Thrilling Rally Falls Short In Overtime Classic, As Harvard Holds Off Tigers 23-20

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Bob Surace knows both he and his team will spend the night thinking about a play here, a play there, but he also made sure to praise a gutsy effort by his squad in a heartbreaking 23-20 overtime loss to 23rd-ranked Harvard Saturday on Powers Field.

"All you can ask of your guys is that they go out and compete, and these guys did that," Surace said after Joe Viviano's one-yard run in overtime clinched a 23-20 Crimson victory. "I know we're all disappointed, but I told these guys there is still a long way to go, and we need to come back tomorrow and continue to get better."

His Princeton football team got better Saturday, as it dug its way out of a 14-point hole to force overtime in front of an enthusiastic crowd of nearly 10,000 during Alumni Weekend at Princeton Stadium. After forcing a punt deep in Harvard territory with 2:09 remaining in the fourth quarter, the Tigers engineered a five-play, 24-yard drive that culminated in the second rushing touchdown of the day for junior John Lovett. A Tavish Rice extra point forced overtime, and Rice followed with a 25-yard field goal on the opening possession of OT to give Princeton its first lead of the game.

On its ensuing drive, Viviano made the critical play on a 3rd and 3 at the 18; he broke containment along the right side of the line, found an opening and sprinted down to the Tiger 3. Two plays later, he stretched the ball over the goal line to keep the Crimson (5-1, 3-0 Ivy) unbeaten in league play. Princeton (4-2, 2-1 Ivy) returns to Ivy play next weekend with a showdown at Cornell.

The Tigers will be looking for a better start in that one. They managed only 100 yards of offense and zero points in the first half Saturday, while touchdown passes to Anthony Firkser and Adam Scott gave the Crimson a 14-0 halftime lead.

Surace credited senior Durelle Napier, a student assistant whose playing days were cut short by injury, for energizing the team at the break, and they came out with a 15-play, 80-yard drive that ended with a Lovett 1-yard run. Both teams traded field goals, and the Princeton defense continuously kept the Tigers within one possession by containing the explosive Crimson offense. Junior defensive lineman Kurt Holuba led the charge with 10 tackles and a career-best three sacks, while senior Luke Catarius led the Tigers with 12 tackles.

Rohan Hylton, James Gales, and Sam Huffman each had interceptions for Princeton, while Henry Schlossberg had eight tackles, including 1.5 for losses.

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