Early Mistakes Prove Costly As #17 Princeton Rolls Past Football

PRINCETON, N.J. -- The unbeaten, nationally-ranked Tigers turned nearly every Cornell mistake into points and made a rainy, blustery day that much worse in a 66-0 win over the Big Red on Saturday afternoon at Princeton Stadium. No. 17 Princeton moved to 7-0 (4-1 Ivy), while the Big Red slipped to 3-4 (2-2 Ivy).

The Tigers jumped out to a 45-0 halftime lead, taking advantage of three early Cornell turnovers and a blocked punt to pile up 333 yards of offense at the break. The nation's top-ranked scoring offense scored six touchdowns - all less than 3 yards - and rolled to victory in a series that otherwise had been decided by a field goal or less 14 times in the last 28 years. The Princeton offense, which entered the game scoring 48 points per outing, converted on seven straight series to end the first half . Of Princeton's 10 scoring drives, only one was greater than 57 yards. The home team's average starting field position was midfield.

Junior David Jones had his seventh career interception, while senior Reis Seggebruch had a game-high eight stops. Senior Mason Banbury had seven tackles and junior Jelani Taylor notched six. Junior Harold Coles became the 30th Cornellian to surpass 1,000 career rushing yards. He ended the afternoon with career 1,010 yards, while freshman Delonte Harrell led the way for the offense with 42 rushing yards on 12 carries. In all, the Big Red posted 139 rushing yards against a Princeton defense that ranked 11th nationally, allowing just 97 yards each contest. In all, 10 different receivers had at least one catch from quarterbacks Dalton Banks (8-of-18, 70 yards, four interceptions) and Richie Kenney (5-of-11, 134 yards).

Charlie Volker had three touchdown runs and quarterback John Lovett had 192 yards of total offense and was responsible for a pair of touchdowns. Lovett ran for 159 yards and a touchdown and threw for 133 more and a score. Seven different Tigers scored a touchdown. TJ Floyd led the defense with two interceptions and Anthony Siragusa had a team-best seven tackles, including 1.5 for a loss.

First Quarter

• A pair of Cornell interceptions gave the Tigers momentum, as the high-powered Princeton offense cashed in on the second with a 1-yard run by Charlie Volker with 7:32 left in the half.
• The touchdown was the 30th of Volker's career.
• After a blocked punt, the Tigers only needed to drive 40 yards to make the score 14-0 when Volker again went in from a yard out.
• After an interception and a penalty, Princeton was only 9 yards from paydirt and needed just two plays, with receiver Jesper Horsted scoring on an end-around.

Second Quarter

• The Tigers scored 24 points in the second 15 minutes, with Lovett passing and throwing for one and Volker rushing for his third.
• The Big Red's first two offensive possessions of the quarter were three-and-outs, giving the Tigers short fields (50 and 55 yards)

Third Quarter

• Looking to build momentum in the second half, Cornell tried an on-sides kick to open the second half, but the Tigers recovered.
• David Jones picked off his third pass of the season and the seventh of his career, intercepting John Lovett for the first time this year.
• Cornell turned it back over and gave the Tigers yet another short field at the Big Red's 27 after a penalty.
• Princeton scored on a 3-yard pass from Davidson to Cody Smith with 6:37 left.
• Cornell took the air out of the football with the next drive as freshman Delonte Harrell had 42 yards on 10 carries to march the Big Red down the field, chewing up the final 6:37 of the quarter and leading into the fourth.

Fourth Quarter

• Cornell went for it on a fourth-and-3, but the Tigers were able to stop the Big Red a yard short to take over at the Princeton 28 with 13:43 remaining.
• The drive ended up with 17 plays and 7:45 long.
• The Tigers scored on each of their final two drives, including on a 7-yard run with 34 seconds left.

Notes to Know

• This was Cornell's fifth game (of seven) against a team ranked in the top 20 nationally on defense.
• With his eight tackles, Reis Seggebruch moved up to 40th on the school's career tackles list (173).
• Junior Dylan Otolski had his first two career catches covering 17 yards.
• The 358 rushing yards allowed was the most by a Cornell team since Dartmouth had 379 on the road in 2011.