Athlete of the Week: Fischer's Big Day Helps Football Take Down Princeton

Being sidelined for two games with an upper-body injury is certainly a way to upset a player’s rhythm.

Having to become reacclimated to one of the top offenses in the FCS complicates a player’s return from injury even more.

Despite his two-week absence, senior wide receiver Andrew Fischer displayed no signs of rust in Harvard’s 42-7 victory over Princeton on Saturday.

Fischer caught 10 passes from senior quarterback Scott Hosch and gained a total of 190 yards. He added a touchdown in the third quarter which helped the Crimson increase its lead over the Tigers.

Facing an opponent which had defeated Harvard in two of their previous three meetings, the Crimson sought to maintain its momentum from its perfect 5-0 start and emerge with a win.

However, midway through the second quarter, Harvard still struggled to snap a 7-7 tie with the visiting Tigers.

Neither team managed to score in the first quarter, and with 6:11 remaining in the second, Princeton scored on a two-yard pass to tie the game.

“We were moving the ball the whole first half, but we just kept shooting ourselves in the foot,” Hosch said. “We got down close to the red zone, and that drive, we just kept telling the offensive line, ‘We’ve got to finish, we’ve got to finish the drive.’”

A lack of offensive production in the first half was a rarity for Harvard, as the unit has been nothing short of dominant this fall.

The team has not once scored fewer than 40 points in a game, and Harvard torched Brown for 53 points in its first Ivy League matchup of the 2015 season.

As the Crimson began to mount an offensive attack midway through the second quarter, Fischer played an integral role in helping Harvard pull away from the Tigers for good.

By the end of the first half, Fischer had racked up 110 yards on six receptions.

The Diamond Bar, Calif., native added a touchdown as well, one of six for the Crimson in the game.

During Harvard’s second drive of the third quarter, Fischer started the drive off with a 29-yard punt return to put the Crimson in good field position.

At the end of Harvard’s march down the field, the senior caught a 14-yard pass from Hosch to put the Crimson up, 28-7.

Harvard went on to add two more touchdowns to seal the victory, the team’s sixth of the year.

Fischer also played a crucial role as the Crimson pulled away from Princeton in the fourth quarter.

The senior hauled in a 27-yard throw from Hosch on a crucial 3rd down, and later picked up a 31-yard grab to put Harvard into the red zone.

With the Crimson offense operating on all cylinders once again after a shaky first quarter, Fischer was able to exploit the holes in Princeton’s defense.

The wide receiver was one of Hosch’s primary weapons against the Tigers on Saturday, and he was a crucial component of many of Harvard’s drives.

Fischer was quick to credit the rest of the team for yet another explosive offensive performance.

“When the defense has to respect [senior running back] Paul Stanton Jr. and [senior wide receiver] Seitu Smith out of the backfield, it really opens up the pass game,” Fischer said. “And Scott Hosch delivering pretty incredible balls—it really makes my job easy.”

“I think the biggest thing is just overall the offensive effort,” the senior added. “It starts with the play-calling, the great effort by the offensive line.”

Versatility is key for the Crimson, and Fischer’s return for the Princeton game allowed the team to have even more flexibility on offense.

“[Smith] was a slash player in high school, he was a great running back, he was a great receiver,” Harvard coach Tim Murphy said.

“Fisch was a very similar type player. We’re always trying to find those guys because of versatility—it’s like having a tight end or an H-back who play multiple positions,” Murphy added.

Fischer’s return to action also bolstered Harvard’s kickoff and punt returning game.

The senior brought back two kicks for 16 yards and four punts for 48 yards against Princeton.

In the three games before his injury, Fischer had amassed 126 total yards on 12 receptions.

He more than doubled that number in Saturday’s game with 190 yards. So far this season, Fischer has recorded a career-high 14.4 yards per reception.