Princeton at Harvard

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Princeton
4-1 Won 4 straight
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Harvard
5-0 Won 5 straight
Sat, Oct 24 · 3:00 PM ET · Harvard StadiumAdd to calendar: Google · other

Princeton (4‑1) travels to Harvard (5‑0), with Harvard favored by 10.5. The model gives Harvard a 60% shot.

How they got here

Last three games

Princeton · 4-1

Rated 233rd in our preseason ratings, 164th now, up 69 spots.

Three straight wins, including a 28-point win over Columbia as a 1.5-point underdog.

W 16-10 vs Brown No. 189 of 668 teams

won by 6 as a 4-point favorite

Princeton won 16-10 vs Brown. Chance to win started at 68%, low 66%, high better than 99%.

W 28-13 @ Wagner No. 258 of 668 teams

won by 15 as a 25.5-point favorite

Princeton won 28-13 at Wagner. Chance to win started at 94%, low 93%, high better than 99%.

W 35-7 @ Columbia No. 239 of 668 teams

won by 28 as a 1.5-point underdog

Princeton won 35-7 at Columbia. Chance to win started at 40%, low 29%, high better than 99%.

W 22-0 vs UAlbany No. 204 of 668 teams

won by 22 as a 1.5-point underdog

Princeton won 22-0 vs UAlbany. Chance to win started at 54%, low 42%, high better than 99%.

L 14-21 @ Bryant No. 170 of 668 teams

lost by 7 as a 2.5-point favorite

Princeton lost 14-21 at Bryant. Chance to win started at 56%, low 3%, high 82%.

Last three games

Harvard · 5-0

Rated 195th in our preseason ratings, 148th now, up 47 spots.

Three straight wins — but still hunting a ranked opponent.

W 30-7 vs Holy Cross No. 213 of 668 teams

won by 23 as a 15.5-point favorite

Harvard won 30-7 vs Holy Cross. Chance to win started at 88%, low 85%, high better than 99%.

W 41-29 @ Cornell No. 213 of 668 teams

won by 12 as a 7-point favorite

Harvard won 41-29 at Cornell. Chance to win started at 64%, low 32%, high better than 99%.

W 20-17 vs Colgate No. 155 of 668 teams

won by 3 as a 4.5-point favorite

Harvard won 20-17 vs Colgate. Chance to win started at 69%, low 6%, high better than 99%.

W 14-10 @ Brown No. 229 of 668 teams

won by 4 as a 13.5-point favorite

Harvard won 14-10 at Brown. Chance to win started at 77%, low 73%, high 97%.

W 31-7 @ New Hampshire No. 225 of 668 teams

won by 24 as a 14.5-point favorite

Harvard won 31-7 at New Hampshire. Chance to win started at 81%, low 67%, high better than 99%.

What’s at stake

Princeton

  • Princeton controls first place in Ivy with 4 games left.
  • Princeton football played in the first college football game (1869 vs Rutgers), won 28 national titles, invented the winged helmet, and remains one of the most accomplished programs in American football history — even if the Ivy League won't let it prove it anymore.

Harvard

  • Harvard controls first place in Ivy with 4 games left.
  • Harvard is coming off a 23-point win.

See this week’s biggest postseason implications ›

The series

Princeton leads the series 51-37-7

95 meetings since 1876 · Harvard has won the last 2

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  • 2025Harvard 35-14
  • 2024Harvard 45-13
  • 2023Princeton 21-14
  • 2022Princeton 37-10
  • 2021Princeton 18-16

Face-off

What each fanbase carries into this one.

Princeton

The chip · vs big brother

Fans here believe princeton didn't just play the first college football game; the Tigers ARE the origin story. Yale got Walter Camp and Harvard got prestige, but Princeton has 28 national titles and the winged helmet. The rest of the sport moved on; Princeton stayed true to its principles.

What this game touches

The birth of the sport that now outgrows it — Princeton invented college football but can't compete for national titles. Princeton played in the first college football game (1869 vs Rutgers). The program won 28 national championships, mostly before 1900. But the Ivy League's no-scholarship commitment and the self-imposed playoff ban mean Princeton will never win a postseason championship again. The sport moved on; Princeton stayed behind.

Harvard

The chip

Yale got the Ivy League's first automatic FCS playoff bid by winning The Game. Harvard, at 9-1, got the at-large bid. Then Yale won their playoff game; Harvard lost 52-7. The chip is that Yale claimed the banner moment—the first Ivy playoff victory—while Harvard, historically the more prestigious program, imploded.

What this game touches

One game, everything lost. Harvard went 9–1 in 2025, undefeated heading into The Game against Yale on November 22. One loss to Yale (45–28) cost Harvard the outright Ivy title and automatic FCS playoff berth. A week later, Villanova beat Harvard 52–7 in the first round, ending the season at 9–2. The wound is not historical—it is fresh. A season of excellence was undone by a single moment and then a collapse.

The betting line, and the fans

Our model and the betting line don’t fully agree on Harvard’s chances here.

50-50Model · 60%Line · 80%PrincetonHarvard

Harvard favored by 10.5 · Total 39.5

Harvard by 10.5: where a favorite like this usually runs

50%90%Q1Q2Q3Q450%90%Q1Q2Q3Q4

Half of games8 in 10 games

Harvard’s chance through the game, if this goes like the 388 games since 2025 with a favorite of 7.5 to 14.5 points.

Week by week

Harvard

Wk 3: W 31-7 at New Hampshire▲24N. Hamps…Wk 4: W 14-10 at Brown▲4BrownWk 5: W 20-17 vs Colgate▲3ColgateWk 6: W 41-29 at Cornell▲12CornellWk 7: W 30-7 vs Holy Cross▲23Holy Cro…
  • Wk 3Wat New Hampshire31-7
  • Wk 4Wat Brown14-10
  • Wk 5Wvs Colgate20-17
  • Wk 6Wat Cornell41-29
  • Wk 7Wvs Holy Cross30-7

Princeton

Wk 3: L 14-21 at Bryant▼7BryantWk 4: W 22-0 vs UAlbany▲22UAlbanyWk 5: W 35-7 at Columbia▲28ColumbiaWk 6: W 28-13 at Wagner▲15WagnerWk 7: W 16-10 vs Brown▲6Brown
  • Wk 3Lat Bryant14-21
  • Wk 4Wvs UAlbany22-0
  • Wk 5Wat Columbia35-7
  • Wk 6Wat Wagner28-13
  • Wk 7Wvs Brown16-10

Power rating by week

Harvard is rated 1.2 points ahead as of week 8. Our power rating by week; higher is better.

-4-8-11Wk 0Wk 4Wk 8HarvardPrinceton

The market

The books’ cut: 5.3%, the margin built into the odds

Conference standings

Going into this game: place in the conference, then conference record.