The only real drama on the final day of the Ivy League season took place in Providence with none of the other three games going down to the wire. Here's the final roundup:
Yale 45, Harvard 28
Josh Pitsenberger ran for 143 yards and three touchdowns, Dante Reno completed 15-of-19 passes for 143 yards and three touchdowns, and Nico Brown caught eight balls for 189 yards as the Bulldogs claimed the Ivy League’s automatic bid to the FCS playoffs with a commanding win over previously unbeaten Harvard. The win was the sixth in a row for Yale since a last-second loss at Dartmouth, and fourth in a row over the Crimson. The Bulldogs jumped out to a lead of 17-0 early in the second quarter and were never seriously threatened the rest of the way. They made sure by eschewing a field goal on the final play of the first half and giving the ball to Pitsenberger on the one-yard line for a touchdown that gave them a 31-14 lead going into the locker room. A Yale Bowl crowd of 52,497 saw the home team improve to 8-2 overall and 6-1 in the Ivy while dropping Harvard to 9-1 and 6-1. Jaden Craig threw for 266 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Crimson.
Columbia 29, Cornell 12
The Lions’ Griffin Johnson carried 29 times for 203 yards and a touchdown to help Columbia snap a seven-game losing streak while claiming its fifth consecutive Empire State Bowl win. Michael Walters added 58 yards and a touchdown as Columbia pierced the Cornell defense with a season-high 253 yards on the ground. The Lions’ Justin Townsend collected 2.5 sacks to run his career total to 23, breaking the old school record of 22. A crowd of 3,212 at Schoellkopf Field saw Columbia improve to 2-8 overall and 1-6 in the Ivy League. Cornell finished out at 4-6 and 3-4.
Penn 17, Princeton 6
Jared Richardson had 12 catches for 95 yards to become just the sixth player in school history to top 1,000 yards in a season as the Quakers (6-4, 4-3 Ivy) scored 10 unanswered points in the second half to finish the year tied with Dartmouth for third in the Ivy League. Bisi Owens added five catches for 82 yards and a touchdown for Penn, which had dropped its last two games. Princeton (3-7, 2-5) was held to 227 yards of total offense with freshman wide receiver Josh Robinson collecting five passes for 68 yards. The Tigers closed out the season with five consecutive losses, with three of the games decided by three points each. Attendance for the finale at Franklin Field was 3,093.
New Hampshire 33, Maine 27
The Wildcats scored 24 points in the second quarter as they ran their winning streak to five games and kept their hopes alive for an FCS playoff berth. New Hampshire got four field goals from sophomore Nick Reed, including a school-record 55-yarder, as they retained the Brice-Cowell Musket, awarded each year to the winning of the border war between the rivals. UNH is now 8-4 overall and 6-2 in the CAA. Maine falls to 6-6 and 5-3. Attendance in Durham was 6,876.
Central Connecticut 35, Mercyhurst 28
The Blue Devils recovered a fumble at the Mercyhurst 12 early in the fourth quarter and quarterback Brady Olson made it hurt with an eight-yard pass to Elijah Howard for the touchdown that clinched the NEC championship before 2,015 at CCSU. Howard finished with 163 yards and two touchdowns on the ground and four catches for 25 yards and the touchdown through the air. The NEC title is the Blue Devils’ second in a row and fourth in the last eight years. Central Connecticut improved to 8-4 overall and 6-1 in the NEC while Mercyhurst fell to 5-7 and 4-3.
Merrimack 27, Fordham 26
The Warriors scored two touchdowns in the final 7:53, including the game winner with 2:56 remaining to thrill a crowd of 1,964 in North Andover. Trailing by 13 points entering the fourth quarter, Merrimack cut into the Rams' lead with a 66-yard touchdown pass before picking off a pass on the first play of the ensuing Fordham drive at the visitors’ 29. A five-yard touchdown pass then gave the Warriors the lead before a strip sack with 1:53 remaining ended the Rams’ hopes of salvaging the win. Fordham finished the season 1-11 overall and 1-6 in the Patriot League. Playing as an independent, Merrimack stopped a five-game slide and closed out at 4-8.
And your final standings:
EXTRA POINT
Griff the Wonder Dog is an absolute hero. We left the house at 6 a.m., yesterday and didn't arrive home until 8 or so, and it was no issue. We opened the door when we got home and Griff rushed out to quickly take care of business before rushing back inside equally fast for his delayed dinner. That out of the way, he headed back out to finish things off and sniff around for a bit before coming back inside to fall asleep in front of the TV while we watched a replay of Penn State's win over Nebraska.
We were about halfway through that game when Griff stood, headed to the stairs, and retired for the night in his bed. We still had a half of football left but the old boy knows when he's done for the day and called it quits. Gotta love that guy.
