This article appeared in the New York Times on Sunday, Oct. 31, 1971 as written by Gordon S. White Jr.

ITHACA, N.Y. -- Ed Marinaro established a major college rushing record of 4,132 yards today when he ran 272 yards and scored two touchdowns in leading undefeated Cornell to a 24-21 thriller over Columbia on the Poly-Turf of old Schoellkopf Field.

The big senior tailback from New Milford, N.J., exhibited all the running skills that have made him the area's leading candidate for the Heisman Trophy as he set or equaled a number of records and personal highs during this difficult struggle to keep the Big Red tied with Dartmouth for the Ivy League lead.

Columbia and everyone else conceded that Marinaro would set a major-college rushing record in this game as he entered the affair only 7 yards short of Steve Owens's mark of 3,687 set at Oklahoma, 1967-69. It was a question of when he would set the mark and how far beyond that he would go.

He broke the mark on a 3-yard leap and dive over left tackle the second time he carried the ball to increase his career total to 3,869 yards. The he broke tackles, cut back and forth and charged and scampered for enough more yardage to become the first college football player to go over 4,000 yards in a three-year career.

Eight small-college runners have run farther in a four-year varsity career.

There are those who would detract from Marinaro's achievements because he plays "in that patsy Ivy League." But he has some strong points to back up the contention that he is one of the outstanding players of recent years.

By rushing for 272 yards today, he became the first college player to have nine games of 200 yards or better in a career. He had his fourth 200-yard game of this season, tying a one-year mark set by O.J. Simpson of Southern California in 1968, the year that tailback won the Heisman Trophy.

He will obviously be compared for some time with Owens, the Sooner star who won the Heisman Trophy his senior season, 1969, when he set the previous career rushing mark.

It is worth noting that Marinaro set the mark in 24 varsity games. Owens set his record in 30 games. Also, Marinaro got the record on his 750th carry. Owens carried the ball 905 times.

When Marinaro dived over a clogged scrimmage line on his second carry today, the 23,000 fans knew he had the mark because he had gone six yards on the play before to get within 2 yards.

The largest crowd at Schoellkopf in 20 years stood and gave the big man an ovation that held up play for about three minutes.

Strangely, Marinaro did not carry the ball until Cornell's third series from scrimmage, with Columbia leading, 7-0.

Once the cheers for the record were over, the teams got down to a hard battle that was won when John Killian booted a 37-yard field goal with 5 minutes 1 second to go in the game, breaking a 21-21 deadlock.

Marinaro carried nine times on the drive to get the ball within range for Killian's winning kick.

Before that he scored on a 5-yard run to set up a 7-7 tie in the first quarter and ran 39 yards (his longest carry of the day) to give the Big Red a 21-14 lead early in the fourth period. Mark Allen, the quarterback, scored the second Big Red touchdown on an 11-yard keeper while Columbia was watching for Marinaro to get a wide-left pitch.