Harvard Drops Ivy League Opener to Brown After 4th-Quarter Collapse

Updated September 28, 2024, at 6:01 p.m.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — The Brown Bears (2-0, 1-0 Ivy) stunned the Crimson (1-1, 0-1 Ivy) with less than 30 seconds on the clock in the fourth after a bad snap and a key touchdown throw from Brown quarterback Jake Wilcox led to heartbreak for Harvard.

The Bears clawed back from an 18-point deficit to defeat Harvard at home for the first time since 2010. The loss puts the Crimson’s hopes to defend its share of the Ivy League title in serious jeopardy just one game into the Ivy League season.

Harvard looked poised to clinch a crucial road victory against a pesky Brown team as the Crimson’s defense recovered possession on the Bears’ 12-yard with a 28-23 lead and under two minutes to play. But Harvard’s offense, led by junior quarterback Jaden Craig, failed to score a touchdown that would have put the game on ice and were forced to settle for a field goal attempt.

The snap, however, sailed over freshman kicker Kieran Corr’s head and was kicked around by the Bears’ special teams unit until it was finally recovered by Brown defensive back Nick Hudson at Harvard’s 27-yard line.

Wilcox needed just one attempt to find Brown wide receiver Mark Mahoney for a 27-yard touchdown pass and take the Bears’ first lead of the entire game with only 21 seconds left on the clock as the home crowd shook the stadium with delight. Wilcox immediately followed up with another successful pass to Mahoney for a two-point conversion that gave Brown a 31-28 advantage in the closing seconds of the game.

The conversion capped an explosive second half for the Bears as they scored three unanswered touchdowns. The Brown defense also shined at the end of the game as they overcame the loss of star defensive back Isaiah Reed, who missed the game with an injury, to keep the Crimson off the scoreboard in the fourth quarter and hand Harvard head coach Andrew Aurich the first loss of his tenure.

Aurich took full responsibility for the Crimson’s collapse in a press conference after the game, citing his decision to go for a field goal instead of trying to convert on the fourth down. Had the Crimson come up short, they still would have given the Bears the ball deep in their own territory with only one minute left on the clock.

“That’s on me,” Aurich said. “I didn’t manage it well. There should never have been time at the end there for them to get the ball.”

“There’s plenty of stuff that everyone on the team is gonna have to clean up, but we should have never been in that position if I would’ve never made that in-game call,” he added.

Harvard football players line up for a snap against Brown on Saturday. A botched snap at the end of the fourth quarter allowed Brown to recover possession and defeat the Crimson for a remarkable comeback win. By Kacy Bao

The mistake served as a reminder that Aurich, despite leading Harvard to a 35-0 victory over Stetson University last week, will face some growing pains as he eases into his new role as head coach. Aurich had never led a football program before his arrival at Harvard.

The Crimson started the game strong as Craig led Harvard to the endzone on the second drive of the game. A bullet to junior receiver Cooper Barkate set up senior running back Shane McLaughin to find the endzone for the first score of the game.

Barkate followed up the performance on the next play, scoring the Crimson’s second touchdown off a 20-yard pass from Craig.

Meanwhile on the defensive side of the ball, the Crimson looked strong — managing to hold off the Bears’ air attack headed up by Willcox, who led the Ivy League in passing last year. His prowess in the air would prove a pitfall for Aurich’s defense throughout the game, and will be an area the squad will need to tighten up if it hopes to have any chance at an Ivy League title.

Defensive backs senior Gavin Shipman and sophomore Damien Henderson both had important defensive plays — with a sack for Shipman and a few key broken up passes from Henderson.

The Crimson’s defense continued its strong performance in the first half by limiting the Bears’ offense to a field goal despite Wilcox finding wide receiver Solomon Miller for a 56-yard pass that brought the Bears into the red zone for the first time.

Wilcox, however, could not finish the job as the Crimson forced him to throw a few incomplete passes, before settling for the three points.

Harvard immediately responded with a touchdown as three penalties against the Bears defense essentially allowed Craig to walk down the gridiron and into Brown’s territory. After two incomplete passes, Craig found Barkate once again on third-and-10 for a 16-yard pass to put Harvard up 21-3.

The Harvard faithful who made the trek to Providence had a lot to cheer for during the first half of the game. Brown, however, had the last laugh as the team stormed back in the fourth quarter to upset the Crimson 31-28. By Kacy Bao

As the first half came to a close, Brown junior defensive back Elias Archie intercepted a pass that slipped through Barkate’s hands — allowing the Bears to set up on the one yard line and secure their first touchdown of the game.

The interception was a key moment in the game — giving Bears much-needed hope and energy, and foreshadowing the Crimson’s second half offensive collapse.

Aurich denied that the interception shifted momentum to Brown in a postgame interview, but the play certainly marked the first of several weak drives from Harvard’s offense that would ultimately cost them the game.

Despite jogging off the field down 21-10, the Bears were eager to defend their home turf against the visiting Harvard bench. Right away, Brown seemed finally able to find its groove and test the Harvard defense.

A close no-call by the referees on what looked to be a horse-collar tackle by senior linebacker Mitchell Gonser stopped the Bears just short of a much-needed touchdown, forcing the home team to go the extra mile on its third down attempt.

A missed field goal attempt by the Bears’ kicker Chris Maron would briefly stymie the shift in momentum, and preserve the Crimson’s 11-point lead.

With the offense entering a lull, the Crimson turned to its famed speedster: senior Charles DePrima, who lost the starting quarterback job to Craig.

DePrima transformed into a wide receiver in Providence, hauling in a 52-yard pass from Craig that brought the Crimson to the Bears’ 17-yard line.

After short gains from sophomore running back Xaviah Bascon and junior running back Isaiah Abbey, Craig marched into the end zone on a two-yard option play showcasing his ability to get it done on the ground.

The touchdown put the Crimson up 28-10 with just 6:16 left in the third quarter, but it also marked the last time Harvard’s offense would make any noise.

In a postgame interview, McLaughlin blamed the loss on the offensive’s inability to continue its first half success.

“We definitely didn’t execute on our side of the ball in the second half,” McLaughlin said. “If we played like we played the beginning of the first half, we never would have been in this position.”

In Brown’s next possession, Willcox threw a 75-yard pass to freshman running back Matt Childs who ran up the field with little resistance to bring the score to 28-17 after the extra point.

To cap off the third quarter, the Bears responded by marching down the field and converting several consequential downs, including a fourth-and-1 from Harvard’s 44 yard line. The Crimson defense struggled to contain Willcox, who was able to find room to scramble after progressing through his initial reads.

On fourth-and-goal from the two-yard line with 12 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, Brown kept its offense on the field. On a critical play, the Bears went for an unconventional reverse, with backup quarterback Ty Holtz coming off the edge and lofting a pass to junior wide receiver Solomon Miller — only for Henderson to swoop in and deny the score — keeping Harvard up 28-17.

The Brown Bears scored 14 points in the fourth quarter to stun Harvard and steal the first game of the Ivy League season. By Kacy Bao

With the Harvard offense going nowhere, Brown regained possession and stormed down the gridiron. After a few key plays from Childs, Willcox threw to Mahoney for a touchdown.

The Bears attempted a two-point conversion, but a controversial call by the referees led to Wilcox’s pass being deemed incomplete, allowing the Crimson to hold onto a five-point lead with five minutes to play.

Harvard’s offense, however, was unable to give the defense any support and returned possession to Brown at their own 10-yard line with 2:25 to play.

Wilcox, however, struggled for the first time since the start of the fourth quarter and could not find a first down. A huge sack by junior safety Ty Bartrum and an incomplete pass on fourth down gave the Crimson the ball at the Bears’ 12-yard line with less than two minutes on the clock.

Unable to capitalize on the position to secure the victory, the Crimson attempted a field goal — and the rest was history.

The Bears recovered the football at Harvard’s 27-yard line and needed a touchdown to win the game, but the shift in energy inside Brown Stadium made a Bears victory feel all but inevitable.

Wilcox needed only one pass to find the end zone and send the Brown faithful into a frenzy.

With time running out, Craig could not convert a hail mary pass and Brown fans stormed the field to celebrate their first victory over Harvard in more than a decade.

McLaughlin, Harvard’s captain, credited Brown’s resilience for their comeback win.

“Hats off to them, they fought to the end,” McLaughlin said. “We knew they were going to do that and we just didn’t execute.”

While acknowledging that the Bears benefited from several Harvard mistakes to emerge with a win, Brown head coach James Perry refused to chalk it all up to good fortune.

“One of the things that is really special about these guys is, even though it might seem like that was magical — and obviously in a way it was —I know we put the hard work in,” Perry said. “So I think you make your own luck sometimes.”

—Staff writer Jo 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.

—Staff writer Katharine Forst can be reached at katharine.forst@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @Forst_THC.