Reno’s 3TDs leads Yale upset over Harvard 45-28 in 141st The Game

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) — Dante Reno lit up No. 10 Harvard for 273 yards and three touchdowns as No. 25 Yale seized an Ivy League FCS playoff berth with a 45-28 win in the 141st edition of The Game on Saturday.

Reno needed only one snap to strike: after a forced fumble by Brandon Webster on Harvard’s first play, he hit Jaxton Santiago for a 21-yard touchdown at 14:42 of the first. He later found Nico Brown for a 64-yard score and connected with Lucius Anderson for the freshman’s first career touchdown, finishing 15 of 19 while averaging more than 14 yards per attempt. Brown led all receivers with 189 yards.

Yale (8-2, 6-1 Ivy) controlled the game behind running back Josh Pitsenberger, who carried 38 times for 143 yards and three touchdowns. His 35th career rushing score, an 8-yarder early in the second, moved him to second on Yale’s all-time list. He added touchdowns from the 1 and 4 to push the Bulldogs ahead 38-14.

Harvard (9-1, 6-1) answered with spurts from quarterback Jaden Craig, who threw for 266 yards and three touchdowns while adding a 26-yard scoring run. He found Ryan Tattersall twice for scores and hit Brady Blackburn from 31 yards out, but the Crimson spent the entire afternoon chasing double-digit deficits and mustered only 94 rushing yards.

The loss cost Harvard its bid for its first unbeaten season since 2014 and delivered Yale the playoff spot through a head-to-head tiebreaker.

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