ITHACA, N.Y. -- Senior Harold Coles ran 58 yards for a touchdown on the Big Red's second play from scrimmage, jumped out to a 21-0 lead and sent its seniors out with a 35-9 victory over Columbia on Saturday afternoon at Schoellkopf Field. The win gave Cornell possession of the Empire State Bowl and, coupled with Princeton's victory over Penn, solidified the Big Red's first upper-division finish in the Ivy League standings since 2006.

Seniors contributed all over the lineup in capping off its second straight victory to close the season, with Coles leading the way with 122 rushing yards and a pair of scores, becoming the eighth player in school history to surpass 2,000 career rushing yards. He led an offense that churned out 219 yards and five touchdowns on the ground, with junior SK Howard chipping in 72 yards on just seven carries.

The defense did yeoman's work, limiting the Lions to 339 yards and to just one touchdown, that coming after Columbia gained 27 yards on a fake punt by the Lions' Drew Schmid, who ended the day as the team's leading rusher. Senior Jelani Taylor, a candidate for Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year, and freshman Jake Stebbins, a candidate for the conference's Rookie of the Year, tied for the team lead with seven stops, with Taylor adding a pass breakup and Stebbins recovering an on-sides kick. Seniors Malik Leary and Mo Bradford each had five tackles and combined for 3.0 tackles for loss. Classmate David Jones notched six stops and a pass breakup.

The Big Red offense was balanced, with junior Richie Kenney completing 17-of-26 passes for 244 yards to eight different receivers. Junior Eric Gallman led the way with six receptions for 85 yards and classmate Phazione McClurge hauled in three for 63 more. On special teams, Nickolas Null averaged 38.2 yards on four punts with a pair downed inside the 20.

The Big Red held a 463-339 advantage in total offense despite a big game from receiver Josh Wainwright, who caught nine passes for 109 yards and the Lions' lone touchdown. Ty Lenhart completed 28-of-42 passes for 215 yards and a score. 


 

First Quarter

• Cornell set the tone early, getting a three-and-out defensively, the first of three consecutive for the Big Red to start the afternoon.
• The offense did its part, with Coles going 58 yards for a touchdown on its second play from scrimmage.
• The run put Coles over 2,000 career yards and was his 15th career rushing touchdown.
• Nickolas Null drilled the PAT to make it 7-0 just 1:44 in.
• The teams traded three-and-outs on three straight possessions before Cornell got the ball back with 9:27 left in the quarter.
• Cornell went on an 11-play, 40-yard march that covered 7:24, but Null's 48-yard field goal was blocked to keep the home team off the board.
• A pair of unsportsmanlike penalties ruined Columbia's next drive, and the Big Red went to work in the final 2:03.
• The big play was a 51-yard strike from Kenney to Gallman where the junior split a pair of defenders on the catch and carried the ball all the way to the 20.
• Two runs, including a 14-yard scamper by Howard, brought the ball to first-and-goal from the 6 as the quarter ended.
 

Second Quarter

• Cornell took it all the way to fourth down, but instead of its third straight run up the gut, Kenney pitched out to a sweeping Delonte Harrell who ran untouched into the end zone to make it 14-0 after the PAT with 13:32 on the clock.
• The Big Red defense stepped up big on Columbia's ensuing drive, with Mo Bradford making a huge stop for a 2-yard loss on third-and-1 from the Columbia 40 to force another Lions' punt.
• Cornell went 74 plays in just five plays to extend its lead to 21-0.
• Kenney hit McClurge for 39 yards on two passes sandwiched around an acrobatic 25-yard catch by junior Masen McManamon, the first reception of his career.
• After McClurge's second catch, Coles did the rest with a 10-yard score - his second of the game.
• Columbia found some legs after getting the ball back with 7:20 on the clock, marching 75 yards on 10 plays, the decisive one coming on fourth-and-1 from the Lions' 34.
• Needing a spark, the Lions called up a fake punt and Drew Schmid ran behind a convoy for 27 yards to the Cornell 39. 
• A personal foul on the Big Red at the end of the play tacked on another 15 yards.
• Six plays later Lenhart caught Wainwright at the left edge of the end zone for a score.
• The PAT hit the uprights and bounced away harmlessly, leaving it a 21-6 Cornell lead with 3:37 left in the half.
• Sophomore Dez'mond Brinson ran for 20 yards on first down on the ensuing drive, but the possession stalled out and Null punted it away with 1:41 to play.
• Lenhart dropped back on eight consecutive plays and hit Columbia receivers for 58 yards before a spike and two incompletions into the end zone forced a 28-yard field goal attempt by Alex Felkins.
• Felkins split the uprights with six seconds remaining, sending the game into the break with Cornell leading 21-6.
 

Third Quarter

• Sensing some momentum, Columbia took a shot at an on-sides kick, but Stebbins sniffed it out and recovered it near midfield.
• The Big Red offense used the friendly field position to go 51 yards on eight plays for the touchdown.
• Sophomore Thomas Glover went the final three yards for his first career score.
• Cornell appeared to have gone three-and-out, but a running into the kicker call extended the drive and a Columbia personal foul added to Cornell's forward momentum.
• A 24-yard completion from Kenney to McClurge brought the ball to the Columbia 14 and three plays later Glover found the end zone to make it 28-9 with 11:58 left on the clock.
• The Lions picked up a pair of first downs on their next drive, but ultimately punted and pinned Cornell at its own 9 with 10:08 left.
• Cornell all but put the game away, marching 91 yards on nine plays over 4:30, methodically going up 35-9 after the touchdown and PAT with 5:47 left in the third.
• Kenney was 3-for-3 on the drive for 26 yards and went over from a yard out to extend the lead.
• Howard had a highlight-reel 32 yard run down the sideline all the way down to the Columbia 4 to set up the score.
• The Lions embarked on a long drive to end the quarter, picking up three first downs to the Cornell 33 before the fourth started.
 

Fourth Quarter

• Columbia's 14-play drive ended on its second play of the fourth quarter when the Big Red all but put the game away when Jelani Taylor broke up a fourth-down pass from the Big Red 24 to give the home team the ball back on downs.
• The Big Red ran 4:17 off the clock on a nine-play drive that included a pair of first down completions from Kenny to John Fitzgerald and a fantastic coffin-corner punt by Nickolas Null that pinned the Lions at their own 5.
• Both teams substituted liberally over the game's final six minutes with neither team picking up a first down until the game's final play.
• The Big Red celebrated its first win in the Empire State Bowl since 2016.
 

The Schoellkopf March

Next Up

• The 2019 season is complete.
• Cornell hits the gridiron for the first time in 2020 when Marist visits Schoellkopf Field on Saturday, Sept. 19.