ITHACA, N.Y. – After a tough loss to defending league co-champion Army last week, the Big Red will get no rest as it travels to Philadelphia for a battle with the CSFL's other co-champion from last year: Penn.

GAME INFORMATION
GAME #5: Cornell at Penn
GAME TIME: Friday, Oct. 21, 7 p.m.
GAME SITE: Franklin Field (Philadelphia)
SERIES RECORD: Cornell leads 58-34
LAST MEETING: Penn won 17-12 on Oct. 22, 2010
2011 RECORDS: Cornell (2-2, 2-2 CSFL); Penn (3-1, 2-1)
LIVE STATS: Penn Athletics
LIVE VIDEO: Penn Athletics

THE HEAD COACH
Coach Terry Cullen is now in his 46th season at the helm of the Big Red program with a 162-125-7 record (.563). 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, Cornell announced that Bart Guccia would assume a majority of the on-field coaching and gameday decisions for the Big Red. Guccia is now in his sixth year with the team and has posted a 15-9 record (.625) in his new role.

ABOUT PENN
The Quakers, based in Philadelphia, have won three of their first games this season and look poised to make another run at the CSFL title. Penn finished at 4-1 in league play in 2010 to share the championship with Army. This season, the Quakers have defeated Princeton, Post and Mansfield handily but were walloped 56-0 by Navy.

THE SERIES WITH PENN
Cornell has played Penn 92 times, more than any other team in its history. The teams first played in 1938, a 20-0 win for the Big Red, and have played on average more than once a year since. Cornell holds a significant 58-34 edge in the series, though Penn won last season. Last year's game, a matchup between the only two unbeaten teams in the CSFL, went down to the final play as the Big Red faces a fourth-and-goal opportunity. Penn's defense held strong, and the Quakers were on their way to a league title.

SCOUTING THE QUAKERS
In three games this season, Penn has slightly outscored its opponents 121-105, though that margin is highly skewed by the 56-0 loss to Navy. Without that game, Penn's scoring margin changes drastically to 121-49. The Quakers possess a terrific running game and are averaging nearly 190 yards per game on the ground. Running back Mike Beamish is second in the CSFL with 445 yards on the ground.
The Quakers' passing game isn't as impressive, but quarterback Todd Busler is still third in the league with 613 passing yards and tied for second with nine touchdowns. Linebacker Matt Cuccinello is third in the league with 46 tackles, and defensive back Alexander Starr is second in the CSFL will three interceptions.

A WIN OVER THE QUAKERS WOULD...
…help Cornell keep pace for second in the league behind idle Army and Navy…put Cornell back above .500 on the year and in the league…give Cornell a three-win season for the seventh consecutive year.

LAST TIME OUT
Cornell lost at home last week against Army 41-16 despite jumping out  to a 10-0 lead. The Black Knights scored the next three touchdowns to go ahead 21-10, and though Cornell scored next to bring the deficit down to just five points, Army scored three more touchdowns in a row to leave Ithaca with the win.

PRINCETON WIN
Cornell dominated visiting Princeton on Sept. 23, exploding for seven touchdowns and 49 total points while holding the Tigers to just seven points. Princeton, which has not won a CSFL game in five years, started the contest with a successful onside kick but was out of luck after that. Quarterback Brendan Miller, returning from an injury against Post, threw for 211 yards and four touchdowns. The defense allowed a mere 159 yards and had four interceptions. 

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
The Big Red had two players named CSFL players of the week for their efforts in the Princeton game. Defensive back Chris Sitko led the Big Red defense with 11 tackles was part of the effort that kept Princeton to just 159 yards. Punter Chase Funderburk made the most of his four punts, routinely pinning Princeton back inside its own 20-yard line with successful coffin corners. Funderburk averaged 32.8 yards per punt, but his specialty in the game was placement. He kicked balls out of bounds inside the Princeton 10-yard line twice, one of those times leading directly to a Cornell interception returned for a touchdown.

POST LOSS
The Big Red controlled most of its game against Post on Sept. 23, but the team fell apart in the fourth quarter. The visiting Eagles ruined Cornell's home opener by scoring 19 points in the final period and coming back for a 25-20 win after trailing the entire game. Cornell was led on offense by quarterback Tim Bruhn, who replaced Miller, and receiver Abe Mellinger. But four turnovers in the game ultimately undid the Red's efforts in a sloppy, wet night when even sure-footed kicker John Rodriguez missed two field goals of 45 yards.

CATCHING THEM OFF GUARD
Mellinger, in his first four games with the Big Red, has caught a team-high 19 passes for 386 yards and six touchdowns. His 20.3 yards per catch tops the CSFL. He is Cornell's scoring leader with 36 points, four points ahead of kicker John Rodriguez. Mellinger also claims 31 punt return and 136 kick return yards, giving him 553 total yards on the year that is nearly double the team's next highest. Mellinger, a transfer from Junianta College, calls Ronks, Pa., home.

LEAGUE RANKINGS
Cornell's offense finds itself ranked fifth out of seven teams in the CSFL this year, though its defense is better at third place and allowing 270 yards per game. Running back Doug Famularo is fifth in the CSFL with 16 catches, and Miller is second in passing yards.

BYE WEEK BLUES
After the loss to Army last week, the Big Red is now 1-7 following its bye week since 2001.

NATIONAL APPEAL
The sprint football team has players from 14 different states on the roster, with New York and California having the highest representation. Twenty-four players hail from the Empire State while the Golden State has 12 players on the Big Red roster. Just one player comes from Hawaii, North Carolina and Oklahoma.

UP NEXT
The sprint football team remains on the road next week when its heads to Annapolis, Md., to take on Navy. Navy is currently unbeaten at 4-0 overall and 3-0 in the CSFL.