No. 22 Big Green Fall Victim to Harvard Comeback, 31-27

Saturday, November 2

Hanover, N.H.

1:30 PM

Dartmouth College

6-1 , 3-1

Harvard

6-1 , 3-1

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Harvard

Dartmouth

Photo by: Justin Lafleur

No. 22 Big Green Fall Victim to Harvard Comeback, 31-27

11/2/2024 10:10:00 PM | Football

Box Score Postgame Press Conference

The Crimson scored two touchdowns in the final 5:59 to hand the Big Green their first loss of the season

By: Justin Lafleur

HANOVER, N.H. — In a game of runs, the Dartmouth football team scored 20 straight points to turn a 10-point deficit into a 10-point lead, but it was Harvard who responded with the game's final 14 points to hand the Big Green their first loss of the season, 31-27 on Saturday afternoon. The loss moves Dartmouth's record to 6-1, 3-1 in the Ivy League while Harvard improves to 6-1 and 3-1 in Ivy play.

With three weeks to go, Dartmouth, Harvard and Columbia are all tied for first place.

"I can't say enough how proud I am of this team and how hard they played out there," said Sammy McCorkle, Robert L. Blackman Head Football Coach. "Obviously, it was a bit of a rough go to start there, but our guys didn't flinch and did a good job of battling back and putting themselves in a situation to get back in the game and take the lead.

"Obviously, they're all competitors, we're all competitors," McCorkle continued. "You don't like to lose, but we've got to learn from this, got to wash it. We have a short week; we've got to get ourselves ready for Princeton."

In his return to the lineup after three weeks out, quarterback Jackson Proctor led a Dartmouth offense that scored its most points against Harvard since 2003 and most points against Harvard at home since 1993. He finished 18-of-26 passing for 235 yards and two touchdowns.

"Obviously, we had guys who stepped up and did a good job in those three weeks," said Proctor. "I did my best to stay ready, whether that was mental reps or doing extra conditioning or whatnot. Obviously, it wasn't the outcome we would have wanted [today], but we have to wash it and move on. Princeton, short week, and we've got to keep battling."

Daniel Haughton finished with a career-high 82 receiving yards, 72 of them coming on a third-quarter touchdown reception. Jackson Namian tallied a career-high five catches for 39 yards while Chris Corbo added three receptions for 32 yards and his team-leading fifth touchdown catch of the season.

D.J. Crowther tallied a team-leading 45 rush yards on six carries, 31 of them coming on a big third-quarter run. Micah Green and Tyson Grimm each tallied eight tackles to lead the team, with Green also recovering a fumble which Patrick Campbell forced.

It didn't take long for Harvard to strike first. A 48-yard kickoff return set up the Crimson at the Dartmouth 42-yard line. Seven plays later, Charles DePrima rushed from eight yards out into the end zone, as the Crimson took a 7-0 lead.

That score remained until later in the quarter. After a strong punt return set the Crimson up at the Big Green 46-yard line, Harvard went 32 yards on seven plays, ending in a 32-yard field goal from Kieran Corr for a 10-0 Crimson lead with 1:46 left in the first quarter.

Dartmouth kicker Owen Zalc stole the show to start the second quarter, as he knocked through field goals of 37 and 54 yards, with 11:19 and 8:01 on the clock, to pull the Big Green within 10-6. The 54 yarder was a career long, beating the 50 yarder he had earlier this season at Merrimack. It was also a Dartmouth football program record, while tying the all-time Ivy League mark.

With plenty of room to spare!

Owen Zalc with the career-long 54-yard field goal 👏👏👏

Gameday Central: https://t.co/SoQgb8Nnse #TheWoods #GoBigGreen pic.twitter.com/4EdgAa1ZIh
— Dartmouth Football (@DartmouthFTBL) November 2, 2024

The Big Green ended the second quarter with a 10-play, 70-yard drive. After a 3-yard Desmin Jackson rush, Proctor found Sean Ward for 14 yards, Luke Rives for 14 yards and Namian for 12 yards on consecutive plays. The drive ended with Grayson Saunier connecting with Ward for a one-yard touchdown, marking Ward's first-career touchdown reception. It came with 1:47 left in the first half, giving the Big Green a 13-10 lead, which proved to be the halftime score.

Grayson Saunier comes in to run... no to pass... and it's a touchdown Big Green!

Gameday Central: https://t.co/SoQgb8Nnse #TheWoods #GoBigGreen pic.twitter.com/hDcSzvx8al
— Dartmouth Football (@DartmouthFTBL) November 2, 2024

Midway through the third quarter, Dartmouth drove 65 yards on 11 plays. A big play was Crowther's 31-yard run to the Harvard 13-yard line. Three plays later, a scrambling Proctor found Corbo from 11 yards out. The extra point gave Dartmouth 20 unanswered points and 20-10 lead with 3:03 left in the third.

Make that 20 straight points for the Big Green, as Jackson Proctor finds Chris Corbo!

Gameday Central: https://t.co/SoQgb8Nnse #TheWoods #GoBigGreen pic.twitter.com/fWTxu5LhCE
— Dartmouth Football (@DartmouthFTBL) November 2, 2024

That was the start of three touchdowns in the span of 2:06, two from the Big Green. It took Harvard just four plays to go 75 yards and find the end zone, pulling the Crimson within 20-17. But on Dartmouth's next drive, a 3-yard run from Crowther preceded a 72-yard reception from Haughton. Haughton caught it at the Dartmouth 45-yard line then used his speed to beat Harvard defenders to the end zone. Just like that, the Big Green were back up by 10, 27-17, with 57 seconds left in the third quarter.

WHAT A RESPONSE!

Haughton 72-yard touchdown reception puts the Big Green back up by 10!

Gameday Central: https://t.co/SoQgb8Nnse #TheWoods #GoBigGreen pic.twitter.com/7yrrhQgZfH
— Dartmouth Football (@DartmouthFTBL) November 2, 2024

The 27-17 score stood until late in the fourth quarter. Harvard used a 14-play, 94-yard drive, ending in a DePrima 6-yard rushing touchdown to pull the Crimson within 27-24. After Harvard forced a Big Green 3-and-out, the Crimson drove 73 yards on 10 plays, chewing up 3:32 of the clock. Ultimately, DePrima again ran it in from nine yards out, his third rushing touchdown of the game. The extra point put Harvard ahead, 31-27 with just 27 seconds remaining.

The Big Green got from their own 30-yard line to the Harvard 44 and had a Hail Mary at the end into the end zone, but it wouldn't connect as the Crimson held on.

"There were situations when we had opportunities to get them off the field there offensively," said McCorkle. "We've got to be able to do that. And then offensively, we had a chance there, that one drive, to keep the drive going. But it's a combination of things; it's everything. We put ourselves in a situation to try and win the game at the end. That's all you can ask for, and we just came up short."

Harvard finished with a 434-354 edge in total yards, including 311-236 through the air and 123-118 on the ground.

Dartmouth will hit the road for the next two weekends, beginning with a showdown at Princeton on Friday. Opening kickoff is set for 6 p.m. on ESPNU. After a matchup at Cornell, the Big Green return home for their season finale on Saturday, Nov. 23 to host Brown at 12 p.m. on Senior Day and Youth Football Day. Tickets can be purchased HERE. Questions can be directed to the Athletics Sales Office at athletics.sales@dartmouth.edu or by calling (603) 646-2466.

NOTES: Dartmouth's 27 points marked its most against Harvard since a 30-16 win in 2003; the 27 points were its most at home against the Crimson since a 39-34 win in 1993 … The Big Green entered the weekend No. 22 in both the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 and AFCA FCS Coaches Poll. Harvard was receiving votes in both polls.