Week 4 Ivy League Football Preview

Columbia Lions vs. Marist Red Foxes  

Friday 7:00 pm 

The Lions offense let them down last week as they only managed 7 points against a solid Tigers defense. That was a major question mark coming into this game as the Lions didn't look crisp the week before against a bad Hoyas defense. They allowed the Tigers to also put up 35 points offensively and really weren't in the game from the start as they allowed 21 points in the first half. The Lions though are still 2-1 and had two gutty wins that they can lean on, the flip side of that though is this squad is now two plays away from being 0-3. 

A prime-time game against Marist on the road isn't the most inviting situation but Marist doesn't seem as good as their 3-2 record. They have a win against a non D-1 team in week 2, have another win against Stetson, who has yet to win a Division 1 game, and against Presbyterian, who has just one win on the year. Their defense has been solid all season though as they have yet to allow more than 22 points and that came back in week 1. This has a low scoring battle written all over it but the Lions have to find some sort of offense if they want to walk away with the win. 

Bryant Bulldogs vs. Brown Bears 

Saturday 12:00 pm 

The Bears were a live dog last week and nearly pulled the upset, but for the second week in a row a nice moral victory doesn't put a W in the win column. That being said we have to be very impressed by what we've seen with this team this far defensively. They have not allowed anyone to score more than 14 points against them and for the second week in a row kept it a lot closer than the opponent would have liked. The problem is their offense where they have now scored just 10 points in back-to-back weeks and have scored exactly 3 points in the first 3 quarters of those two games. 

Bryant is no pushover at 4-1, and they come in as another test for the Bears. Brown is the favorite however and that shows that people are beginning to take notice of this defense and being at home gives them an edge. Bryant's defense has also been on point for much of the year holding three teams to 14 or less points so far, so this will come down to which offense can get it going. Brown will have to score earlier than the 4th if they want this win, but they have been impressive in the past two weeks, it's now time to turn that play into a win. 

Princeton Tigers vs. Wagner Seahawks 

Saturday 12:00 pm  

What a turnaround in the public's eye for the Tigers. Princeton opened the season with low expectations and now they sit as a more than three touchdown favorite on the road. Sure, Wagner isn't very good, but this is in large part because of the Tigers defense and what they have looked like this season. This defense has allowed just one touchdown the past two weeks after shutting down Columbia 35-7 last week. That was a game that gave everyone confidence in their offense as well, which was always going to be a question mark this year. The Tigers have looked better and better as the season has gone on and now have a chance to pad their record before getting into the meat of the Ivy League schedule. 

Wagner is a bad team with a bad offense, there is no way around it. They might be 1-4 on the year but when your only win is against Southern Connecticut State, we can't take that seriously. In fact, the only time this team has scored more than 14 points was in that game and they have 3 of their 5 games where they failed to score more than a TD. This should be an easy Princeton blowout as they make sure people start paying attention to this defense. 

Dartmouth Big Green vs. Yale Bulldogs

Saturday 12:00 pm 

This Saturday’s Yale-Dartmouth matchup at the Yale Bowl is about much more than an early-season Ivy League game. It will be the next chapter in what has quickly become one of the most emotional stories in college football, with Yale quarterback Dante Reno trying to lead the Bulldogs. The loss of Coach Reno didn't just resonate through the Ivy leagues this past week, but through all of college football. 

Tony Reno, who coached Yale from 2012 through 2025 and won five Ivy League championships, died Oct. 2 at age 52 after battling Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. His impact on Yale and the Ivy League went far beyond his 83 victories. Last week Yale were heavy favorites but just one day after his father's death, Dante took the field against Merrimack and delivered 298 passing yards and four touchdowns, while also rushing for a career-high 39 yards. Yale overcame a 21-7 deficit and rolled to a 41-24 victory. Reno subsequently earned his second New England Football Writers Association Gold Helmet Award of the season.

But here's the problem for Yale: the defense has been nowhere near the level of its quarterback.

Through the first two Ivy League games, Yale had surrendered 33 points per game, the worst mark in the conference. The Bulldogs had allowed 293 total yards per game, including 140.5 rushing yards, while opponents had scored nine touchdowns. By comparison, Yale's offense was averaging 442.5 yards per game. That could be a major issue against Dartmouth.

The Big Green enters the game 1-2 overall but 1-0 in the Ivy League after upsetting Penn, 14-10. Dartmouth has been balanced offensively, averaging 339.7 yards per game, with quarterback Grayson Saunier throwing for 583 yards and four touchdowns through three games. Yale has the superior quarterback, the home-field advantage and an emotional story that has galvanized the program. But Dartmouth has already shown it can win a low-scoring Ivy League fight, and now they face a Swiss Cheese defense. Yale can win on the back of Reno, but will that be enough with this defense? 

Howard Bison vs. Penn Quakers 

Saturday 1:00 pm 

The Quakers look to get back to winning here as they dropped a heart breaker last week to Dartmouth 14-10. Losing to a solid defense like Dartmouth in the past wouldn't cause alarms, but the Big Green haven't looked all that opposing this season and Penn's offense has been stuck in the mud. They have scored 20 or less points in each game they've played and just 17 total points the past two weeks. Penn is still trying to find what works offensively after losing one of the best offensive pieces from last season, but this could be a golden chance for them to right the wrongs and get an easy win at home. 

Howard has awful defensive numbers this season and while you can forgive giving up 55 to Indiana and 58 to Rutgers, that still takes a toll on a defensive mindset. They also allowed Alabama A&M to score 24 and Richmond put up 28 on them. I fully expect that Howard is being a little overlooked here because of their unusual schedule, but if Penn wants to be taken seriously this is the week they have to find that offense and put to rest the question marks before the head into the Ivy schedule. 

Harvard Crimson vs. Cornell Big Red 

Saturday 1:00 pm 

Harvard heads to Ithaca Saturday for an intriguing Ivy League matchup with Cornell, and the Crimson arrives with plenty of confidence after one of the wildest finishes in college football this season. I am sure you've seen it on every highlight reel show, and for good reason. Harvard appeared to be headed for its first loss of the season last Saturday when Colgate scored with just 27 seconds remaining to take a 17-14 lead. Instead, quarterback Charlie Smith and the Crimson offense marched 75 yards in those final seconds, with Smith finding Nathan Bailey for an eight-yard touchdown as time expired to steal a stunning 20-17 victory.

The finish was spectacular, but Harvard's defense deserves just as much attention. Through the first two Ivy League games, the Crimson had allowed only 8.5 points per game, ranking first in the conference. Harvard was also surrendering just 2.1 yards per rushing attempt and had allowed only two touchdowns.

That defense could be the difference against a Cornell team that is coming off a convincing 35-14 victory over Georgetown. Cornell has shown it can score, but Harvard has consistently made opponents earn everything.

With the Crimson's defense playing at this level, the Big Red may need another big performance from quarterback Garrett Bass-Sulpizio to keep pace. The Crimson need a big win where they actually play like a contender and not win by the skin of their teeth, this could be the week they put it all together.