ITHACA, N.Y. — The Cornell Big Red's defense had one of the toughest assignments in the FCS this week, preparing for a Brown offense that was ranked first in passing, ninth in total offense and 25th in scoring. Cornell rose to the occasion, holding the high-powered Bears in check throughout a 36-14 victory at Schoellkopf Field.
For the first time since 2017, the Carnelian and White tallied three interceptions in a single contest. Cornell (3-3, 2-1 Ivy) pulled back to .500 with the victory and moved into a four-way tie for the Ivy League lead with Harvard, Penn and Dartmouth. Brown fell to 3-3 overall and 1-2 in the league.
Cornell led 20-0 at halftime and continued to build on its lead in the third quarter. The Big Red went ahead 33-0 until 5:48 remained in the third quarter when Jake Willcox connected with Soloman Miller for a 61-yard touchdown. Brown doubled-down before the end of the third quarter when Willcox found Graham Walker on a 43-yard pass to cut the Cornell lead to 19, but Jackson Kennedy all but secured the win for the Big Red with his third field goal of the day and 13th of the season.
Junior quarterback Jameson Wang completed his first 10 passes and finished the game 27-of-39 for 330 yards with two scores and one interception. It was the first game all year that Wang did not lead the ground game, as rookie Ean Pope tallied a career-best 34 yards on ten carries and a house call. In the receiving core, six players caught at least tow passes, including Nicholas Laboy, Samuel Musungu, and Doryn Smith, who each tallied over 70 yards in the outing.
On the defensive end, Brody Kidwell and brothers Paul Lewis III and Jeremiah Lewis each tallied in interception. P. Lewis's found pay dirt on his pick, returning the ball 55 yards to the endzone, the longest Cornell touchdown reception of the day. Noah Taylor led the team in tackles with eight.
The Cornell defense held Brown's Jake Willcox to a season-low 208 yards on 19-of-39 passing, including the three picks and two touchdowns. He completed just five of his first 15 passes for 19 yards. Willcox led the run game, however, rushing for 51 yards on seven attempts. Brown's leading receiver, Wes Rockett, was held to one reception on six targets. Miller's one catch led all Bears receivers for 61 yards Graham matched the number with 61 yards on two catches.
QUARTER ONE
- After and explosive first play of the game where Wang hit Samuel Musungu on a 22-yard pass, Brown forced the Big Red to a punt. Cornell had the answer, getting the Bear's to punt on a three-and-out, sparking the Big Red offense in a short field.
- The Big Red found the endzone four plays later when Wang connected with Doryn Smith on a 37-yard pass. The sophomore broke two tackles to get in for the first six of his career. Kennedy drilled the extra point to take a 7-0 Cornell lead.
- Cornell allowed one Bear's first down the rest of the quarter.
QUARTER TWO
- The Big Red wasted no time getting back to the endzone. Cornell opened the second quarter with the ball on Brown's 32-yard line facing second-and-16. After Wang threw his first incompletion, he bounced back with a 25-yard dot to Nicholas Laboy who converted on a toe-tapping catch to get the Big Red in the red zone. Ean Pope finished the drive with a seven-yard rush for his first-career touchdown.
- The ensuing drive for Brown saw only one first down before the Cornell defense forced another punt. Cornell pushed down the field 57 yards and settled for the first field goal of the afternoon.
- After back-to-back punts, Brody Kidwell captured his second-career interception, handing the ball back to the Big Red offense at the Brown 20-yard line. Cornell was held to a field goal, but Kennedy powered Cornell to a 20-0 lead as time expired.
QUARTER THREE
- The Big Red wasted no drives getting back to the endzone. After forcing Brown's sixth punt of the day, Wang commanded a 77-yard drive across seven plays that concluded in Matthew Robbert's first touchdown of the season. Wang found Robbert in open space to put away the 37-yard pass.
- Brown looked to have built some momentum in response on its following drive, putting together its first back-to-back passes of the day, but P. Lewis had other plans. The senior cornerback jumped the route, picking off Willcox and returning the interception 55 yards for a touchdown to build Cornell's lead to 33-0.
- Brown broke the scoring drought wit 5:48 remaining in the third, and doubled-down with a second touchdown after capturing a fluke interception where a pass from Wang tok an extra bounce off of the Cornell receiver in coverage.
QUARTER FOUR
- Cornell tallied pick number three when J. Lewis caught a dangerous deep pass from Willcox in the endzone, preventing a third Bear's touchdown.
- The Big Red marched down field across 13 plays while burning 8:48 off the clock, setting Kennedy up for his third field goal of the day.
UP NEXT
- The Big Red wraps up a three-game home stand next weekend when it hosts Princeton.
- Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 28 at Schoellkopf Field.
- Fans at home can catch the game on ESPN+.
