Yale, Princeton in position for title

In the penultimate week of play, only three teams in the Ivy League had anything to play for.

But a few teams in the bottom half of the Ancient Eight weren't content to pack it up, and their efforts significantly changed the complexion of the title race headed into the final weekend.

And then there were two

Yale, Princeton and Harvard may all have a mathematical shot at a share of the Ivy championship, but barring a miracle, it's going to be a two-horse race in the season's final week.

After Harvard fell to Penn on Saturday, Yale could have surprised the Ancient Eight and clinched the title outright a week early by beating

No. 21 Princeton. But the Elis couldn't hold onto a 28-14 halftime lead, and went out with a thud, falling to the Tigers, 34-31.

Now, Yale and Princeton go into the final week as the final two one-loss Ivy teams, and the Crimson is put in the most precarious of positions: Its fate depends on Dartmouth.

While the struggling Big Green did score an upset over defending champion Brown on Saturday, it may need some divine intervention if it wants to do the same this weekend against the Tigers. But that is Harvard's only shot at a share of the championship; if it were to also beat Yale in "The Game," there would be a three-way tie for the crown.

A Princeton win gets the Tigers a guaranteed share of the title and knocks out Harvard, and if Yale falls to Harvard, the Tigers would gain sole possession of the trophy.

The Elis are in the exact same position, needing a win and a Princeton loss to get their first outright title since 1980. They would also clinch a share of the title with a victory.

Terr-ing it up

Last week, Penn found out exactly how dangerous Princeton quarterback Jeff Terrell can be. Not only did he efficiently lead the Tigers through the air with three touchdowns, but he ran in what ended up being the game-winner in the second overtime.

Now, the whole nation is finding out just how good he is.

Terrell won the Ivy League Offensive Player of the Week award after his torrid performance against Yale this weekend.

On the way to a 14-point comeback for Princeton, Terrell threw for 445 yards - the fourth-highest total in school history - and three scores, and also led the Tigers in rushing, gaining 49 yards on the ground and finding the end zone once with his legs.

Terrell's efforts this year have been good for second in the Ivies in passing yards and first in total offense.

Shame over

It's been more than two years, but the streak is over for Columbia.

With a 21-14 triumph over Cornell at home this weekend, the Lions have finally put an end to their 17-game winless streak in the Ivy League.

The last time Columbia won a league game was on Oct. 23, 2004, in a 9-6 victory over Dartmouth.

Their win on Saturday may have been a dubious accomplishment, but the Lions did not hesitate to douse first-year coach Norries Wilson with Gatorade after the game.

This winless stretch is tied with a 1970s Columbia team for the second-longest in league history, but the Lions still had a ways to go for the record: In the mid-1980s, yet another Columbia squad went 32 games without a win in the Ancient Eight.

It's not much, but nowadays, the Lions will take what they can get.

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