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Princeton University Athletics
To Be The Man...
October 23, 2002 | Football
Oct. 23, 2002
There are times to get creative with words, times to make the ordinary seem extraordinary to drum up a little added interest.
And then there is Harvard-Princeton.
And then there is Harvard-Princeton, with first place on the line.
The top two teams in the 2002 Ivy League media poll have lived up to their ends of the bargain, opening their respective league schedules with consecutive wins.
Princeton opened its Ivy campaign with a pair of tight victories, rallying in the fourth quarter to surge past Columbia and then holding off a stingy Brown squad last weekend.
Harvard also held off Brown in its Ivy League opener before routing Cornell two weekends ago. The Crimson own a nine-game winning streak within the league and bring the distinction of being the defending Ivy League champion.
Princeton leads the all-time series 50-37-7, but it hasn't defeated Harvard since 1995. By the way, that was the last year that the Tigers carried the distinction of being the Ivy League champion.
Somebody will leave Princeton Stadium Saturday with control of the Ivy League race, but it didn't take that fact to make this one important.
After all, it is Harvard-Princeton.
Harvard Game Notes in PDF Format
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Just The Facts
The Date Oct. 26, 2002
The Kickoff 1:07 p.m.
The Site Princeton Stadium * Princeton, N.J.
The Series Princeton leads 50-37-7
Last Year Harvard 28, Princeton 26
Last Week Princeton defeated Brown 16-14; Harvard lost to Northeastern 17-14
The Coaches P: Roger Hughes (third season, 10-14); H: Tim Murphy (ninth season, 45-39)
TV/Radio The game can be viewed on RCN and CN8 and heard live on WBUD AM 1260 and on the Princeton athletics web site.
Game Notes
First And Goal - With a win against Harvard, the Tigers would own at least a share of first place in the Ivy League. The last time Princeton stood atop the standings this deep into the season was 1995, when it went 5-1-1 to win the title. That was Princeton's last championship.
Final Four - Princeton has won four straight contests for the first time since the 1997 season. Just like 2002, the Tigers opened that season with a loss and followed that with four wins.
The Whammy - Princeton ended that 1997 season with a 5-5 record. The Tigers followed their four straight wins with three consecutive losses.
Just Win, Baby - Princeton has already topped its victory total of each of the last three years (three) midway through the 2002 campaign (four).
Streaking - Harvard's six-game win streak against Princeton is Harvard's longest in the 94-game series. Princeton owns the longest winning streak in the series, taking seven straight from 1947 - 1953.
Poll Position - Harvard and Princeton were picked to finish first and second, respectively, in the 2002 preseason poll. Harvard received 13 first-place votes, while Princeton received two.
Close Call - Princeton came closer than anybody to ending Harvard's perfect 2001 season, but Taylor Northrop's 49-yard field goal attempt sailed wide left with seven seconds remaining.
Four Score - Senior running back Cameron Atkinson has rushed for four consecutive 100-yard games, the first Tiger to do so since Keith Elias did it seven straight times in 1993
The Final Countdown - Cameron Atkinson needs 35 yards to become the sixth player in Princeton history to rush for 2,000 career yards.
The Closer - Princeton's sophomore defensive back Jay McCareins has ended three potential game-winning drives in the last two weeks with leaping interceptions.
I'm Honored - Jay McCareins was named Ivy League Defensive Player of the Week after making two interceptions and recording nine tackles in the win over Brown. He joined fellow cornerback Blake Perry as winners of this award during the 2002 season.
Sixth Sense - Princeton quarterback Dave Splithoff has thrown touchdown passes in six straight games, the most in one stretch since Doug Butler threw touchdown passes in nine straight games in the 1983 season.
Welcome Back - After missing the Colgate game with an injury, senior wide receiver Chisom Opara returned to the Princeton lineup Sunday with 11 catches for 152 yards and one touchdown.
A Night At The Opara - Chisom Opara moved to fourth all-time at Princeton with 127 career receptions. He needs 10 more to tie Judd Garrett'90 for third on the list.
Senior Citizens - Seniors Cameron Atkinson and Chisom Opara combined for 14 plays against Brown that earned first downs. Each also scored one of Princeton's touchdowns. The two ended the contest with 338 of Princeton's 435 yards.
More Seniors - Both Cameron Atkinson and Chisom Opara could move past the 2,000-yard mark plateaus against Harvard. Atkinson needs 35 rushing yards to become only the sixth Tiger ever to reach it, while Opara needs 125 receiving yards to become the third player at Princeton to hit that mark.
Lasting Legacy - The last Princeton player to rush for over 2,000 yards in a career is Marc Washington '97 (1993-96, 2,005). The last Princeton player to have over 2,000 receiving yards is Derek Graham '85 (1981-84, 2,798).
Record Collection - Cameron Atkinson's 82-yard touchdown run last Saturday was the longest play from scrimmage in the five-year history of Princeton Stadium.
High Five - Chisom Opara is ranked fifth in Division I-AA in receptions per game (7.50). Harvard's Carl Morris, the defending Ivy League Player of the Year, is ranked second (9.20).
Split-ting Headache - The last time David Splithoff played against Harvard at Princeton Stadium, he rushed for three touchdowns before being knocked out for the season with a broken jaw.
Bombs Away - Five of David Splithoff's eight touchdown passes this season have been at least 50-yard completions. For his career, 11 of his 20 touchdowns have been from at least 50 yards.
More Bombs - Dave Splithoff has thrown three of the four longest passes in the Ivy League this season. The only player to throw for more yards on one play is Penn's Mike Mitchell (82 yards).
The Crystal Ball - Princeton will return to the road next weekend to battle the Cornell Big Red in Ithaca, N.Y. The game can be heard at 1 p.m. either on WBUD 1260 AM or on the Princeton athletics web site (www.GoPrincetonTigers.com).
Home Sweet Home - The Tigers will host Penn in their next home game, which is Nov. 9 at 1 p.m.
Scouting Harvard
Despite an early injury to starting quarterback and 2001 All-Ivy selection Neil Rose, the Crimson offense hasn't missed a beat this season, averaging 31.0 points per game.
Leading the way, just as he did last season, is 2001 Ivy League Player of the Year Carl Morris. The senior wide receiver has caught 46 passes for 705 yards and five touchdowns. He is second in Division I-AA in receiving. Ryan Fitzpatrick has replaced Rose and actually leads the Crimson in rushing with 375 yards on 70 attempts. Nick Palazzo, the team's starting tailback, is averaging 66.2 rushing yards per game and has five touchdowns.
Defensively, Harvard is allowing 24.6 points per game and has caused nine turnovers this season (five fumbles, four interceptions). John Perry and Dante Balestracci, a pair of linebackers, lead the team with 48 tackles apiece. Balestracci has added three sacks, four passes defensed, two forced fumbles and one interception. Mante Dzakuma leads the team with two interceptions.
Last Weekend
Princeton 16, Brown 14
PRINCETON, N.J. - Sophomore Jay McCareins stole the spotlight from Brown All-America wide receiver Chas Gessner last Saturday, recording two interceptions in head-to-head matchups during the final minutes of Saturday's 16-14 victory over Brown.
The Tigers, who carried a 16-0 lead into the second half, were led offensively by seniors Cameron Atkinson and Chisom Opara. Atkinson, who opened the scoring with an 82-yard dash in the first quarter, rushed for a career-best 174 yards. Opara, who missed the last game with an injury, caught 11 passes for 152 yards and the second touchdown of the game for Princeton.
Linebacker Zak Keasey led the defense with 10 tackles, but it was the nine-tackle, two-interception performance by McCareins that saved the game at the end. He ended the last two Brown possessions with leaping interceptions along the sidelines. McCareins also ended the final drive for Colgate the previous week with an interception in the final minutes.
Northeastern 17, Harvard 14
BOSTON, Mass. - Harvard nearly pulled out a thriller over crosstown rival and nationally ranked Northeastern last Saturday afternoon, but a fumbled pitch in the final minute allowed the No. 15 Huskies to escape with a 17-14 triumph.
The hard-fought contest wasn't decided until Northeastern defensive end Steve Anzalone pounced on a loose ball with 39 seconds remaining after the Crimson had marched to the seven-yard-line. Harvard had converted two fourth-down plays on the drive, which started at its own 12 with 2:19 on the clock.
Ryan Fitzpatrick threw a pair of touchdown passes in the loss. His first was a one-yard completion to tight end Adam Jenkins to get the Crimson to within 10-7. The Crimson grabbed a 14-10 lead on its first possession of the second half when Fitzpatrick found senior All-America Carl Morris open in the end zone for an 18-yard strike.
Last Year
Harvard 28, Princeton 26
Cambridge, Mass. - Add another notch to the curse of Harvard Stadium. The building that has been so unkind to the Princeton football team did it again. Harvard dealt Princeton an excruciating 28-26 loss.
Princeton had a chance to win the game in the final seven seconds, but Taylor Northrop's 49-yard field goal attempt sailed just wide left.
Harvard took the lead 21-20 on a three-yard Neil Rose touchdown run with 5:06 to go in the third quarter, but that would be the Harvard quarterback's final play of the day after he suffered a shoulder injury. Freshman Ryan Fitzpatrick took over and completed 5 of 6 passes for 61 yards in his first collegiate action.
He also led the Crimson on an 80-yard, 10-play drive that ended with a 13-yard pass to Carl Morris and made it 28-20 with 13:33 remaining. Of Harvard's four touchdown drives, three were for 80 yards and the other was for 60.
Princeton answered the Harvard touchdown with a six-play, 65-yard drive that ended on a 27-yard Cameron Atkinson touchdown run. The two-point conversion attempt, which would have tied the game, was no good when Harvard's Willie Alford knocked away a pass from David Splithoff to Mike Chiusano.
Princeton then held Harvard twice, and the Tigers' final chance started at their 12 with 2:57 to go. Splithoff then completed five straight passes to drive Princeton to Harvard's 32, calling timeout with seven seconds remaining. Harvard called two timeouts to freeze Northrop, who had already kicked field goals of 42 and 43 yards, and the potential game-winning attempt then went wide to the left.