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Game #9: Columbia at Cornell
Kickoff: Saturday, Nov. 12, at 12:30 p.m. ET
Site: Schoellkopf Field (25,597), Ithaca, N.Y.
2011 Records: Columbia (0-8, 0-5 Ivy); Cornell (3-5, 1-4 Ivy)
Series Record: Cornell leads 60-35-3
Last Meeting: Columbia won 20-17, Nov. 13, 2010, in New York, N.Y.
Radio: WHCU 870 AM, Barry Leonard (play-by-play), Buck Briggs (color)
Live Stats: Available at
www.CornellBigRed.com
Live Video: Available at
www.CornellBigRed.com
Tickets: Available by calling (607) 254-BEAR
HEAD COACH KENT AUSTIN
Kent Austin, the Roger J. Weiss '61 Head Coach of Football, is in his second season at the helm of the Big Red (5-13 overall, .278; 2-10, Ivy, .167) ... Austin has won CFL Grey Cups as a player, assistant coach and head coach ... previously was offensive coordinator at his alma mater, Ole Miss, Austin was hired as head coach on Jan. 27, 2010.
ITHACA, N.Y. — The Cornell football team will say goodbye to its seniors and try to wrest away the Empire State Bowl trophy from Columbia when the Lions visit town today. The Big Red's 18 seniors will be attempting to win their first game against Columbia in their careers. You can watch the live video stream of the game by subscribing to RedCast at www.CornellBigRed.com. If you are in the Ithaca area, you can tune in to listen to Barry Leonard and Buck Briggs on the call on WHCU 870 AM.
Cornell's offense has proven it can hang with anyone on its schedule. Sophomore quarterback
Jeff Mathews has emerged as one of the top signal callers in the Ivy League in his second year as the starter and the Big Red offense has begun to put together explosive plays in bunches. Cornell has already posted 35 offensive plays that have covered 20 yards or more. Mathews ranks in the top 20 nationally and in the top two in the Ivy League in both total offense (281.1) and pass efficiency (144.88). Mathews' primary receivers, senior
Shane Savage and juniors
Kurt Ondash and
Luke Tasker, have combined to haul in 121 passes for 1,894 yards and 13 touchdowns. They are averaging a lofty 15.7 yards per catch. Senior tight end
Ryan Houska is the team's leading rusher and also among the team's top receivers and had his first career 100-yard rushing game against Princeton. The offensive line, which doesn't feature a senior, has surrendered just 2.8 sacks per game after giving up a nation's worst 4.9 sacks per game a year ago.
The defense has been much improved over the 2010 season. Cornell has surrendered 198.6 rushing yards per game (down from 246.1 ypg. in 2010) and 401.2 total yards per game (down from 437.2 ypg. in 2010). Cornell has registered 14 sacks and 44 total tackles for loss, surpassing last season's totals of 12 sacks and 38 TFL. The defensive line, led by
Zack Imhoff (49 tackles, 13.0 TFL, 6.5 sacks, 3 FF, INT, FR), has been another vastly improved unit over the first eight weeks. Linebackers
Brandon Lainhart (78 tackles, 4.0 TFL) and
Brett Buehler (63 tackles, 8.5 TFL, 2 FF) rank among the Ancient Eight's leading tacklers. The duo is joined at the top of the tacklers' list by
Rashad Campbell (64 tackles, 4.5 TFL, 2 INTs) and
Josh Barut (66 tackles, 2 FF). Opposing running attacks are averaging 4.5 yards per carry, a far cry from last year's 5.8 yards per carry.
The special teams have been led by senior place-kicker
Brad Greenway, a nominee for the Fred Mitchell Award. Greenway has been nearly perfect so far this season, making 11-of-12 field goals and each of his 22 extra points. He has also averaged 33.7 yards per punt. Campbell is averaging 26.0 yards per kickoff return, including an 85-yard touchdown at Colgate and a 78-yarder at Princeton. Special teams have also blocked five total kicks (two punts, two extra points and a field goal).
Columbia and head coach Norries Wilson are hungry for their first win of 2011 after opening the season with eight straight defeats. Included was a 35-21 decision at home against Ivy leader Harvard last weekend. Junior quarterback Sean Brackett leads the team in both rushing (301 yards, TD) and passing (1,283 yards, 10 TDs). Brackett ranks second all-time in Columbia history in touchdown passes with 33. Out of 120 schools ranked in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), Columbia ranks 100th or below in scoring offense, total offense, rushing offense, pass efficiency and punt returns. Linebacker Josh Martin ranks among the national leaders in sacks (7.0) and tackles for loss (13.0). He paces the team in total tackles (54). He is one of seven Lion defenders with at least 40 tackles so far this season.
A WIN OVER COLUMBIA WOULD:
• make Cornell 4-5 overall this season and 2-4 in Ivy play, surpassing last season's win total.
• snap a three-game losing streak to Columbia.
• give the Big Red its first win in the Empire State Bowl.
• give the senior class their first win over Columbia.
• be the 622nd in program history (11th most in the Football Championship Subdivision).
THE CORNELL-COLUMBIA SERIES: (Cornell leads 60-35-3) This will be the 99th meeting between Cornell and Columbia, with the Big Red holding a 60-35-3 lead in the series. The two teams first met in 1889, a 20-0 Cornell win. The Lions won last year's matchup 20-17 at Wien Stadium and enter the contest with a three-game win streak in the series. The squads have been evenly matched in the past two decades, with Columbia holding a 12-10 edge in the past 22 seasons after Cornell had won 12 straight contests, the longest streak in the series by either team.
THE EMPIRE STATE BOWL: Officially established in 2010, the Empire State Bowl has been the unofficial nickname of the series for many years. Columbia won the first-ever Empire State Bowl in 2010 with an exciting last-minute 20-17 victory at Wien Stadium to capture the traveling trophy.
SENIOR DAY: Cornell will say goodbye to 19 seniors playing their final home game at Schoellkopf Field this weekend. Additionally, five players who could earn fifth year status in 2012 will also be recognized. Seniors being honored include CB
Nick Booker-Tandy, OL/TE
Drew Bourassa, DT
Jack Campbell, CB
Rashad Campbell, QB
Adam Currie, PK
Brad Greenway, S
Robert Gurley, WR
Jordan Heller, TE/RB
Ryan Houska, WR
Alex Johnson, LB
Brandon Lainhart, RB
Troy Lewis, OL
Drew McGowan, DT
Zak Murdock, LB
Chris Murray, LB
Chris Perry, LB
Mike Spooner, QB
Josh Vick and LS
Robert Zimmerman, while DT
Emile Chang, DE
Zack Imhoff, WR
Shane Savage, WR
Jon Scheidler and QB
Beau Sweeney are fifth-year eligible but could be playing their final game at home.
STORIED RIVALRIES: The Big Red is involved in three of the top 20 most-played rivalries in college football. Heading into the 2011 campaign, the Cornell-Penn series ranks fifth in most games played with 118. The 98 meetings between Cornell and Columbia ranks 12th, while the Cornell-Colgate rivalry stands 17th with 95 games played. The Cornell-Dartmouth and the Cornell-Penn series are the second-longest uninterrupted active series, as the teams have met every season since 1919, a span of 91 years. They trail only the Lafayette-Lehigh series, which has been played every year since 1897.
NOTING THE LOSS AT DARTMOUTH
• Freshman
Lucas Shapiro recorded his first career receiving touchdown and hauled in a career-high six catches for 69 yards.
• Senior
Zack Imhoff registered his first interception and returned it for a touchdown, the first Cornell INT return for a score since former high school teammate
Brandon Lainhart returned an errant Brown pass 24 yards in 2009.
• Imhoff also blocked a Dartmouth PAT attempt, his second block of the season. Cornell now has five kick blocks on the year.
• Senior place-kicker
Brad Greenway's three extra-point kicks made him the school's all-time leader in that category (73). He also moved into fourth on the school's career scoring list with 169 points, surpassing Jeff Fleischmann '51, who closed his varsity career with 168 points.
• Junior wide receiver
Luke Tasker caught six passes for 81 yards. In the process, he became the 17th player in Big Red history to surpass 1,000 career reciving yards. He ended the night with 1,046 yards.
• Senior
Nick Booker-Tandy had his third career interception with his second in two weeks. He leads the Ivy League with 0.5 interceptions per game.
• Senior
Rashad Campbell had a career-high 14 tackles.
GREAT START FOR MATHEWS: Sophomore
Jeff Mathews is off to a strong start in 2011, completing 63 percent of his passes (175-of-277) for 2,343 yards and 15 touchdowns. His 144.90 quarterback rating would be the highest single-season mark in school history. He is also on pace to toss for 2,929 yards, a mark that would be second all-time at Cornell in a single season.
WHERE MATHEWS RANKS: Sophomore
Jeff Mathews has gotten noticed for his strong start in 2011. He ranks 10th nationally in total offense at 281.1 yards per game, while sitting 21st nationally in passing efficiency (144.88). He is first in the Ancient Eight in total offense and second in pass efficiency.
CLIMBING THE CAREER PASSING LIST: For many quarterbacks in the Ivy League, toward the end of their sophomore years might bring their first varsity appearance, or sometimes even their first start. Big Red sophomore
Jeff Mathews, has already broken through top five lists all-time at Cornell.
RECEIVERS AT THE TOP: Cornell's three top receivers so far in 2011, senior
Shane Savage and juniors
Kurt Ondash and
Luke Tasker, have combined to haul in 121 passes for 1,894 yards and 13 touchdowns through seven contests. They are averaging a lofty 15.7 yards per catch.
TRIPLE HUNDRED: Senior
Shane Savage and juniors
Kurt Ondash and
Luke Tasker each have two 100-yard receiving games in 2011. They are the first trio of Big Red players to have multiple 100-yard receiving games in the same season. It is the fourth time Cornell has had at least three different receivers with 100-yard games in a year, joining 1987 (Chris Hahn, Shaun Hawkins and Mike Ready), 2000 (Keith Ferguson, Tim Hermann and Joe Splendorio) and 2008 (Jesse Baker, Zac Canty and Bryan Walters).
SAVAGE WARRIOR: Senior
Shane Savage, who will be fifth-year eligible in 2012, became the 16th player in school history to reach 1,000 career receiving yards with his four-catch, 99-yard effort against Bucknell in the season opener. He later became the ninth Cornellian to haul in 100 passes with four catches for 32 yards and two scores vs. Wagner, and added to that total with a career-high 152-yard effort with two scores on eight catches against Harvard. His best game came with a 12-catch, 163-yard effort against Brown. Savage has upped his career numbers to 138 receptions for 1,653 yards and 10 touchdowns. Savage has a reception in all 28 career contests and could potentially catch a pass in 40 varsity appearances barring injury or being blanked in a contest. If he catches passes in 40 consecutive games, he would break the school record of 39 set by Keith Ferguson '03, Cornell's all-time leading receiver (202 receptions, 2,569 yards).
UP TO THE TASK: Junior
Luke Tasker posted his first career 100-yard game in the season-opening win over Bucknell (102 yards) and registered his second four weeks later at Colgate with three catches for 109 yards and a touchdown. He ranks third on the team with 36 catches, 598 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Tasker is averaging a team-leading 16.6 yards per catch so far in 2011. He surpassed the 50 catch mark for his career with four receptions for 88 yards and a score vs. Harvard.
DASHING THROUGH THE DEFENSE: Junior wide receiver
Kurt Ondash entered the season with 11 catches for 62 yards and a touchdown. He's matched or surpassed those numbers already this season, sitting second on the team's charts with 35 catches for 564 yards and four touchdowns. His 16.1 yards per catch ranks second on the Big Red. Ondash hauled in an 87-yard touchdown to seal the win over Bucknell in the season opener, the fifth-longest touchdown pass in school history.
THAT TIGHT END CAN RUN: Senior tight end
Ryan Houska has been moved to running back over the last four weeks and has responded with some of the top efforts for the Big Red in quite a while. The team's 2010 Pop Warner Award winner as most valuable player, Houska leads the team in rushing (375 yards, 4.1 yards per carry, three touchdowns) and is averaging 8.4 yards on his 14 catches. He had his first career 100-yard game with a 26-carry, 108-yard effort with a score against Princeton — Cornell's first 100-yard rushing game since Randy Barbour posted 120 yards against Columbia in 2009. Running out of both the “House-Cat” and a one-back set, Houska also posted a rushing TD against Harvard, had 81 yards on 12 carries at Colgate and notched 54 yards on 13 carries vs. Brown.
RUN, PASS, CATCH: Senior tight end
Ryan Houska became the fourth Cornell player since 1980 to run, pass and catch a touchdown during their varsity careers - Houska did it all in one season (2010). Luke Siwula '08 (20 rush, 1 throw, 4 receptions), John Tagliaferri '86 (8 rush, 1 throw, 2 receptions) and Derrick Harmon '84 (26 rush, 1 throw, 2 receptions) also hit on that statistical oddity.
GREENWAY TOPS KICK SCORING LIST: Senior
Brad Greenway already set the school's career kicking points record, surpassing the mark with a 10-point day against Brown. With 169 career kicking points and two games remaining, Greenway has a chance to get as high as third on the list. After surpassing John McCombs '00 (148 points) for the kicking record, he can still catch Derrick Harmon '84 for third (174 points) all-time at Cornell. His 169 points rank 15th in Ivy League history for place-kickers, while his 32 field goals sits 12th.
GREENWAY HAS OTHER RECORDS: Besides being the school's all-time leading scorer as a kicker, senior
Brad Greenway owns the Cornell record for most career field goals (32, surpassing John McCombs '00 with 26) and successful PATs (73, surpassing John Rodin '97 and William Kirk '52 with 71).
SCORING ACE: Senior
Brad Greenway paces Cornell in scoring with 55 points through eight games. If he maintains that lead, he will become the first Cornellian to pace the team in scoring for four straight years. He led in 2008 with 45 points, then topped the charts with 43 points in 2009 and 26 points in 2010. His 2011 point total is already a career high and is the most by a Cornell kicker since Pete Zell '08 scored 62 points in 2007. Since 1946, the only Cornell players to pace the team in scoring three times are Jeff Fleischmann (1948-49-50), Ed Marinaro (1969-70-71), Derrick Harmon (1981-82-83) and Chad Levitt (1994-95-96).
GREENWAY A NOMINEE FOR FRED MITCHELL AWARD: Senior place-kicker
Brad Greenway has been named to the 2011 Fred Mitchell Award Watch List. He is among 50 kickers on the Watch List for excellence on the field and in the community. Greenway has led the team in scoring in each of his first three varsity seasons and will be attempting to become the first player in school history to lead the team in scoring all four years. Last season, Greenway led the team in scoring with 26 points on 4-of-5 field goals and 14-of-15 extra-point kicks. Off the field, Greenway has been very active serving not only the Ithaca community, but also communities throughout the world. He was part of a program that gathered school supplies, cleats and jerseys to bring to children in Ghana as part of community service initiative. He also visited an Agent Orange community in Vietnam that has disabled children whose parents were impacted during the Vietnam War. There, he visited several schools to play with children. He reads to elementary school students as a volunteer as part of the Big Red Readers program. He also served as a volunteer coach in the Challenger Soccer Camps for special needs children. Greenway has also volunteered at Ithaca's Salvation Army by helping organize clothes and goods throughout the store, as well as volunteering with the Boys and Girls Club of San Diego.
SACK IMHOFF: Senior defensive end
Zack Imhoff has had a monster season in 2011, ranking 17th nationally in tackles for loss (1.6) and 26th in sacks per game (0.8). The defensive captain leads Cornell's defensive line in tackles (49), tackles for loss (13.0) and sacks (6.5) after being converted from linebacker, where he was an honorable mention All-Ivy pick in 2010. He registered a monster game in the win over Wagner with 3.5 sacks, two forced fumbles and a blocked kick. The 3.5 sacks ranks as the third-most by a Cornell player in a single game, while the two forced fumbles tied the school record. He made 13 stops with 2.5 tackles for loss, a sack and a key forced fumble against Colgate and had 13 tackles, including 3.0 for a loss at Princeton. Imhoff had his first career interception at Dartmouth, returning it 10 yards for a touchdown, and also blocked an extra point.
IMHOFF THROWN FOR A LOSS: Senior defensive end
Zack Imhoff's 13.0 tackles for loss ranks 12th in a single season at Cornell. He needs one to move all the way to seventh and three to climb to fifth. His 6.5 sacks this season put him 14th, in a tie with his former coach, Jim Knowles '87. He needs one sack to move to 12th and 1.5 sacks to jump into the top 10 at eighth.
BUEHLER? BUEHLER?: Sophomore
Brett Buehler is one of the top young playmakers on a young Big Red defense. In his first year as a starter, Buehler ranks fourth on the team in tackles (63) and ranks second on the squad with 8.5 tackles for loss and two forced fumbles. He also has recorded a sack and a pass breakup. Buehler had 11 stops against Harvard and 10 apiece against Bucknell and Wagner. The sophomore had 4.0 tackles for loss, the fourth-most in a single game in Cornell history, against Bucknell in the 2011 opener and added 3.0 TFL with two forced fumbles vs. Wagner.
KICKOFF — TO THE HOUSE: Senior
Rashad Campbell did something no other Big Red player in school history had accomplished — return two kickoffs for touchdowns in the same season. In fact, he became only the second Cornell player to return two kickoffs for a touchdown in a career. Campbell was named Ivy League Special Teams Player of the Week after an 85-yard touchdown return against Colgate, then turned the trick again with a 78-yarder at Princeton. In fact, he also had a 103-yard return for a score at Yale called back on a penalty away from the play. Only Cornell Hall of Famer Pete Larson '67 has scored twice in a career on kickoffs. Campbell ranks second in school history in kickoff return yardage (1,681) and is third in return average (24.7) on his 68 career attempts. His 1,681 career kickoff return yards also rank fourth all-time in Ivy history.
CAMPBELL IN CONTROL: Senior cornerback
Rashad Campbell sits third on the team with 64 tackles and has also posted 4.5 tackles for loss, a sack, a fumble recovery and two interceptions. Campbell has now tallied at least one interception in all four of his varsity seasons and has nearly reached his career total of 5.0 tackles for loss entering the year.
LAINHART WITH THE STOP: Senior
Brandon Lainhart has had a tremendous career playing linebacker for the Big Red and has had a strong senior campaign, pacing the team and the Ivy League with his 78 tackles (34th nationally). Lainhart has added 4.0 tackles for loss and a sack and has forced and recovered a fumble in 2011. The native of Cincinnati, Ohio, has recorded 240 career tackles, good for 12th-best all-time for the Big Red. Next up on the list is Brad Kitlowski '05 with 252 tackles in 11th.
YOUNG SAFETIES MAKING A NAME: Sophomore
Josh Barut and freshman
Andrew Nelson comprise the Big Red's defensive secondary of the future — and the present. Barut, a transfer from UCLA who will have three more years of eligibility after 2011, ranks second on the team in tackles with 66 and is tied for the team lead in pass breakups (three) and is second in forced fumbles (two). He has 56 of those tackles in the last five weeks, including 15 against Brown and 12 vs. both Harvard and Princeton. Nelson has 47 tackles and three pass breakups, as well as an interception. In Ivy games only, Barut leads the circuit in tackles (10.6 tackles per game), while Nelson is 12th (7.6).
PICKING UP A LOSS: Cornell's defense has been spending much more time in the offensive backfield in the 2011 season, already posting 44 tackles for loss in eight contests (5.5 per game). Senior
Zack Imhoff ranks 20th nationally with 1.63 per game.
THE CORNELL CAPTAINS: The Cornell football team has elected six team captains to lead the Big Red into the 2011 season, including the first-ever sophomore captain in school history. Sophomore quarterback
Jeff Mathews joins senior defensive end
Zack Imhoff, corner back
Rashad Campbell and place-kicker
Brad Greenway, junior wide receiver and punt returner
Luke Tasker and center Bob Bullington as team captains. The top two vote getters on offense, defense and special teams earned the honor.
BIG PASS PLAYS HIGHLIGHT WIN OVER BUCKNELL: Cornell used three plays of 64 yards or more in the passing game en route to its 24-13 victory over Bucknell on Sept. 17. Junior
Luke Tasker hauled in a 65-yard pass from Mathews, while senior
Shane Savage went 64 yards for a touchdown on a deep ball from the quarterback. Mathews then sealed the win with an 87-yard toss to junior
Kurt Ondash, the fifth-longest pass play in school history.
NEW VIDEO BOARD: Cornell unveiled a brand new video board during its Homecoming contest against Bucknell on Sept. 17. The 18x31 video board produced by Daktronics is being run by Cornell athletics with assistance from Varsity Media out of Rochester, N.Y. The board will have many exciting interactive features for fans and the multi-camera production will also allow for instant replays and multiple angles of the action.
STATING THE STATES: Cornell's 105-player roster includes student-athletes from 27 different states and the District of Columbia. Leading the way is the talent-rich state of California with 15 student-athletes, one of four states that have produced at least 10 current Big Red players (New York - 13; Ohio - 10; Pennsylvania- 10).
IVY PRESEASON POLL: The Cornell football team, under second-year head coach Kent Austin, was picked to finish tied for seventh in the Ivy League media preseason poll. Overall, there were 17 voters in the poll (two media representatives per school and one national media representative). PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH: 1. Penn (12 first-place votes) 129 points; 2. Harvard (2 first-place votes) 118 points; 3. Yale (1 first-place vote) 95 points; 4. Brown (2 first-place votes) 90 points; 5. Dartmouth 73 points; 6. Columbia 45 points; 7. Cornell 31 points; 7. Princeton 31 points.
BOOKER-TANDY NAMED TO ESPN THE MAGAZINE ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT TEAM: Senior corner back
Nick Booker-Tandy was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District I first-team in 2010. He was one of 12 Ivy League players named to the Academic All-District team. In the classroom, Booker-Tandy has posted a 4.0 grade point average in Applied Economics and Management and was an Academic All-Ivy nominee.
CORNELL ALL-TIME: The Big Red has an overall record of 621-477-34 (.564) in its 124 years of football. The program's 621 wins ranks 11th among all FCS schools. Over the years, Cornell has taken on 87 different opponents, with its most frequent opponent being Penn (118 meetings).
BOOTHE, WALTERS ON NFL ROSTERS: Former Cornellians Kevin Boothe '06 and Bryan Walters '10 are on opening day NFL rosters this season. Boothe, an All-American offensive lineman for the Big Red, is in his sixth season in the National Football League and fifth with the New York Giants. He joined former star tailback Derrick Harmon '84 as the second Cornell alumnus to earn a Super Bowl ring after playing on special teams during the New York Giants' run to Super Bowl XLII. Boothe and the Giants upset the previously unbeaten New England Patriots, 17-14, on Feb. 3, 2008 at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Ariz. Walters is in his first season as a wide receiver with the San Diego Chargers after setting Ivy League and Cornell records for career kick return and punt return yardage. He ranks first at Cornell and second in Ivy League history in all-purpose yardage.
INSIDECORNELLFOOTBALL.COM: Cornell football launched a new web site, www.InsideCornellFootball.com, this spring to provide all the latest information on the Big Red program. Tune in for new, exclusive videos and other information.
WHAT'S THE FREQUENCY?: All of the Big Red's football games in 2011 are carried live on WHCU (870 AM) in the Ithaca area and on the internet at www.CornellBigRed.com. Barry Leonard returns for his 14th season in the booth and 12th season in the play-by-play chair, while Buck Briggs '76 is back to provide the color commentary for a 11th season. Special guests will also make appearances throughout the year.
WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS: Cornell has won five national titles in its storied football history. The Big Red claimed at least a share of the 1915 (Helms Athletic Foundation, Houlgate System, National Championship Foundation and Parke Davis), 1921 (Helms, Houlgate, National Championship Foundation and Parke Davis), 1922 (Helms, Parke Davis), 1923 (Sagarin) and 1939 (Litkenhous, Sagarin) titles. All five teams went undefeated and dominated their opponents. The 1915 team was 9-0 and outscored its opponents 287-50 with four shutouts. The 1921, 1922 and 1923 squads each went 8-0 and outscored their opponents 392-21, 339-27 and 320-33, respectively. The teams allowed more than one touchdown in a game just once during that 24-game span while scoring 40 or more points 14 times. The 1939 team was 8-0 and defeated Syracuse, Penn State and Ohio State.
AP NO. 1: Cornell is the only Ivy League school to be ranked No. 1 in the weekly Associated Press poll, holding the top ranking for three weeks (10/15-10/29) of the 1940 season. The No. 1 ranking ended with the historic “Fifth Down Game” against Dartmouth. The Big Red ended that campaign with a 6-2 record that included wins over Army, Syracuse and Ohio State.
50TH ANNIVERSARY OF GOGOLAK'S HISTORIC KICK: This season marks the 50th anniversary of Pete Gogolak becoming the first soccer-style kicker in football history. His 41-yard field goal at Princeton on Oct. 28, 1961 went into the record books.
LATE START: For the fourth time in the last eight years, Cornell was the last Division I football team to kick off its season. The 6:07 p.m. kick-off against Bucknell on Sept. 17 was the latest of the Ivy League schools to open its season. Penn (vs. Lafayette), Brown (at Stony Brook) and Princeton (vs. Lehigh) were scheduled for 6 p.m. kickoffs. The Big Red was also the final team to open in 2004, 2006 and 2007.
UP NEXT: Cornell closes its 2011 season when it visits Penn at Franklin Field on Saturday, Nov. 19 at 1 p.m.