After a huge game against Buffalo the previousweek, Hood could only manage 64 passing yards. Hedid, however, prove adept at eluding the Crimsonrush. He spun out of a few Crimson tackles andfinished the game with 48 yards on the ground,nearly matching his passing numbers.

"A couple of times we thought we had [Hood]wrapped up," Bibro said. "Then he spins out and wehad to chase him another 40 yards."

Moreover, the rain made the ball extremelyslippery. Harvard fumbled the ball six times,losing it twice, and Cornell coughed it up fivetimes. Both teams had particular difficulty withthe center-quarterback exchange.

The wet ball hurt Harvard at the end of thefirst half. With the score tied 6-6, Lindenfumbled the snap on fourth and one from theCornell 27, effectively ending the drive.

"By the third quarter there was huge puddle ofslush all over the place," Menick said. "It wasreal tough out there."

The weather made it even more surprising thatboth teams ran the ball so effectively. Led byMenick's 176 yards, the Crimson gained 290 yardson the ground. The Big Red netted 225 rushingyards. The Crimson offensive line was especiallyimpressive at providing running lanes for Menick.

"The conditions gave us an opportunity to finda little bit of our identity," Murphy said. "Thekids played so hard and aggressive today."

The only major downside to Harvard's play wasthe continual poor performance of the specialteams. Though Patton connected twice on fieldgoals, he also missed a 25-yard attempt. Freshmanpunter Jesse Milligan averaged 26.3 yards per puntwith a long of 35 yards, always leaving Cornellwith good field position. Of course, the Crimsongave up the kickoff return for a touchdown.

Still, the Crimson finally displayed thetoughness and intensity that it showed last year.Menick had by far his best game of the season. Thedefense made sure that every Crimson pointcounted.

Despite its slow start, Harvard is still in therunning to repeat as champion. After Saturday,only Princeton remains undefeated in the IvyLeague.

"The Ivy League has so many close games,"Murphy said. "We need to scratch and claw our wayfor every win."

Saturday Harvard scratched, clawed and rolledaround in the mud for its first victory of theseason.

Finally.

HARVARD, 19-12 at Harvard Stadium

Cornell  3  3  6  0  --  12Harvard  6  0  10  3  --  19