GAME #5: Cornell vs. Penn
GAMETIME: Friday, Oct. 17 at 7:30 p.m.
SITE: Schoellkopf Field (Ithaca, N.Y.)
2008 RECORDS: Cornell (2-2, 1-1 CSFL); Penn (4-0, 2-0 CSFL)
SERIES RECORD: Cornell leads, 56-32
LAST MEETING: Penn defeated Cornell, 17-3, at Franklin Field on Sept. 19, 2008
CATCH ALL OF THE ACTION: Cornell University and Internet Consulting Services will again offer subscription packages for Redcasts for home games during the 2008-09 season. Live video options will be available for purchase so that Big Red fans can follow many of their favorite teams this coming season. Click here to sign up for Redcast packages.
THE HEAD COACH: Coach Terry Cullen's record moved to 146-122-7 (.544) after a victory over Princeton last weekend. Cullen has been a member of the coaching staff since 1964 and officially became the Terry Cullen Head Coach of Sprint Football in 2001.
THE CO-HEAD COACH: In August, 2008, it was announced that Bart Guccia would assume a majority of the on-field coaching and gameday decisions for the Big Red. Guccia is in his fourth year with the sprint football team and has posted a 2-2 record (.500) in his new role.
THE MATCH UP: The Big Red will look to hand Penn its first loss of the season this weekend as it welcomes the Quakers to Schoellkopf Field on Friday, Oct. 17 at 7:30 p.m. Cornell is coming off a 40-14 victory over Princeton last weekend to improve to 2-2 overall and 1-1 in the CSFL, while Penn defeated Army, 20-13, to improve to 4-0 overall and 2-0 in the league. The Big Red holds the 56-32 advantage in the series history, but has lost the last two outings against the Quakers. Cornell's last victory over Penn came at home on Sept. 14, 2007, as the Big Red hung on to a 23-18 victory.
SCOUTING THE QUAKERS: The Penn offense has been outstanding through its first four games of the season, scoring an average of four times as many points as its opponents. The Quakers are averaging 28.5 points per game, while holding their opponents to 7.0 ppg. Penn's defense has relied heavily on stopping the run, as it has held its opponents to just 49.8 yards per game on the ground, while giving up 149.1 yards per game in the air. Quarterback Michael D'Angelo leads the squad with an average of 167.5 yards per game. He has completed 62-of-101 pass attempts and racked up seven touchdowns to just five interceptions. D'Angelo's favorite target is Marten Basta, who has hauled in 21 catches for 255 yards and four touchdowns. On the ground, the rush is led by Mike Bagnoli with 59 attempts for 314 yards. He averages 78.5 yards per game and an impressive 5.3 yards per carry. The Quaker defense is led by Michael McMullen with 30 tackles (18 solo), 4.5 tackles for a loss and one interception.
LAST TIME VS. PENN: Cornell dropped a 17-3 decision to Penn on Sept. 19 on Franklin Field. The Big Red's lone points on the day came from Mitch Ottinger, who booted a 32-yard field goal with 13:43 remaining in the game. Cornell struggled offensively, accumulating just 110 yards of total offense. Quarterback Zac Dentes went 2-for-15 on the day, gaining just 12 yards through the air, and rushed eight times for 35 yards. Backup quarterback Elliot Corey had just one completion, but it was a long one, going 35 yards. The pass was hauled in by Mike Brennan, who had 39 receiving yards and ran back two kickoffs for 37 yards. DJ Schiavetta carried the ball 18 times for 34 yards. On defense, Clay Hemminger led the Big Red with 13 tackles (nine solo), three tackles for a loss and an interception.
THE QUAKERS' LAST GAME: Penn outlasted Army last Friday evening, 20-13, in a crucial CSFL match-up to remain undefeated at 4-0. The Quakers kept the shutout through the third quarter when Army scored two touchdowns late in the game. Michael D'Angelo was 17-for-20 for 129 yards. Mike Bagnoli rushed for 85 yards and tallied two touchdowns. Clarke Armatis lead the receivers with 75 yards on seven catches, while Marten Basta accumulated 32 yards and one touchdown. The defense was lead by Jacques Beauvais, who recorded a career-high nine solo tackles, in addition to assisting on one. J. Andrew Feigenbaum tallied six solo tackles, while Zak Klinvex and Marcus Goodwin each notched a career-high five tackles apiece.
CORNELL'S LAST GAME: Sophomore quarterback Elliot Corey accounted for five of Cornell's six touchdowns as the Big Red sprint football team defeated Princeton, 40-14, last Friday evening at Power Field at Princeton, N.J. Corey went 5-of-13 for 100 yards and three touchdowns in the air, while leading the Big Red rushing attack with 104 yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries. Receiver Mike Brennan caught three passes for 74 yards and two touchdowns while Upal Sarker snagged two passes for 30 yards and one touchdown. Senior tight end Jack Rossman also registered a touchdown on his lone catch of the day. The defense was led by Nicho Indovina with eight tackles, three for a loss of 20 yards and two sacks. Indovina also forced a fumble and returned it 34 yards. Clay Hemminger registered seven tackles, including two for a loss and a sack. Joseph Bright and Chris Lamont each had an interception and Evan Levy forced and recovered a fumble. The Big Red racked up 341 yards of total offense and held Princeton to just 160 yards overall, including just seven yards on the ground.
RECORD WATCH: Zak Dentes' 273 yards against Navy on Oct. 4 were enough to give him 2,095 for his career, making him just the third quarterback in Cornell sprint football history to pass the 2,000 career passing yards. He finds himself just five yards behind Alex Macauley '06 for second place on the all-time Cornell passing list. Meanwhile, Michael Brennan had three receptions for 74 reception yards against Princeton on Oct. 10, which gives him 982 in his career. His performance moved him past Drew Reese '89 (932 yards) into third place.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK: The Big Red has had three CSFL Players of the Week so far this season with Clay Hemminger earning Defensive POW honors following Cornell's 17-3 loss to Penn, Mitch Ottinger being named Special Teams POW following a 35-0 victory over Mansfield and Nicho Indovina earning Defensive POW honors after a 40-14 victory against Princeton. Hemminger recorded a game-high 13 tackles against the Quakers. Nine of his tackles were solo, with three of his tackles adding up to losses of 24 yards. Hemminger added a blocked kick, an interception and two pass breakups. Ottinger, meanwhile, had a perfect afternoon against Mansfield, going 5-for-5 on extra point conversions and pinning the Mountaineers deep all afternoon with a series of strong kickoffs. Ottinger averaged 49 yards per kick for a total of 245 yards in five kicks. Against the Tigers, Indovina had eight tackles in the game, with three tackles accounting for losses of a combined 20 yards. The junior defensive back also recorded two sacks and forced a fumble that he returned for 34 yards.
D-FENSE: When Cornell defeated Mansfield on Sept. 27, it was arguably the greatest defensive performance ever by a Cornell sprint football team. It was the first time since a win over Princeton in 2006 that the Big Red allowed less than 100 yards, less than 10 rushing yards, and forced at least eight punts. Also, it was the first time Cornell allowed only one third down conversion since that 2006 game. The 21:06 minutes of possession was the least amount given up by a Cornell defense since time of possession was recorded as a stat.
TAMING THE TIGERS: The Big Red's victory over Princeton on Oct. 10 extend Cornell's win streak over the Tigers to 16 games. The longest winning streak Cornell has ever had against an opponent was 19 games against Columbia, starting in 1958 and lasting until 1976 when the Lions' team disbanded. The longest streak Cornell has against the current teams in the CSFL is 17 victories against Penn from 1974-1988.
UP NEXT: Cornell will travel to West Point to take on Army on Friday, Oct. 24 at 4 p.m.
