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GAME INFORMATION
Game #1: Bucknell at Cornell
Kickoff: Saturday, Sept. 19, at 12:30 p.m. ET
Site: Schoellkopf Field (25,597), Ithaca, N.Y.
2009 Records: Bucknell (1-1, 0-0 Patriot); Cornell (0-0, 0-0 Ivy)
Series Record: Cornell leads 37-11
Last Meeting: Cornell won 21-20, Sept. 20, 2008, in Lewisburg, Pa.
Radio: WHCU 870 AM, Barry Leonard (play-by-play), Buck Briggs (color)
Tickets: Available by calling (607) 254-BEAR

HEAD COACH JIM KNOWLES '87
The Roger J. Weiss '61 Head Coach of Football, Jim Knowles, is in his sixth season at the helm of the Big Red (24-26 overall, .480; 15-20 Ivy, .429) ... Knowles, an All-Ivy defensive end and three-year letter winner on the gridiron, was hired by his alma mater as head coach on Jan. 30, 2004.

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ITHACA, N.Y. — The curtain finally comes up on Cornell's 123rd season of football and waiting for the Big Red is its oldest active rival, Bucknell. The two teams will square off in the season opener for Cornell on Saturday, Sept. 19 at 12:30 p.m. at historic Schoellkopf Field. The game can be heard locally on WHCU 870 AM with Barry Leonard on the call, or at www.CornellBigRed.com as part of the RedCast subscription service. Live video is available at no charge at www.ibnsports.com.

Jim Knowles '87, the Roger J. Weiss '61 Head Coach of Cornell Football, takes the reigns for his sixth season at the head of the program and will have a new-look roster after graduating 33 seniors from last year's 4-6 squad. A talented group of freshmen and sophomores will be asked to give early contributions, but as with all good programs, it will still be juniors and seniors who will provide most of the headlines.

Senior Ben Ganter will take over for quarterback Nathan Ford, while record-breaking returner/wide receiver Bryan Walters, three-year starting running back Randy Barbour and fifth-year senior wide receiver Horatio Blackman will be among the playmakers on offense.

Defensively, senior Chris Costello returns at middle linebacker as one of the leading returning tacklers in the Ivy League. Junior defensive back Emani Fenton also is a known commodity and one of the most feared cover corners in the Ancient Eight. Special teams sees juniors Brad Greenway doing the place-kicking and Drew Alston doing the punting.

Of Cornell's 62-member travel team for the week, half are underclassmen. Cornell has 15 freshmen and 16 sophomores, many who will be getting their first taste of Division I football. Of course, they will have plenty of leadership thanks to an 18-member Leadership Council put together before the start of fall camp that represents all of the position groups. In all, 17 juniors and seniors are still expected to assume starting positions.

The game against Bucknell renews a series that dates back to 1888, the Big Red's second season of football. Cornell leads the all-time series 37-11 based largely on the strength of a 24-game win streak that spanned 88 years (1891-1979). More recently, the teams have split the last eight meetings, with Cornell going 3-2 under Knowles since he took over at his alma mater in 2005.

The Bison, under head coach Tim Landis, evened its record at 1-1 with a 26-23 victory over Robert Morris last weekend after opening the year by dropping a 24-19 contest at Duquesne the previous weekend. Bucknell won despite seeing its spread option offense held to -18 rushing yards on 28 attempts and converting just 2-of-15 third-downs. Quarterback Marcello Trigg was 15-of-25 passing for 168 yards and a score and the defense came up with five interceptions.

A WIN OVER BUCKNELL WOULD:
• give Cornell a season-opening win over the Bison for the fourth time in five years.
• improve the Big Red's lead in the all-time series to 38-11, including 4-2 under head coach Jim Knowles.
• improve Cornell's record in season openers to 89-29-4.
• make Cornell 126-70-7 vs. Patriot League foes.
• be the 615th in program history (10th most in the Football Championship Subdivision).

THE CORNELL-BUCKNELL SERIES: (Cornell leads 37-11) This will be the 49th meeting between Cornell and Bucknell, with the Big Red holding a 37-11 lead in the series. The two teams first met in 1888, a 20-3 Cornell win. The Big Red won the first three meetings before Bucknell claimed a 4-0 victory in 1891. It would be 88 years and 24 games before the Bison would win its next contest against Cornell. Last year, the Big Red used a fourth quarter extra-point block by senior Graham Rihn to claim a 21-20 season-opening victory over a 2-0 Bison squad.

FOR OPENERS: If the Big Red continues its pattern of success in season openers, it could be big trouble for this year's opponent, Bucknell. The Big Red sports an all-time record of 88-29-4 (.744) in season openers and is 9-4 against Bucknell when Cornell plays the Bison to begin a campaign.

CORNELL VS. THE PATRIOT LEAGUE: Cornell has a 125-70-7 record against the seven current members of the Patriot League football conference, including a 37-11-0 edge over Bucknell. Cornell has advantages over Colgate (48-40-3), Fordham (4-2-0), Georgetown (2-1-0), Holy Cross (5-0-0), Lafayette (14-8-2) and Lehigh (15-8-2).

WHAT TO WATCH FOR:
• Cornell opens its 123rd year of football against its oldest active rival, Bucknell. The two teams will be meeting for the 49th time with the Big Red leading the all-time series 37-11. The Big Red is 88-29-4 in season openers with one season (1918) where the team was disbanded due to World War I.
• Senior quarterback Ben Ganter will be making his second career start under center. He opened the 2006 season finale against Penn after Nathan Ford suffered an injured ankle.
• Senior running back Randy Barbour enters the opener with 890 career rushing yards and needs a repeat effort of his 2008 contest against Bucknell to become the 28th 1,000-yard rusher in Big Red history. Barbour had 114 yards on 23 carries with one touchdown in the 21-20 win in Lewisburg.
• Senior wide receiver Bryan Walters is nearing a few milestones. He needs six receptions to become the eighth Cornellian to reach 100 career catches. With 798 career punt return yards, he also is 104 yards away for matching the Ivy League record of 902 set by Penn's Mark Fabish 13 years ago.
• The Big Red defense will have new starters at nine different positions in 2009, but will again be led by All-Ivy middle linebacker Chris Costello. 

UP NEXT: Cornell opens Ivy League play on the road next weekend when it visits Yale on Saturday, Sept. 26 at noon in a game that will be televised nationally on the VERSUS Network from the Yale Bowl and can also be heard live on SIRIUS Satellite radio.  The Big Red knocked off the preseason Ivy League favorite Bulldogs 17-14 last season in the conference opener for both squads.