Skip to content
College Sports
Link copied to clipboard

Penn beats Harvard, 34-14, to grab share of Ivy title

For the second consecutive year, the Penn football team will own at least a share of the Ivy League crown. That much was certain Saturday afternoon after the Quakers defeated Harvard, 34-14, in front of an announced crowd of 12,546 at Franklin Field.

For the second consecutive year, the Penn football team will own at least a share of the Ivy League crown. That much was certain Saturday afternoon after the Quakers defeated Harvard, 34-14, in front of an announced crowd of 12,546 at Franklin Field.

Penn (8-1 overall, 6-0 league) had an opportunity to clinch the title outright, but that hinged on Yale's losing to Princeton on Saturday. Yale (5-1 Ivy) escaped with a 14-13 win.

The Quakers can claim the Ivy championship outright by beating Cornell (2-7, 1-5) on the road in the season finale next Saturday. The Quakers will gain sole possession of the title regardless of that outcome if Harvard beats Yale.

"We'd like to be greedy and win it outright," Penn coach Al Bagnoli said after earning at least a share of his eighth title. "I think it's really, really hard - and speaks volumes of your team's character and work ethic and focus - if you could go back-to-back unbeaten."

Last season, the Quakers finished 8-2 overall and 7-0 in the Ivy. This year, they're on pace to repeat, thanks in part to their defense.

On Saturday, Penn led by 10-0 at halftime and by 27-0 after three quarters. Harvard (6-3, 4-2) put up empty offensive numbers, including two touchdowns, in the fourth quarter to make it look closer.

The Crimson finished with advantages in total yards (410 to 278) and passing yards (248 to 56). But Harvard did not advance past Penn's 20-yard line until the fourth quarter.

"Penn played well in all phases," Crimson coach Tim Murphy said. "Their defense, obviously, is very, very strong."

Early in the second quarter, Penn linebacker Jason Rasmussen recovered a fumble, and four plays later, kicker Andrew Samson made a 19-yard field goal for a 3-0 Quakers lead. Samson also added a 45-yarder in the third quarter.

Later in the second quarter, Penn linebacker Erik Rask blocked a Harvard field-goal attempt, and the Quakers recovered at their own 38. Penn running back Brandon Colavita finished the ensuing drive with a 2-yard scoring run, his first of two, as the Quakers took a 10-0 lead into halftime. Colavita finished with 122 yards on 17 carries.

"Games get decided by turnovers - they get decided by special teams before they get decided by offense and defense," Bagnoli said.

Penn quarterback Billy Ragone completed 4 of 12 passes for 56 yards and a touchdown pass to Jeff Jack. Ragone also rushed for 64 yards, including a 6-yard touchdown.