Different kind of breakthrough for MIT engineers

The engineers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology made a historic breakthrough this fall -- but it wasn't in a laboratory -- it was on the football field. The school's Division III football team is undefeated this season for the first time ever, reports CBS News correspondent Valdimir Duthiers

MIT's football program dates back to the 1890s, but was never very good. They once lost to Yale 96 to nothing.

But as institutes of higher learning go, MIT is home to some of the best and brightest, with programs ranging from nuclear physics to atmospheric chemistry.

Its halls have produced an astounding 81 Nobel Laureates and been prominently featured in movies.

But this semester, the forces of mass and energy are being applied outside the classroom -- everyone on campus is paying attention to The Engineers.

The last time MIT made headlines on a football field was in 1982, when student pranksters halted a Yale-Harvard game.

But this year their team is serious, winning their first conference championship in history, and heading into the Division III playoffs Saturday with an 8 and 0 record.

"It really started from the first day of practice in August," head coach Chad Martinovich said. "Something special about this group."

He said that, just like with their studies, they're a team of overachievers.

"Whether it's academics, athletics, research, clubs, activities, whatever it is they do, they look to excel," Martinovich said.

Most players aced their SAT's. Seniors Cam Wagar and quarterback Peter Williams are both engineering majors.

"We joke on the defense that the hardest thing during the week is not the game, it's your test during the week," Wagar said.

"You're gonna have brutal weeks, but you know, especially this season coming out knowing you have a chance to win on Saturday that just makes every week that much more fun," Williams added.

Both men have nearly perfect grade point averages and, their coach pointed out, sometimes academics come first.

"Some weeks they don't get a lot of sleep and we take that into account in terms of how we practice sometimes," Martinovich said. "We adjust our practice schedule; if they have a 7:30am test, we'll excuse them from practice so they can focus on academics," Martinovich said.

And despite their winning streak this season, he doesn't see them rubbing elbows with the pros anytime soon.

"There is probably a better chance of most of these kids owning an NFL team than playing on one," he said.