Ivy League Round-Up

This weekend's Harvard football game seemed to have something for everyone.

A quarterback making his first-ever collegiate start goes 12-of-22, passes for 190 yards and leads his team to victory.

A veteran linebacker makes 14 tackles, blocks two passes, recovers a fumble and intercepts a pass while breaking the career tackle record and securing a spot among the all-time greats.

And an electrifying tailback seeing his first regular action in nearly two seasons breaks for a pair of touchdowns and amasses 84 yards on just 10 carries.

But as well as Brad Wilford, Isaiah Kacyvenski and Troy Jones played, the Harvard-Columbia contest was not even the most exciting game in the league this weekend. The following is a quick look at all the games on the Ivy League's opening Saturday.

Brown 25, Yale 24

Brown (1-0, 1-0 Ivy) overcame a 14 point deficit in the final seven minutes, securing the victory over Yale (0-1, 0-1 Ivy) on a bizarre two-point conversion with 14 seconds left on the clock.

Brown quarterback James Perry, Ivy League offensive player of the week, led the Bears on two Joe Montana-esque drives to secure the come-from-behind victory.

Late in the third quarter, Yale quarterback Joe Walland (12-for-22, 182 yards, 1 TD) threw for a touchdown that seemed to put the game out of reach for the Bears.

Yale's lead seemed insurmountable until Perry took the ball at his own 20-yard line with 7:23 left. He completed 6-of-9 passes on the ensuing drive, capping it off with a 17-yard TD pass to Steve Campbell.

Yale went three-and-out on its next possession, and Perry set out to bring his team a stunning victory.

With time ticking off the clock and a seven-point deficit, Perry completed 10-of-10 passes to lead the Bears 63 yards downfield to the end zone. On fourth down and with no timeouts left, Perry got the touchdown pass that put the Bears one point down.

Things took a turn for the bizarre when Brown lined up for the possible game-tying extra point.

Yale blocked the attempt, but Brown running back Michael Powell scooped the ball off the ground. Running toward the end zone for the two-point conversion that Brown needed for the win, Powell pitched the ball to fullback Rob Scholl, who scored to put the Bears ahead.

As if that drama were not enough, Yale had a chance to kick a game-winning field goal as time ran off the clock. Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, Mike Murawczyk's 47-yard attempt fell short as time expired, dooming Yale to its first defeat of the season.

Cornell 20, Princeton 3

Like Harvard, Cornell (1-0, 1-0 Ivy) sported a new look at starting quarterback this weekend.

Cornell quarterback Ricky Rahne, a sophomore making his first-ever start in a college game, finished 19-of-33 for 307 yards with two touchdowns and an interception en route to an easy 20-3 victory at Princeton (0-1, 0-1 Ivy).

Cornell running back Deon Harris also contributed to the offensive display, racking up 113 yards in 30 attempts on the ground.

Princeton's offense sputtered throughout the game, with Jon Blevins and Tommy Crenshaw unable to get the job done while alternating series at quarterback.

The game broke upon for the Big Red on a play late in the first quarter. The Tigers, facing fourth and less-than-a-yard at the Cornell 30, handed the ball to tailback Kyle Brandt.

Cornell lineman Tom Crone made the big stop for the Big Red, and Princeton never recovered.

On the very next drive, Rahne led Cornell 69 yards in six plays, capping the drive with a touchdown pass to Edgar Romney.

Rahne's second touchdown pass came in the fourth quarter on a 31-yard pass to a wide-open Mike Parris.

Cornell placekicker John McCombs hit two field goals for the Big Red, from 45 and 18 yards, respectively. The 45-yarder was the longest kick of his career.

Princeton's only score came on a 37-yard field goal by Taylor Northrup with 57 seconds left in the third quarter.

Pennsylvania 17, Dartmouth 6

Sophomore Kris Ryan rushed for 99 yards on 15 carries, including a 48-yard touchdown run, as Penn (1-0, 1-0 Ivy) opened the season with a victory over an offensively anemic Dartmouth (0-1, 0-1 Ivy).

Penn quarterback Gavin Hoffman, who took every snap for the Quakers, was 23-of-36 and threw for 196 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions. It was Hoffman's first game as Brown's quarterback since transferring from Northwestern.

For almost the whole game, Dartmouth could not muster any offensive firepower--their sole score came on an 18-yard touchdown pass with 28 seconds left in the fourth.

Big Green starting quarterback Brian Mann went 12-of-22 for only 57 yards and two interceptions. Greg Smith, who replaced Mann and scored Dartmouth's lone touchdown, finished 2-of-6 for 27 yards.