After two consecutive away games, the football team (3-5, 0-5 Ivy) returned to Brown Stadium on Saturday to face Yale (6-2, 4-1). Supporters lined the bleachers in hopes of watching the Bears snap their three-game losing streak.
Instead, the Bulldogs rolled right through Bruno, and Yale emerged victorious 34-22.
“I thought the kids played really hard today against a very good team,” Head Coach James Perry ’00 told The Herald in a post-game interview. “Our ability to capitalize (on) some critical situations, whether it’s us in the red zone or them on third down, will be something that we’ll talk about.”
From the beginning, the Bulldogs were the superior team. On the first play of the game, Yale running back Josh Pitsenberger burst through the line to an abundance of daylight. Pitsenberger dashed up the right sideline and outpaced the Bears 62 yards to the house, giving the Bulldogs a 7-0 lead less than 1 minute into the game.
Attempting to respond, Brown’s offense set up at the 25-yard line. Starting the drive off hot, running back Matt Childs ’28 took a checkdown for 26 yards on second down, but Bruno could not replicate the Bulldogs’ scoring success. After reaching Yale’s 40-yard line, the Bears were sent back to midfield: Yale linebacker Inumidun Ayo-Durojaiye darted around the edge of Brown’s offensive line and sacked quarterback James Murphy ’27, leading to a punt for Bruno.
Although they were stunned in their first appearance, the Bears’ defense quickly settled in. Holding Pitsenberger to just a 1-yard rush, Bruno forced a 3-and-out, handing the ball back to the Brown offense. But once more, the Bears couldn’t convert. Facing pressure on fourth-and-3, Murphy sailed a pass over the head of Solomon Miller ’26 for a turnover.
Yale’s offense capitalized on the mistake. Connecting thrice, Yale quarterback Dante Reno and wide receiver Nico Brown combined to achieve the Bulldogs’ second touchdown of the day.
Now down 14-0, Bruno’s offense seemed determined to put points on the board. On the first sequence, Murphy delivered a 44-yard strike over the middle to Trevor Foley ’28, who carried a Yale defender to the Bulldogs’ 42-yard line. Soon after, facing a fourth-and-4, Childs gave the Bears a fresh set of downs off a checkdown from Murphy.
But, as has often been the case this season, the Bears stalled in the red zone. With one final shot at a touchdown, Murphy was sacked by Yale’s Micaiah Shaber on third down, and Bruno was forced to settle for a chip-shot field goal — only cutting into Yale’s advantage by 3.
Brown defensive back Elias Archie ’26 played a starring role in the defense’s next appearance. After the Bulldogs moved across midfield, Reno launched a long ball toward the goal line. Facing a Yale receiver one-on-one, Archie batted the ball safely away. On the next snap, he bounded past the line of scrimmage and broke up a bubble pass attempt.
With the Bears’ defense shutting down the Bulldogs’ passing game, Yale turned to the rush. On third down, Yale sent offensive lineman Leo Bluhm up the middle. Amid the chaos at the line of scrimmage, Bluhm coughed up the ball, and Bruno linebacker John Perdue ’26 dove on it to steal a possession for the Bears.
Although Bruno began their subsequent drive at the midline, the Bears’ offense faltered on fourth down after the Bulldogs pressured Murphy into an errant throw.
Sensing their opportunity, Yale’s offense pressed forward. The Bulldogs gained ground rapidly with short passes and runs, and at Brown’s 21-yard line, Reno found a receiver on a slant route for a touchdown.
Suddenly confronting a 21-3 deficit, the Bears’ offense came to life. Bruno wide receiver Pearson Hill ’28 stepped up, taking a short pass for 41-yard run. But once the Bears moved into a goal-to-go situation, Yale’s defense stonewalled them, and Brown settled for a field goal.
With halftime quickly approaching, Brown’s defense forced a quick punt and put the ball back in Murphy’s hands with 43 seconds left.
After 2 quick first downs, Murphy fired a bullet to a double-covered Foley, who secured the ball on his hip and willed himself to Yale’s 18-yard line. As time expired, Bruno kicker Drew Crabtree ’29 split the uprights, bringing the score to 21-9.
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Starting the second half, the Bulldogs looked to widen their lead, and the Bears hoped to keep pace. Instead, each team’s progress remained disappointingly stagnant, and neither scored for the next 10 minutes.
Yale was the first to break the scoring fast. Displaying his rapport with Reno, the Bulldogs’ Nico Brown made a 34-yard diving grab in the red zone. From there, Yale needed only 3 more plays to punch in a rushing score.
With just over 3 minutes left in the third quarter, Bruno was still searching for their first touchdown of the day. Determined to make the contest competitive, Murphy placed a deep ball into the hands of Foley, who sprinted for 43 yards. Energized, the unit finally overcame their red zone woes, and Childs fought across the goal line for 6 points. Crabtree’s field goal brought the score to 28-16.
As the final quarter commenced, Yale drove effortlessly once more, seemingly destined to secure another touchdown. But Brown’s defense was unwilling to let the Bulldogs cross the goal line, forcing a field goal and keeping the game within reach at 31-16.
With their hopes still alive, the Bears’ offense attempted to build on last quarter’s momentum. But in doing so, Brown committed two fatal missteps: An offensive holding penalty yielded a second-and-21, and Murphy threw a wobbling pass into the eager arms of Yale linebacker Phoenix Grant.
“I don’t think I played my best game by any means,” Murphy reflected in a post-game interview with The Herald. “That hurts when you get a 10-game season, not playing your best football.”
A long field goal gave Yale another 3 points, leaving Bruno down by 18 with less than 8 minutes left to play. But just when it seemed as if the Bears would lay down and accept their fate, Murphy found a brief burst of energy.
Just as he had earlier in the game, the Bears’ quarterback showcased his precision, launching a missile to wide receiver Ty Pezza ’26 for a touchdown. A last-ditch effort for a 2-point conversion attempt resulted in an errant throw, which maintained the tally at 34-22.
The Bulldogs capitalized on their next possessions, wiping 5 minutes off the clock through consecutive rush plays — leaving Bruno with only 2 minutes to score.
On Brown’s last chance to drive, Murphy missed Foley on a short pass, marking his second interception of the day. Yale defensive back Joshua Tarver returned the ball 28 yards, after which frustration boiled over. A small dispute between the two teams resulted in an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for Bruno, and shortly after, the Bulldogs went into victory formation — officially closing out Yale’s steady triumph.
This Saturday, the Bears will travel to New York to face Columbia (1-7, 0-5) –– the only other Ivy League team without a conference win.
Despite the Bears’ recent struggles, Perry has hope for the team’s upcoming match: “They’re hungry to win … and they’re hungry to prepare for (Columbia). So I have no doubt we’ll be ready to go.”