Two minutes later, Stanton scored to put Harvard up 14-0 and eliminate any momentum Yale was building.

Hayes left last week’s game with a leg injury, and only played as much as he did against Yale because senior safety Jaron Wilson was ejected from the game for targeting a defenseless receiver.

“[Hayes] probably shouldn’t have been playing but...he is just indomitable,” Murphy said. “Amazing kid.”

The second turnover came early in the fourth quarter after Yale recovered a fumble near midfield. The Bulldogs had scored their first points to pull within 31-7, but senior safety Chris Splinter intercepted Furman on fourth down to put the game out of reach.

After running out of bounds, Splinter celebrated in front of Harvard’s fan section before being mobbed by teammates.

“Probably his best game he saved for his last game,” Murphy said of Splinter’s play.

Yale’s offense was limited throughout by the loss of running back Tyler Varga. Varga had missed multiple weeks coming into The Game but attempted to play Saturday. A couple drives in though, it was clear that he was not healthy. He finished the game with just five carries.

Harvard’s first-half shutout of the Bulldogs was its third straight first half without giving up a point. In its final two first halves, the Crimson outscored Penn and Yale, 59-0, combined.

With the win, Harvard finishes the year 9-1, matching its best finish since 2004 and earning its second Ivy title in three years.

“I don’t know if there has ever been a team that we’ve ever gotten more out of,” Murphy said. “If you could quantify it, I don’t think there is another drop we could have gotten out of them.”

—Staff writer Jacob D.H. Feldman can be reached at jacob.feldman@thecrimson.com. Follow him on Twitter @jacobfeldman4.