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History: Harvard's Only Bowl Game (1920 Rose Bowl)

Courtesy of www.tournamentofroses.com

 "Charlie Chaplin sat on the Harvard bench. So did Douglas Fairbanks. This was the big time, the Rose Bowl. And Harvard made the most of its first and only Rose Bowl appearance.

On January 1, 1920, Harvard (7-0-1)  defeated Oregon (5-1), 7-6, in the Rose Bowl at Pasadena, capping a brilliant season for Coach Bob Fisher and his All-American back Eddie Casey. This was a team that outscored its opposition 217-19 in nine regular-season games. The only blemish was a 10-10 tie with Princeton. 

Harvard's first, and last, postseason appearance preceded by three years an agreement between the president's of Harvard-Yale and Princeton that prohibited teams from their institutions from participating in bowl games in the future.

Arriving in California on Christmas Day, the team had a week to prepare for Oregon. Harvard would enter the game without full contact work since defeating Yale in Harvard Stadium, 10-3, on November 22.

The Rose Bowl was a physical game, played almost entirely on the ground. Harvard threw just five passes, Oregon only two. Ironically, two passes caught by Eddie Casey set up Harvard's winning touchdown.

In the end, after two Oregon field goal attempts had been blocked and a third hurried wide, Harvard's defense saved the day. Only the clock prevented Harvard's one bowl victory from being more convincing: The gun sounded with the Crimson on the 1-foot line."

(passage from Crimson in Triumph: A Pictorial History of Harvard Athletics, 1852-1985)

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