ITHACA, N.Y. — The Big Red sprint football team will be looking to get back in the win column on Saturday, Oct. 5 at 6:00 p.m. when they face off against Chestnut Hill in Philadelphia, PA.
Both Cornell and Chestnut Hill are coming into this match-up 1-1 after winning their season openers and dropping their second contests in a scoreless fashion. Cornell is coming off of a 49-0 loss to Navy and Chestnut Hill is coming off of a 35-0 loss to Army-West Point.
In the Big Red's contest with Navy, quarterback Max Spero finished the game 6-for-17 for 46 yards, 2 sacks and 4 interceptions, two of which came in the first two Cornell offensive drives. Spero will look to have a stronger start against Chestnut Hill, putting his team in a better position to build momentum.
The Big Red are also looking to move the ball on the ground more effectively on Saturday. Against Navy, Cornell struggled in its run game with Kevin Lopez leading the team in rushing yards having 13. The Big Red also struggled through the air, with Leo Madera leading the team in receiving with 39 yards. On the defensive side of the ball, Evan Nicholas had an interception and Zach Glenn was able to record a sack in the 49-0 loss.
The Griffins offense also struggled against its opponent, Army, in last week's game. Chestnut Hill recorded a net 73 yards through the air and 156 yards rushing. Griffin's quarterback, Anthony Cancellare, went 8-for-22 for 73 yards, one interception and one sack. Chestnut Hill, much like Cornell, will be looking to have a stronger start on Saturday as they allowed Army to score on its first two possessions, putting them in a tough spot right off the bat.
The Big Red and the Griffins have met four times since their first match-up in September 2016. Cornell is currently on a three game winning streak against Chestnut Hill and leads the series 3-1.
The last time these two teams met was in October 2022 where Cornell defeated Chestnut Hill 28-14. Cornell does not have many returning players from that last match-up, however now captain, Michael Mosier, was in his freshman season that year and made three stops in the last match-up with an interception, a fumble recovery and two pass breakups. A key offensive player for Cornell in this 2022 victory was Colton Kotecki who came out of the game hauling in four passes for 116 yards and two touchdowns. While Colton graduated, his younger brother Carson Kotecki is on this year's sprint football roster as the starting center.
Chestnut Hill has two returners that played the last time these two teams met up. Quarterback Anthony Cancellare played his freshman season at Chestnut Hill in 2022 and came onto the field against Cornell. He went 6-for-18 for 60 yards, one interception and one sack. Another returner for the Griffins is Xavier Hendricks who had three receptions for 36 yards and went 2-for-2 in PAT's in the last meeting between these two teams.
Cornell will look to expand on its three game winning streak against Chestnut Hill as both teams look to secure a winning record when they face off on Saturday, Oct. 5 at 6:00 p.m. at Garthwaite Stadium in Pennsylvania.
The game will be streamed live on the CACC Network.
