With Ivy Title in Sight, Harvard Football Prepares for Penn-ultimate Game of Season

After a decisive Ivy League victory last week over Columbia, No. 20 Harvard (7-1, 4-1 Ivy) will travel to Philadelphia on Saturday to face the UPenn Quakers (4-4, 2-3 Ivy) in the penultimate game of the season.

The game is yet another in a series of must-win matchups for Harvard, after an early-season loss to Brown made every game make-or-break for the Crimson the rest of the way. After beating the Lions last week, Harvard and Dartmouth now stand tied atop the league, and the Crimson will almost certainly need to win both of its next games to share or win the conference title outright.

Despite the Quakers’ weaker record this season, after a winning season in 2023, they may prove a formidable enemy for the Crimson to conquer before the team can turn its attention to The Game against Yale next week.

Last year’s thrilling triple overtime matchup saw Harvard clinch a share of the Ivy League title via a gutsy trick play in which junior wide receiver Cooper Barkate lofted the title-sealing throw to junior quarterback Jaden Craig in the end zone — a twist on the typical Craig-Barkate roommate connection that Crimson fans have come to know and love over the last two seasons.

UPenn’s backup quarterback, junior Liam O’Brien, put up breakout performances in his first two appearances in Ivy League games the past two weeks, securing the Quakers their only Ancient Eight victories this season. In a 67-49 win over Cornell last week, the highest scoring game in League history, O’Brien broke a school record for touchdown passes in a game with six.

With O’Brien having the Quakers firing on all cylinders, the Crimson will need to rely on its vaunted pass defense, which is ranked second in the conference in pass yards allowed per game at 211.6. Trying to slow O’Brien will represent a litmus test for Harvard, as it eyes Yale next week and the Bulldogs’ emerging gunslinger Grant Jordan.

In an interview, Head Coach Andrew Aurich acknowledged Penn’s new offensive strength and credited his Quakers’ counterpart, Ray Priore, for savvy roster management.

“Since this new quarterback has come in, they’ve kind of revamped what they’ve been doing offensively and fitting the scheme to his strengths,” Aurich said, lauding O’Brien. “He’s a really, really good athlete, a dual threat quarterback.”

The Crimson will also need to find a way to stop the Quakers’ star sophomore running back Malachi Hosley, who currently leads the conference with 115.9 rushing yards per game.

Aurich added that the Crimson’s defenders will need to stick to their roles to stop the Quakers’ offensive momentum this week.

“It’s more about 11 guys doing their job every play,” Aurich said. “If we do that, we’re going to have success. If we have guys who are trying to do something beyond this game, to try to make a play, that’s when we get into problems.”

The Crimson’s defense is well positioned to face the Quakers, coming off a dominant showing against Columbia in which the unit held the Lions scoreless until the final two minutes of the game.

Defensive stars like junior safety Ty Bartrum, who leads the Crimson in tackles, and sophomore corner Austin-Jake Guillory, who recorded two interceptions last week and was named Ivy League Defensive Player of the Week, will be crucial in preventing O’Brien and the rest of the offense from exploding again.

UPenn’s defense might pose less of a challenge for the Crimson, particularly if junior quarterback Jaden Craig returns to form after a lackluster performance last week. The Quakers’ passing defense is currently ranked last in the Ivy League — a perfect matchup for a Harvard team that has been particularly strong through the air.

Excusing a few questionable incompletions and risky throws on the run last week, Craig has consistently performed well this season. The signal-caller also has a wealth of talent in his receivers room, with Barkate, sophomore tight end Seamus Gilmartin, and senior utility-man Charles DePrima all contributing to a versatile and unpredictable offense.

Aurich said he feels confident in Craig to bounce back this game and execute, based on what he’s seen in practice.

“I know he was not happy with how he played last week, so he’s come out here and had a really, really good week of practice, and is executing at a high level,” Aurich said.

Still, Harvard's first-year skipper isn’t taking anything for granted.

“Statistics are statistics,” Aurich said. “I know the type of defense they play. I know what type of players they have. It’ll still be a challenge for us, and we got to make sure that we’re out there executing when we are in those situations.”

Barkate also acknowledged that the Crimson’s offense has to clean up its act before facing UPenn, but for him, the goal in the next two games is simple: to win.

“We’re close to an Ivy League title, so we got to win out from here,” Barkate said.

Barkate and Craig will hope to make the home crowd quake in disappointment when the Crimson kicks off against UPenn in Philadelphia this Saturday, Nov. 16 at noon. Streaming will be available on local NBC Sports affiliates in Boston and Philly, as well as ESPN+ nationwide.

—Staff writer Jo B. Lemann can be reached at jo.lemann@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @Jo_Lemann.

—Staff writer Praveen Kumar can be reached at praveen.kumar@thecrimson.com.