Cornell University Athletics

 
1981
Derrick Harmon becomes the first Cornell player to earn Ivy League Sophomore of the Year (now Rookie of the Year).

1982
Cornell moves to the Division I-AA classification.

1986
The Big Red made an unlikely run for the league title, finishing the year with just one loss in Ivy play a year after going 3-7 overall. Cornell drops a 31-21 decision to Penn in the season finale as the Quakers claimed the crown.

1988
Cornell brought the Ivy League trophy back to the East Hill in 1988 when the team earned six victories against its Ancient foes. Five individuals earned first-team All-Ivy honors, including Cornell Hall of Famers Scott Malaga (RB) and Mitch Lee (LB). The team outscored its opponents by nearly 100 points while averaging 345.0 yards per game.

1989
Cornell makes a Thanksgiving Day appearance on ESPN, playing a 10 a.m. contest against Penn. The Big Red wins 20-6 and is 3-0 all-time on ESPN.
     
1990
Cornell posts a 6-1 Ivy mark and a share of the Ancient Eight title under the direction of first-year head coach and former gridiron great Jim Hofher 79. The Big Red leads the league in rushing (242.9 ypg.) and total offense (375.0 ypg.) while outscoring its opponents 180-95. Three of the team's offensive linemen -- Jay Bloedorn, Greg Finnegan and Chris Field -- earned first-team All-Ivy honors, leading the Big Red's 14 overall selections. Scott Oliaro runs for a school-record 288 yards against Yale.

1991
The Big Red traveled to Division I Stanford to celebrate the Centennial Anniversary of its sister school from the West. The Cardinal win 56-6.

1995
Cornell wins five straight Ivy games midway through the season and finishes tied for second in the Ancient Eight standings.

1996
The Big Red plays its first overtime game, defeating Princeton 33-27 at home in the season and home opener. Chad Levitt '97 falls 58 yards shy of the school's career rushing record after being hurt in his final collegiate game, ending his four-year run with 4,657 yards. He is named second-team All-America and the Ivy League Player of the Year.

2000
Big Red fans are provided with plenty of excitement, as Cornell's all-time leading passer, Ricky Rahne '02, led the team through some amazing fourth-quarter comebacks. The squad battled to win three games by one point each to challenge for the Ivy title, finishing the season in second place.

2000's Bring Top Talent
 
2001
The season opener at Bucknell is cancelled after the attacks of Sept. 11. When the season begins, Ricky Rahne '02 builds on his passing totals and graduates as the school's career leader in passing (7,710 yards) and touchdown passes (54).

2002
Keith Ferguson '03 graduates as the school's all-time leader in receiving yards (2,569) and becomes the first Cornell player to record 200 career catches (202).

2004
Despite being picked to finish last in the preseason poll after an 0-7 campaign the previous year, first-year head coach Jim Knowles '87 breathes new life into the program. Cornell goes 4-3 in Ivy play, becoming the second Ancient Eight team to go from a winless league record to a winning mark in the span of one year.

2005
The Big Red went 4-1 at Schoellkopf Field and finished the season with a 6-4 overall mark. Three-time first-team All-Ivy pick Kevin Boothe was chosen in the sixth round of the NFL Draft by the Oakland Raiders and earned first-team All-America honors.

2006
Cornell posts five consecutive home victories to finish the season 5-5 overall, including triumphs over No. 23 Albany and No. 15 Princeton. The win over the Tigers handed the Ivy champion their only defeat of the year, and it also proved to be the highest ranked team Cornell had ever defeated since moving to Division I-AA.

2008
A last-second touchdown pass from Nathan Ford to Jesse Baker gives the Big Red a 25-24 win at Lehigh and caps a school-record 472 passing yards for the Big Red. Ford also sets Cornell single-game records for total offense (447 yards) and pass completions (39).

2010
Kent Austin takes over the Big Red program, and under his tutelage, Jeff Mathews '14 becames the third Cornellian to earn Ivy League Rookie of the Year honors. He sets freshman passing records and becomes the first Big Red rookie to start a game at quarterback.

2011
Behind a record-setting Big Red offense, Cornell improves its win total from two to five overall and in Ivy League play from one to three, including winning at reigning Ivy champion Penn in its final game. Over the final two weekends of the season, the Big Red scores 110 points in its final two contests, including a modern day record 62 points in a win over Columbia. The offense was directed by sophomore quarterback Jeff Mathews, who was named the Bushnell Cup Winner as Ivy League Offensive Player of the Year. He was joined by All-America receiver Shane Savage, Brad Greenway (PK) and Rashad Campbell (returner) as members of the first-team All-Ivy League squads.

2012
The Big Red opened the season 4-3 before dropping the season's final three games to finish 4-6. Senior offensive lineman JC Tretter and senior wide receiver Luke Tasker each earned All-America honors and unanimous first-team All-Ivy accolades, while junior quarterback Jeff Mathews was named one of two finalists for the Bushnell Cup after breaking Cornell's career passing record. Following the season, head coach Kent Austin resigned to accept a position of vice president of football operations, general manager and head football coach of the Canadian Football League's Hamilton Tiger-Cats. In january 2013, David Archer '05 is named the Roger J. Weiss '61 Head Coach of Football, becoming the nation's youngest Division I head football coach at just 30 years old.