing the same thing. Jaden did a really good job, mixing the ball around and executing.”
Right from the get-go things went south for Stetson. During the opening kickoff, the Hatters tried an onside kick. Nice idea, poor execution. Harvard recovered at the Stetson 45. Taking advantage of the short field, the Crimson took only six plays to get into the end zone. The final two were a 20-yard run off left tackle by junior Xaviah Bascon, the Crimson’s most seasoned running back, after which Bascon churned his way 11 yards into the end zone. Sophomore Dylan Fingersh kicked the extra point. With 3:04 gone in the season, it was Harvard 7, Stetson 0.
The next time the Crimson had the ball, it reached the Stetson 12 before fumbling. The drive was halted—for one play. The Hatters returned the favor, with Harvard sophomore defensive lineman Christian Nwosu falling on the Stetson fumble. Now it was senior running back Isaiah Bullock’s turn to carry the freight. First, he bulled to the one, then over the goal. Fingersh again kicked. Harvard 14, Stetson 0.
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After the Crimson defense forced a three-and-out, Stetson punted to the Harvard 31. On the first play, Craig took the snap and faked a handoff to freeze prospective rushers. With perfect protection, he spotted freshman wide receiver Ryan Tattersall streaking downfield behind the defense. Craig cocked and fired. The ball arced in a glorious rainbow that Tattersall snagged in stride. Then he ran into the end zone. Fingersh again kicked. Harvard 21, Stetson 0.
The Hatters got the ball—not for long. From the Stetson 25, Alexander completed a pass to Dylan Redmon. Crimson senior defensive back and captain Ty Bartrum hit Redmon, forcing a fumble. Harvard junior defensive back Damien Henderson scooped it up and advanced the ball to the Stetson seven. From there it took four downs, but Bullock eventually barreled over from the three. Fingersh swung his leg, again. Harvard 28, Stetson 0.
(If you’re wondering if this is a team record for one quarter…not quite. Harvard scored 31 points in the first quarter of a 59-0 blowout of Bucknell in 1968…the season of “Harvard Beats Yale, 29-29.”)
The second period began. After another Hatters three-and-out, the Crimson took over at its 45. Facing a fourth-and-eight at the Stetson 40, Aurich decided to go for it and was rewarded when Craig connected with senior wideout Dean Boyd for 17 yards. Four plays later, sophomore running back Maddux Reid barged in from the two. Fingersh booted. Harvard 35, Stetson 0.
On Stetson’s ensuing series, a second-down pass by Hatters quarterback Gavin Rupp was picked off by Henderson at the Stetson 40. The Crimson reached the Hatters 12, but this time they stalled. Displaying no fatigue, Fingersh booted a 29-yard field goal. Harvard 38, Stetson 0.
With 2:06 left before halftime, the Crimson got the ball at the Hatters 45. Junior running back Jordan Harris made a nifty 16-yard run. On the next play, Boyd beat the Stetson defensive back and Craig found him for a score. Fingersh converted. Harvard 45, Stetson 0. Craig’s day was done. In a sharp outing, he completed 10 passes in 13 attempts for 208 yards and two touchdowns.
(If you’re wondering whether the 45 points in a half was a team record…not quite. In 2012, the Crimson scored 49 points in the first half of a 52-3 win over Holy Cross.)
In the second half, Stetson showed some fight, albeit against a defense larded with Crimson reserves. In the third quarter, Alexander engineered a 12-play, 75-yard drive that culminated in the 30-yard touchdown toss to Dempsey. Daniel Holbrook kicked the extra point. Harvard 45, Stetson 7.
Junior Dante Torres replaced Craig at quarterback. Torres was intercepted by the Hatters’ Trey Lockhart, who brought the ball to the Harvard 24. But the Crimson defense forced Stetson to settle for a field goal—which was blocked by Harvard senior linebacker Jack Kirkwood.
The Crimson took over at its 30. The ensuing drive was sparked by receptions and runs by Harris. With the ball down to the Stetson five, Torres took the snap, surveyed the scene, and sauntered right into the end zone. Fingersh kicked: Harvard 52, Stetson 7.
The coup de grace came in the fourth quarter and belonged to sophomore back DJ Gordon, who twisted, spun, and pinballed off would-be tacklers on his way to a 27-yard touchdown. Fingersh dotted the i: Harvard 59, Stetson 7.
“The second half we made a lot of substitutions, but we didn’t execute at the same level [as the first],” said Aurich. “We weren’t detailed enough. We didn’t tackle as well as we should, but we got every guy that was here other than a couple of the quarterbacks into the game. Those young guys will be able to watch themselves on tape and see the corrections they need to make because we need to build depth…We got out healthy, so we can go back and get ourselves ready for Brown.”
You’ve got to love that about coaches: they win by 52 yet they can always find things to work on.
TIDBITS
FOR OPENERS: Harvard is now 124-25-2 all-time in season openers. The Crimson is 20-4 in its last 24 openers and has a five-game winning streak. Harvard’s last opening-game loss came in 2019, 31-23 at San Diego.
FUZZY MATH: This is the 151st season of Harvard football but the 152nd year—the discrepancy courtesy of the 2020 season that was cancelled by the COVID-19 pandemic.
COMING UP: Next Saturday, the Crimson returns to Cambridge for the home and Ivy opener against Brown. Kickoff: 6 p.m. The game will be telecast on ESPN+ and broadcast on radio 92.9 FM WBOS and 1330 AM and 1450 AM. The Bears are 1-0 and will also be playing their Ivy opener. In a series that began in 1893, Harvard leads 90-31-2, but last year in Providence Brown broke a 12-game Crimson winning streak with a 31-28 upset—the Bears’ only Ivy victory of the season. (Go figure!)
CELEBRATED: The evening will also see the gridiron dedicated as Tim Murphy Field at Harvard Stadium, named for the Crimson’s iconic coach who retired in 2023 after 30 years on the Harvard sideline.
THE SCORE BY QUARTERS
Harvard | 28 | 17 | 7 | 7 | — | 59 | ||
Stetson | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | — | 7 |
Attendance: 1,400
WEEKLY ROUNDUP
Brown 46, Georgetown 0
Lafayette 38, Columbia 14
Albany 13, Cornell 10
Dartmouth 27, New Hampshire 20
Penn 24, Stonehill 21
San Diego 42, Princeton 35
Yale 28, Holy Cross 10
Season Preview: Harvard Football Team Starts Off an Ivy League Favorite
