Ivy Football Weekend Preview | Harvard and Holy Cross paths

Harvard's biggest rival is Yale, but in recent seasons the annual non-conference tangle with Holy Cross has still been intense.

Last year the Crimson were down twelve with 9:28 to play, but they came back to win 25-24 after then-senior Chris Pizzotti led the team on 60- and 66-yard scoring drives. And that came after the 2007 game in which the Crusaders won on a 40-yard touchdown with :19 remaining.

So when Harvard (0-0) travels the 40 miles tomorrow to Worchester, Mass., to face Holy Cross (2-0) both teams will be itching for a win.

And it's not like these teams are worthless. The game is the only matchup this week in the Football Championship Subdivision between ranked teams (Harvard is No. 25 and Holy Cross No. 23).

Overall, Harvard is ahead 38-22-2 in the series, and has won 10 of the last 12 games.

Citadel at Princeton

When Princeton traveled to Charleston, S.C., to play the Citadel for the first time ever, things didn't go so well for the Tigers.

They jumped out to 17-7 halftime lead, but the Bulldogs dominated the second half, scoring 30 unanswered points before winning 37-24.

Add in the mini-scandal of the Princeton band getting harassed before, during and after the game by the cadets, and it wasn't exactly a pleasant experience for the Tigers and their fans.

Princeton (0-0) will get a chance to return the favor tomorrow when the Bulldogs (0-1) travel up I-95 and take on the Tigers at Princeton Stadium.

Two weeks ago the Citadel played the role of cupcake as then-No. 21 North Carolina trounced the military college, 40-6, in the first weekend of the season.

Columbia at Fordham

Columbia and New York University compete for the title of best academic school in New York City. But since the Violets don't have a football team, the Lions intercity rival is Fordham.

The two Big Apple squads have played 17 times - Columbia is leading 11-6 - but tomorrow's game at Fordham (0-1) will be the eighth Liberty Cup contest. The Cup commemorates the victims of Sept. 11 and has been played each year since 2002 (Rams lead 4-3).

Last year Columbia (0-0) led 22-14 in the fourth quarter before giving up 15 unanswered points. Unfortunately for the Lions, the orchestrators of that comeback - quarterback John Skelton and running back Xavier Martin - both return.

Skelton is a senior who owns the school record for most career completions. Martin, meanwhile, is a junior who rushed for 1,237 yards last year, including 155 against the Lions.

Colgate at Dartmouth

Colgate has been Dartmouth's opening game opponent for the last six years, and nothing's changing tomorrow. The Raiders will make the trip up to Hanover, N.H., for the 1:30 p.m. kickoff.

Colgate (2-0), the defending Patriot League champion, already has two wins over Monmouth and Stony Brook this season.

Dartmouth (0-0), on the other hand, would like to forget last season's 0-10 campaign.

The Raiders have won 17 of the 23 games the two have placed since 1905. However, a sign of hope for the Big Green is the fact that all five of their wins have come at home.

Brown at Stony Brook

After losing to Colgate last week, 23-13, Stony Brook (0-2) will get a chance to earn its first win tomorrow.

However, the Seawolves will be in for quite a challenge since their third opponent is defending Ivy League champion Brown. It's the second of a home-and-away series that will repeat itself over the next two years.

The two teams played for the first time ever last year, as Brown won 17-7. In that game current senior Buddy Farnham had 14 catches as well as a two-yard run to seal the win.

Though the Bears were co-Ivy champs with Harvard, they had the head-to-head win as they went 7-3, 6-1 Ivy.

The Seawolves, meanwhile, went 5-6 (3-2 Big South Conference) last year, including a five-game losing streak during September and parts of October.

Yale at Georgetown

With new coach Tom Williams at the helm, Yale (0-0) will take on Georgetown at 1 p.m tomorrow. The Bulldogs have won the two matchups they have played against the Hoya (0-2) over the past two seasons.

Yale had an impressive showing last year with 498 yards of total offense, compared to Georgetown's 230. Defensively, the Bulldogs intercepted three passes, including a 60-yard touchdown return by then-sophomore cornerback Adam Money.

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