And yet, it seemed inevitable that Penn would somehow miraculously put together another drive to tie the game.

Indeed, the second half—which, with the exception of the first drive that had resulted in the only Crimson points of the half—was all Penn. And it seemed it would stay that way when the Harvard defense would force a fourth down, but the ball would somehow find its way into a Penn receiver’s hands to keep the drive alive.

But luck ran just short for Al Bagnoli’s team. With Penn trying to convert its third fourth-down conversion of the drive at the Harvard 20-yard line with 27 seconds left, Harvard captain Josh Boyd tipped Becker’s ball just out of reach. It was the only drive of the second half that Penn did not reach the end zone. And suddenly, Hempel was kneeling down, and the comeback was over.

After the game, Bagnoli described the comeback as “flipping a switch,” and he couldn’t have been more accurate. Penn had just 56 yards of offense in the first half, but ended with over 300 to finish the game. It was as though an entirely different Penn squad came out of halftime.

But the lights came on for Penn too little, too late. In 2012, Princeton scored 29 straight to upset Harvard. In 2013, Penn scored 30 straight. This year, 30 points wasn’t enough, and the Crimson escaped its final game at home with a win.

—Staff writer Samantha Lin can be reached at samantha.lin@thecrimson.com. Follow her on Twitter @Linsamnity.