CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — A slow start came back to haunt the Dartmouth Big Green as they suffered their second loss in Ivy League play on Saturday afternoon, falling 31-10 to Harvard at Harvard Stadium.
Held scoreless in the first half for the second time this season, the Big Green faced a 17-0 deficit against the No. 15 Crimson.
Despite the early hole, Dartmouth fought back in the second half and pulled within seven points at 17-10 early in the fourth quarter. However, the Crimson, led by senior quarterback Jaden Craig, who threw for 322 yards and four touchdowns, including two in the fourth quarter, pulled away to seal the win.
“Obviously not the outcome we wanted. I just think we put ourselves behind the eight ball early,” Dartmouth head coach Sammy McCorkle said after the loss, which dropped the Big Green to 5-2 overall and 2-2 in Ivy League play.
Harvard appeared vulnerable late in the third quarter after Dartmouth turned an interception by junior safety Harrison Keith into a 46-yard field goal by junior kicker Owen Zalc, cutting the deficit to 17-10. But the Crimson responded with an 11-play, 79-yard drive that featured conversions on third-and-14 and fourth-and-9.
The drive ended with Craig’s third touchdown pass of the game, a 14-yarder to junior tight end Logan Reaska, to extend the lead to 24-10 with 12:47 remaining.
The next two possessions effectively ended Dartmouth’s comeback hopes. After being stopped on second, third, and fourth-and-short, the Big Green turned the ball over on downs. On the next play, Craig connected with junior tight end Seamus Gilmartin for a 34-yard touchdown, putting Harvard up 31-10 with 11:17 to play.
“I’m really proud of the way our guys came out in the second half and battled to put ourselves back in position to tie it up, but we’ve got to do a better job. We made mistakes at crucial times in the game,” McCorkle said.
Dartmouth’s defense struggled, especially on third down, as Harvard converted nine of 15 attempts. In addition to Keith’s interception, senior defensive back Sean Williams also picked off a pass.
The Big Green were without two starting offensive linemen, including 2024 All-Ivy First Team left tackle Delby Lemieux, and the offense managed just 261 total yards and averaged fewer than two yards per rushing attempt.
Junior quarterback Grayson Saunier, who scored Dartmouth’s lone touchdown on a 1-yard run in the third quarter, was sacked three times and completed 18 of 32 passes for 200 yards.
“We made a lot more mistakes than they did,” Saunier said. “We didn’t have a great start. We’ve got to keep our foot on the gas the whole game. We can’t be inconsistent. We’ve got to come out firing from the jump.”
Harvard set the tone early, marching 71 yards in 13 plays on the opening drive, capped by Craig’s 14-yard touchdown pass to Gilmartin. Dartmouth’s third-down struggles were evident from the start, as Harvard converted three third downs, including a third-and-14, on that opening possession.
After both teams traded three-and-outs, Harvard needed only three plays on its third possession to extend the lead. Craig found sophomore wide receiver Brady Blackburn deep for a 74-yard touchdown and a 14-0 advantage.
The Crimson added a field goal in the second quarter to make it 17-0 as Dartmouth’s offense continued to sputter. The Big Green’s best drive of the first half came after Williams’ interception with less than two minutes left, setting up a 37-yard field goal attempt by Zalc. His kick missed, however, and Dartmouth entered halftime still scoreless.
Down 17-0 entering the third quarter, the Big Green responded with a 12-play, 75-yard drive capped by Saunier’s 1-yard touchdown run to make it 17-7.
Moments later, Keith intercepted Craig again, setting up a 46-yard Zalc field goal to bring Dartmouth within 17-10 late in the third.
That was as close as the Big Green would get. Harvard’s ensuing drive and fourth-quarter surge closed the door on any comeback hopes.
Dartmouth will look to bounce back Saturday when it hosts Princeton (3-4) at 1 p.m.
