Harvard Hosts Yale in 87th Meeting

The Harvard football team asserts its last-ditch claim to the runner-up spot in the Ivy League this afternoon when Harvard and Yale meet for the 87th time at 1:30 p. m. in Harvard Stadium. Yale is favored by six points.

Today is John Yovicsin's last in the Stadium as the Crimson's coach, and he would dearly love to close out his career as Harvard's most prolific winner with a victory over the Elis.

Early last night, Yovicsin made a decision he had been putting off until the last possible moment-Eric Crone will start at quarterback today in place of Rod Foster.

Foster severely pulled a hamstring muscle two weeks ago against Princeton, and it hemorrhaged. He began jogging again this week, but the muscle did not respond to treatment. Although he probably will not see action, Foster will suit up for the game.

Crone came on against Brown last weekend and directed the Crimson to a 17-10 victory in his first start. After several erratic early season performances, Crone settled the attack and completed 14 of 18 passes for 196 yards while running for another 74 yards.

Crone said last night that he did not have the jitters about starting and that "I think I can do the job."

Bitter Memories

The last time the two teams met in Cambridge, the Crimson presented Yovicsin with what had to be the sweetest tie of his career. But it was a bitter moment for the Yale contingent, one which will not soon be forgotten.

Yale is 8-1, having lost only to unbeaten Dartmouth. Harvard also lost to the Big Green, but an infuriating defeat at Columbia early in the season prevents a confrontation of identical records.

A Harvard victory today, though, would make the records equal and would give the Crimson a share of second place. Yale has an outside chance to tie Dartmouth for the Ivy title, but only if Penn manipulates a miraculous upset in Philadelphia.

The outcome of today's game depends largely on the ability of one team to rebound from recent injuries to key players. Both Harvard and Yale used second-string quarterbacks last weekend, and several starters on both teams enjoyed a view from the sidelines.

Eli quarterback Joe Massey-just two yards away from Brian Dowling's career passing mark-is a probable starter after missing Yale's 27-22 victory, over Princeton with a sprained ankle.

Return to Normalcy

The Eli defense will have three starters-middle guard Rich Lolotai and defensive backs Dave Bliss and Dave Hoahan-back in the lineup, bringing the unit to full strength.

Tackle Tom Neville, the Yale captain and "an All-American," according to coach Carm Cozza, anchors an aggressive defensive line whose only weakness may be over-pursuit.

On offense, Yale relies heavily on the ability of tailback Don Martin and sophomore fullback Dick Jauron to hit quick openers up the middle and off tackle behind a strong, large line.

Cozza explained this week, "We have to run up the middle because everybody knows we can run outside. Most teams box us in, and I imagine Harvard will do the same thing. You just can't run outside when they send a man five yards straight in on every play."

Jauron, a high school All-American from Swampscott High School, is the workhorse. He has carried 169 times this season for 885 yards; a big day today would make him the league's second 1000-yard rusher.

Martin is a shifty, powerful runner who makes it impossible for a defense to concentrate solely on Jauron. Bob Milligan, the wingback, sat out the Princeton game but is back at full speed.

Quarterback Massey is a good runner himself, and he may try the Crimson middle on a quarterback draw.

Harvard's defense is termed by Yale "the quickest in the Ivy League." That includes a Dartmouth team that decimated the Eli offense three weeks ago.

Linebacker-captain Gary Farneti and three other defensive regulars will be making their last starts for Harvard today, and as Farneti put it Thursday, "We'll be ready."

Jim Buckley is a Yale Man

The defensive strength of the two teams is self-evident-the one which manages to generate even a little offense will probably win.

Crone will have to pass well against the Bulldogs' stingy secondary, or else he will be unable to spring the running game which hinges on fullback Tom Miller and halfback Ted DeMars.

The offensive line, which has come into its own in the past few weeks, is healthy but without experienced backup personnel.

The Crimson receiving corps-perhaps the league's finest-finally got its chance last week against Brown as Crone completed 14 of 18 passes for nearly 200 yards.

The kicking games of the two teams are similar: the Crimson's Richie Szaro and Yale's Harry Klebanoff are consistent and experienced place kickers, while Foster and Jim Nottingham are erratic, but sometimes brilliant, punters.

The emotional factor today is hard to predict, but it would seem to be as even as the teams themselves. The profusion of similarities is eerie, much as it was two years ago.