Brown Visits Ithaca for Saturday Showdown at Schoellkopf

Dan Swanstrom
The Roger J. Weiss '61 Head Coach of Cornell Football

PRE-SNAP READ

• Cornell continues its three-game homestand with its first home Ivy game of the season on Saturday, Oct. 25 when it hosts Brown.

• Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m. from Schoellkopf Field.

• Nick DeLuca and Matt Miller will have the call on ESPN+.

THE SERIES

• Brown leads the all-time series, 39-31-1, after narrowly defeating Cornell 23-21 on Oct. 26, 2024.

• Cornell has won two of the last three meetings, including a 36-14 win the last time Brown visited Ithaca.

• Three of the last four meetings have been decided by three points or less.

• Cornell has a 16-18-1 record at home against the Bears, including a 3-2 record in the last five games at Schoellkopf Field against Brown.• Cornell is 34-8 all-time at home against the Bison.

A WIN OVER BROWN WOULD...

• Give Cornell a 2-4 record on the season and its first Ivy League victory of 2025.

• Give Cornell its 453rd win all-time at home.

• Give the Big Red its first back-to-back wins since winning the first two games of the 2023 season.

SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION

• Brown has a balanced offensive attack led by running back Matt Childs, who has rushed for 331 yards and six touchdowns while also contributing 123 receiving yards. Quarterback James Murphy has been efficient through the air with 1,039 passing yards and a 122.55 passer rating.

• Brown opened 3-1 with impressive wins including a 46-0 blowout of Georgetown, but has dropped both Ivy League games (0-2 in conference) with losses to Harvard (7-41) and Princeton (21-40).

• The Bears have forced six interceptions and recovered six fumbles, but opponents are averaging more yards per play (5.4 vs 4.9) and have thrown 10 touchdown passes compared to Brown's six.

• Brown is averaging only 0.83 yards per punt return while opponents average 5.67, and the team has struggled with penalties in conference play, though their overall penalty yardage (136) is significantly lower than opponents (261).

OBSERVATIONS FROM WEEK FOUR

• Cornell's rushing attack was highly effective, accumulating 232 net yards on 52 attempts (4.5 yards per carry) compared to Bucknell's 87 yards. The Big Red utilized a balanced committee with Jordan Triplett leading the way with 107 yards on 22 carries, John McAuliffe adding 89 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries (7.4 avg), and quarterback Garrett Bass-Sulpizio contributing 23 yards and two rushing touchdowns.

• Cornell's most dominant stretch came in the third quarter, where they outscored Bucknell 14-0 while controlling possession for over 9 minutes. The Big Red scored on back-to-back drives (51 yards in 3:00 and 45 yards in 4:38), both resulting in touchdowns. This momentum swing gave Cornell a commanding 23-7 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

• Cornell's defense forced critical turnovers at crucial moments. Keith Williams Jr. recorded two interceptions, including one in the third quarter that immediately preceded a Cornell touchdown drive. The defense also recovered a fumble in the fourth quarter that led to another Bucknell scoring opportunity being thwarted. These takeaways helped Cornell maintain control despite Bucknell's late rally.

• Cornell was perfect in red zone opportunities, scoring on four of five trips inside the 20-yard line (4 touchdowns and 1 field goal). Cornell's ability to capitalize on every scoring chance, particularly in the first half when they built their initial lead, proved to be the difference in a game where both teams had similar total offensive plays (74 for Cornell vs. 67 for Bucknell).

PLAYER OF THE WEEK

• Cornell sophomore linebacker Keith Williams Jr., was named Ivy League Defensive Player of the Week on Monday, Oct. 20 following his two-interception, nine-tackle performance last Saturday against Bucknell.

• The sophomore became the first Big Red linebacker to record two interceptions in a game since olt Fletcher '24 at Lehigh on Sept. 16, 2023.

• He is the first Cornell football Defensive Player of the Week since former teammate Luke Banbury '25 earned the designation last November.

HIGH VALUE KURTZ-ENCY

• Cornell junior tight end and All-American Ryder Kurtz is among the best pass catchers in the Ivy League through four weeks, earning him a spot on Phil Steele's Midseason All-American First Team.

• He has hauled in 19 passes for 260 yards and three touchdowns, which ranks eighth among all pass catchers and first among all tight ends in the conference.

• Through his 14 game career he is averaging 3.9 receptions and 50.1 yards per game.

• His seven career touchdown catches are the most  by a tight end in Cornell football history.

ELITE TOTAL DEFENSE

• (#32 nationally, #4 Ivy) - Allowing just 336.8 yards per game, Cornell boasts one of the strongest defenses in the FCS, anchored by exceptional passing defense (#26 nationally, #3 Ivy) at 186.4 yards allowed per game.

• First Downs Defense (#2 nationally, #2 Ivy) - The Big Red have been outstanding at limiting opponent first downs, allowing just 89 total, which ranks second in the entire nation and demonstrates their ability to consistently force three-and-outs.

• While not a top-tier ranking, Cornell's 4th down defense has been solid, limiting opponents to a 44.4% conversion rate (#35 nationally) and forcing crucial turnovers on downs.

Keith Williams Jr. (#21 nationally in interceptions per game, #3 Ivy) - Leads the defense with 0.40 interceptions per game (two total).

RED ALERT

• Doryn Smith (#46 nationally, #6 Ivy)  is Cornell's most dynamic player, averaging 101.2 all-purpose yards per game with strong performances in both kickoff returns (21.2 avg, #49 nationally) and receiving (5.20 receptions per game, #40 nationally).

• Brendan Lee averages 5.2 yards per punt return (#32 nationally, #2 Ivy), providing solid field position and ranking in the top third nationally among return specialists.

• Ryder Kurtz has been a top target in the red zone (#81 nationally in receiving TDs, #3 Ivy) opportunities with three touchdown receptions.

• Garrett Bass-Sulpizio - Dual-Threat QB - While not ranking in the top 100 nationally in any major passing category, Bass-Sulpizio does rank #93 nationally (#6 Ivy) with 4 rushing touchdowns, showing his ability to contribute on the ground when despite not putting up big numbers through the air yet this season.

IVY PRESEASON POLL

• After earning a share of the Ivy League crown in each of the past two seasons, Harvard has been selected as the preseason favorite in the 2025 Ivy League Football Preseason Poll. The poll was conducted among 16 media members who regularly cover Ivy League football.

• Harvard, one of three teams to share last season’s title, received 114 points and garnered nine first-place votes. Dartmouth, which also claimed a share of the title the last two seasons, edged out Yale for second place with 105 points and four first-place votes. Yale followed closely with 103 points and three first-place selections.

• Columbia, fresh off its first Ivy League title since 1961, was picked fourth with 72 points.

• Rounding out the poll were Princeton (55), Penn (49), Cornell (42), and Brown (32).

PHIL STEELE PRESEASON ALL-IVY

• A total of eight Cornellians were selected to the Phil Steele All-Ivy preseason teams.

• Wideout Samuel Musungu and long snapper Nolan Albright were selected to the first team.

• Ryder Kurtz (TE), Alan Zhao (K), and Caden Lesiewicz (P) made the second team, and Max Van Fleet (DL), Joey Cheshire (LB), and Jeremiah Lewis (RB), were selected to the third team.

• The eight preseason honree's for the Big Red are the most since placing nine on the 2023 Phil Steele Preseason All-Ivy Teams.

NEXT UP

• Cornell concludes its three-game homestand with a 1 p.m. contest against Princeton on Saturday, Nov. 1.

It will be the 107th meeting all-time between Cornell and Princeton, with the Tigers leading the series, 66-38-2.

The game will be streamed live on ESPN+.

• Schoellkopf Field has been an indelible mark of Cornell football since it opened in 1915 and this year will be the 109th season at the home field. 
• A gift from Willard Straight ‘01 and the family of Henry (Heinie) Schoellkopf ‘02 made the construction possible for the current stadium. 
• The Big Red’s first year on the field was one of its best, going 9-0 and winning the national championship. 
• In 1915, General Electric Company completed work on a flood searchlight system for the field, and in 1924 a construction project was completed to bring capacity from 9,000 to 21,500 by adding the famed Crescent. 
• In 1947 that capacity was increased to 25,597 and a press box was added. 
• In 1971 a gift was made to put artificial turf on the field, and it was resurfaced three times, the last time in 1999. 
• A new press box was built in 1986.
• The 2008 season saw the installation of FieldTurf synthetic grass to replace the artificial turf. 
• In 2016, the West Stands were demolished and the field was moved 15 feet toward the Crescent while replacing the FieldTurf to be ready for more construction at the site, lowering the capacity to 21,500 in the process.

Few collegiate football programs have the storied history of Cornell University. With more than 130 seasons of football in the books, the Big Red has collected five national titles, won over 650 games and has had legendary players and coaches perform on historic Schoellkopf Field. Names such as Glenn "Pop" Warner and Heisman Trophy finalist and NCAA record-breaker Ed Marinaro have suited up for Cornell, while seven College Football Hall of Famers (including Warner, Gil Dobie and Carl Snavely) and multiple-time Super Bowl winner George Seifert have set the strategy as head coaches. A new era begins in 2024 when Dan Swanstrom takes the helm.