Following their season-opening win in overtime at Delaware State (1-1, Mid-Eastern Athletic), the Georgetown football team (1-0, Patriot League) is coming back to the Hilltop this Saturday to face off against the Harvard Crimson (0-0, Ivy League) at 12:30 p.m. on Cooper Field. The Hoyas will look to continue their early winning ways this season against the Crimson with their first game back at Cooper Field since the 2019 season.
In their victory against the Delaware State Hornets last week, the Hoyas relied on a solid performance from fifth year quarterback Joseph Brunell, who finished the game 18-32 passing with two touchdowns and an interception. Although Georgetown fell behind 14-0 in the second quarter, the defense rallied with a shut-out in the second half, allowing Brunell and junior running back Joshua Stakely (12 attempts, 43 yards, and the game-winning touchdown) to lead the Hoyas’ offense to 20 unanswered points for the eventual win in overtime.
Harvard, meanwhile, will be starting its program’s 147th football season with their first game in nearly two years. The Crimson went 4-6 in 2019, finishing 6th in the Ivy League. Harvard will enter the season under the tutelage of seasoned head coach Tim Murphy and will return senior quarterback Jake Smith as well as reigning Ivy League Rookie of the Year running back Aidan Borguet. Although the Crimson finished with a losing record in 2019, they ended up with a positive point differential (+6.8 points per game) and a stout run defense allowing only 2.5 yards per rushing attempt (89.8 yards per game).
The Blue & Gray will rely on Stakely and the rest of the running back room – who accounted for over a third of Georgetown’s scoring in 2019 (147.4 yards per game, 20 total touchdowns) – to show up and make their presence felt against Harvard’s potent defensive line. Additionally, Joseph Brunell have to play a turnover-free game; in 2019, the Hoyas had a losing record when throwing at least one interception (2-3) compared to a .500 record without an interception (3-3). While they finished 2019 with a 5-6 record overall, Georgetown performed much better out of conference, going 4-1 against non-conference opponents, which bodes well for their chances against the Crimson.
Kickoff for the home opener of the Hoya football season is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. ET at Cooper Field. Georgetown last faced Harvard in 2017, losing by a score of 41-2, and has an 0-4 record all time against the Crimson. Broadcast will be available with ESPN+ and live stats can be found at guhoyas.com. For continued coverage of all Georgetown sports, follow @GUVoiceSports on Twitter.
