Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Football Looks to Bounce Back Against Cornell Saturday Night in Ithaca
9/11/2007 8:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 11, 2007
WHAT: Bucknell (1-1) vs. Cornell (0-0)
WHERE: Schoellkopf Field, Ithaca, N.Y.
WHEN: Saturday, Sept. 15, 2007, 7 p.m.
RADIO: Eagle 107 and SportsJuice.com
STREAMING VIDEO: CornellBigRed.com
COMPLETE PRESS NOTES
With a Victory over Cornell, Bucknell Would ...
-- ... improve to 2-1 overall.
-- ... win its first two road games in a season for the first time since 1999 (won 21-16 at Colgate and 23-16 at Penn).
-- ... improve to 12-35 all-time against Cornell and 6-30 in Ithaca.
-- ... defeat the Big Red in consecutive seasons for only the second time (other was 1979 and 1980).
-- ... snap a three-game losing streak at Schoellkopf Field.
About the Game
Bucknell looks to bounce back from last week's tough 48-20 loss to talented Stony Brook on Saturday night against a Cornell team that is making its 2007 season debut. The Bison were hoping to build on an encouraging performance in a season-opening win at Duquesne, but they had trouble slowing down the Seawolves' potent offensive attack and compounded things by allowing two special teams touchdowns. Offensively, Bucknell amassed 205 rushing yards and held the ball for more than 32 minutes, but the Bison struggled in the passing game with just four completions in 12 attempts after excelling in that department on opening night. This week, Bucknell will try to get back over .500 and defeat Cornell for the second year in a row. With the 7 p.m. kickoff the Big Red, who were picked fifth in the Ivy League preseason coaches' poll, will officially become the last college football team to suit up in 2007. Cornell went 5-5 overall and 3-4 in the Ivy League last season. The Big Red returns five All-Ivy players, including RB Luke Siwula, who is just 22 yards shy of 2,000 for his career. Cornell also welcomes back starting QB Nathan Ford, who is coming off an impressive sophomore season.
Bucknell vs. Cornell Series Notes
-- The "Battle of the `Nells" dates all the way back to 1888, which was the second year of Cornell football and the third for Bucknell. The Bison represent Cornell's oldest active rival.
-- The Big Red won that initial contest 20-3 and now lead the all-time series 35-11.
-- Since 1979, however, the series has been much more balanced, with Bucknell winning 10 times and Cornell nine over that span.
-- The home team has captured the last seven meetings. Bucknell has lost three straight in Ithaca, with the last win at Schoellkopf field coming in 1995 (10-7).
-- The Sept. 15, 2001 meeting at Cornell was canceled in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Bucknell vs. Cornell Last Season
Last Sept. 16 at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium, Bucknell forced a season-high four turnovers, including a momentum-turning takeaway on the opening kickoff, and the Bison kept Cornell out of the end zone in a 20-5 victory. After Dorian Petersen jarred the ball loose and David Frisbey recovered at the Cornell 24 on the game's initial play, the Bison needed only five snaps to take a 7-0 lead. They tacked on 10 more first-quarter points and never looked back. Cornell had a strong showing on its first drive, covering 56 yards on nine plays, but it managed only a 35-yard field goal from Peter Zell. Those would be the only points for the Big Red until Bucknell took an intentional safety with 1:24 to play. Bucknell rushed for 232 yards but was outgained 436-331. The Bison forced two fumbles -- both by Petersen -- and intercepted two Nathan Ford passes. Ford, who was making his first collegiate start, completed 18 of 36 passes for 202 yards and also rushed for 74 yards on 10 carries. Luke Siwula had 105 rushing yards on only 13 totes.
Week 2 Recap
Bucknell could not add on to a season-opening victory, falling 48-20 to Stony Brook in its home opener on Saturday night. The Bison defense, which kept Duquesne off the board for the final 38 minutes in week 1, forced punts on Stony Brook's first three possessions of the night and took a 7-0 lead on RB Kevin Mullen's 1-yard touchdown dive late in the first quarter. The Seawolves wrestled the momentum right back just seconds later, when Conte Cuttino returned the ensuing kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown. Cuttino's 20-yard TD run made it 14-7 early in the second period. The Bison trailed 27-10 before conducting an effective two-minute drill before the half. Freshman RB Ryan Smith's first career score, a 3-yard run, with 19 seconds on the clock made it 27-17 at intermission. Bucknell then took the second half kickoff and marched to the shadow of the goalline before settling for a Will Carney 19-yard field goal. Stony Brook answered right back with a Dwayne Eley 15-yard TD catch, and with 3:57 left in the third quarter the Seawolves put the game away when Donald Lee smothered a Bucknell punt, and Andre Jean-Pierre returned the loose ball 24 yards for a 41-20 lead.
Inside the Stony Brook Boxscore
-- Bucknell gained 205 of its 279 total yards on the ground. Ten different Bison carried the football at least once.
-- Bucknell's top ground gainer was freshman Ryan Smith, who saw his first action at fullback and picked up 46 yards and his first career touchdown.
-- Sophomore RB Josh Lee had a 36-yard run, the longest of his career and the longest of the game.
-- P Phil Azarik averaged 40.0 yards per punt and dropped 3 of 7 inside the 20. He did have a punt blocked for the first time in his career, leading to a Stony Brook touchdown.
-- K Will Carney was perfect on his first two field-goal attempts of the season, connecting from 32 and 19 yards.
-- LB Sam Williams, DB Brigham Farrand and LB Travis Nissley each recorded a team-high eight tackles. Nissley, a freshman reserve inside linebacker, leads the team with 12 tackles through two games.
-- Freshman DB Tyler McFarlane made his first career start at free safety.
-- DL Ryan Walsh notched a quarterback sack for the second straight game.
-- DL Josh Eden had 1.5 tackles for loss, giving him a team-high 2.5 on the season.
-- Bucknell held the advantage in time of possession (32:29-27:31) and was +1 in turnover ratio.
-- Freshmen RB Isaih Bell, LB Rob Gerlach and LB Tyler Anderson made their first career appearances.
Kizekai No. 1 in All-Purpose Yards
Sophomore RB A.J. Kizekai gained 251 all-purpose yards last week against Stony Brook and now leads the nation in that category, averaging 255.5 all-purpose yards per game. Kizekai totaled 167 kickoff return yards, 44 rushing yards and 40 receiving yards against the Seawolves. Kizekai also ranks 15th nationally in kickoff return average at 32.3 yards per attempt.
National Leaders Avg. All-Purpose Yards 1. A.J. Kizekai, Bucknell 255.5 2. Bryan Eteuati, Weber State 254.0 3. Jayson Foster, Georgia Southern 249.0 4. Mike Malone, Western Carolina 228.0 5. Stan Zwinggi, Texas State 227.0
Kizekai Earns Bucknell's First PL Honor of 2007
A.J. Kizekai was named Patriot League Special Teams Player of the Week on Monday, making him the first Bucknell player to win a conference award this season. Kizekai earned a PL Rookie of the Week citation last year after a two-touchdown performance in a win at Marist.
Fullbacks Carry the Scoring Load
Bucknell has four rushing touchdowns thus far, all coming from the fullback position. Corin Erby had two touchdowns against Duquesne, while Kevin Mullen and Ryan Smith had one each last week.
Passing Game Struggles After Good Start
Bucknell's spread option attack did major damage with the pass in the season opening victory at Duquesne, but the Bison struggled with the pass last week against Stony Brook. Against Duquesne, QB Marcello Trigg completed 8 of 14 for 156 yards, including two long touchdown passes to A.J. Kizekai and Josh Lee. A week later, Trigg was 4 of 12 for 74 yards. Nine of the 12 pass completions this season have gone to slotbacks.
Jones Makes Unusual Transition
It is doubtful that many teams can claim a starting linebacker that a year earlier was playing quarterback, but Bucknell has one in sophomore Greg Jones. The Springfield, Va., native came in as a QB but was moved to linebacker early in his freshman year. He played the position in two junior varsity games and made a team-high 16 tackles, and later he was named the team's defensive Scout Team Player of the Year. This season, Jones won a starting position in preseason camp and has seven tackles through two games.
Farrand Returns to Secondary
Sophomore DB Brigham Farrand, coming off an outstanding rookie year, missed virtually all of preseason camp and the season opener against Duquesne while recovering from a bout of mono. He returned to game action as a reserve last week against Stony Brook and tied for team-high honors with eight tackles. This week Farrand is hoping for a repeat of his performance against Cornell last season, when he had 11 tackles, a fumble recovery and an interception on the goal line in his first career start.
Carney Gets Kicks on Mound
Junior K Will Carney debuted as a relief pitcher with the Bison baseball team last spring. In 10 appearances he finished 1-0 with a 6.00 ERA.
No. 122
Bucknell is now in its 122nd season of football. Only Princeton (138), Yale (135), Harvard (133), Penn (131), Lafayette (126), Dartmouth (126), Massachusetts (125), Lehigh (124) and Richmond (124) have played longer among FCS teams. Bucknell ranks 17th among all FCS programs with 553 all-time victories.
New Faces on the Sideline ... Sort Of
Bucknell has three new assistant coaches in 2007, and two of them are familiar to Bison fans. First-year defensive coordinator Andrew Cohen began his second stint at Bucknell in March. Cohen, who was a member of Tom Gadd's staff from 1995-99, was most recently an assistant coach at Columbia. He now brings his 3-4 defense back to Bucknell. Another new assistant is Richard Simpson, who earned three varsity letters as a wide receiver for the Bison before graduating last spring. Simpson is a graduate assistant coach who works with the receivers. The third newcomer to the staff is former Penn State letterman Andrew Ryland.
Sophomores Making an Impact
A year after relying heavily on a talented freshman class, Bucknell started 13 sophomores in the season-opener at Duquesne. In 2006, 12 freshmen earned varsity letters, eight started at least one game, and five different first-year players combined to win six Patriot League Rookie of the Week citations.
Ground Attack
Bucknell last season ranked fifth in the nation in rushing offense at 235.2 yards per game. That figure also led the Patriot League. The Bison were held to 153 ground yards in the season opener at Duquesne, and they upped that total to 205 last week against Stony Brook. They had 232 rushing yards against Cornell last season in Lewisburg.
Turnovers Tell Story
Bucknell last season was 4-1 when winning the turnover battle and 1-3 when committing more miscues than its opponent. In 2005, the Bison committed 33 turnovers and finished 1-10. Last season they cut that number to 14 in a 6-5 campaign. Bucknell was +1 in the turnover department in each of the first two weeks of 2007.
In the Classroom
Bucknell produced a solid 3.06 combined team grade-point average last semester, and in the fall of 2006 the Bison placed 18 student-athletes on the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll (lettermen with 3.20 GPA or higher). Last year starting cornerback David Frisbey earned national ESPN the Magazine Academic All-America honors and was a semifinalist for the Draddy Trophy, also known as the "Academic Heisman." Fellow senior Michael Boccella earned Academic All-District honors.
Notes & Notables
Sean Conover, a 2006 Bucknell graduate who was the 2004 Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year, is in his second year with the Tennessee Titans ... Conover, who survived cut-down day and is listed No. 2 on the depth chart at defensive end, took part in the Titans' season-opening win over Jacksonville ... another Bucknell football alum who made national headlines last year was Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano `88, who was named national coach of the year after leading the Scarlet Knights to an 11-2 record and a 37-10 victory over Kansas State in the Texas Bowl ... number changes since the media guide was published: DB Zane Woodard from 34 to 36, LB Robert Firman from 35 to 56, RB Alex Iwaskiw given 85, K/P Charles Hickes given 96 ... position changes since the media guide was published: Marlon Woods from RB to DB, C.J. Passeri from WR to DB, Rob Gerlach from RB to DB ... Bucknell is 8-6 in night games since the start of the 2001 season ... the Bison play four of their first five games under the lights ... the Bison junior varsity squad dropped its season opener 45-7 to powerful Lackawanna College on Sunday ... freshman QB Greg Hyman played most of the game and scored the team's lone touchdown ... freshman FB Shantz Medley led the ground attack with 64 rushing yards, while freshman LB Rob Gerlach made a team-high 11 tackles.
Next Up
Bucknell returns home next week to take on Richmond at 1 p.m. at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium. As part of Community Day festivities, there will be free admission for that contest. The Spiders, currently lurking just outside the top 25, routed Northeastern 49-14 last week after opening with a loss at Vanderbilt.
