Wilde’s finish gives Brown its first win over Harvard since 2010

Harvard (1-1) had to step up when the two-time Globe All-Scholastic from Everett met the Cohasset native via Milton Academy. The Crimson owned the ball for just 8:03 of their final five drives and did not score.

“The boys played extremely hard. I don’t question their performance at all,” Harvard coach Andrew Aurich said. “As I told them in the locker room, I ultimately let them down. There shouldn’t have been any time left on that clock.”

Harvard junior Cooper Barkate (6 receptions, 90 yards) made his presence known early, catching a 27-yarder from Jaden Craig (12 of 23, 178 yards) that contributed to a 2-yard TD plunge from Shane McLaughlin to prepare to score the opening game. Barkate also added touchdown receptions of 20 and 16 yards to give the Crimson a 21-3 lead in the second quarter.

The Bears (2-0) broke the plane late in the first half after junior Elias Archie grabbed a Craig interception add and returned it 44 yards to the Harvard 1, and Nate Lussier knocked it in on second down, shortening the score Harvard lead to 21 -10 at halftime.

Harvard took a 28-10 lead midway through the third quarter when Craig capped an 80-yard drive with a 2-yard run, but the momentum didn’t last long.

The Bears only needed two plays to respond when Willcox found Matt Childs, a fellow Milton Academy native from Medway, up the middle. The freshman running back caught his second career reception 75 yards to the end zone.

The fifth-year quarterback hit Mahoney two drives later for a 9-yard score, cutting Harvard’s lead to 28-23 with 5:07 left.

The Crimson took over on downs at the Brown 12 with 1:42 left. Three running plays yielded 3 yards before lining up for a field goal attempt. The high snap went through the hands of defending champion Sebastien Tasko. Kicker Kieran Corr tried to pounce on it, but the ball squirted to Hudson, who snatched it and returned it to the Harvard 27.

“We definitely didn’t manage to play on our side of the ball in the second half,” McLaughlin said. “If we had played like we did in the first half, we would never have been in this position. It’s not just one piece. . . Hats off to them. We knew they were going to do that and we didn’t do it.”

AJ Traub can be reached at [email protected].