Yale vs. Cornell
Saturday, Sept. 27 – 12 p.m.
Yale Bowl, Class of 1954 Field
New Haven, Conn. 
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Yale football returns to the Yale Bowl, Class of 1954 Field this weekend to kick off Ivy League play against Cornell. The Bulldogs (1-0) will look to build on last week's 28-10 victory over Holy Cross, while the Big Red (0-1) come to New Haven seeking their first win of the season. Kickoff is set for noon.
 
What's New

• After last week's victory, Yale became one of four Ivies to receive votes in the AFCA FCS Coaches Poll, alongside Dartmouth, Harvard and Brown. 
• Yale is seeking its first 2-0 start since the 2019 Ivy League championship team won its first three games of the season.
• As the newest Bulldog quarterback, Dante Reno impressed against Holy Cross. He went 13 for 18, throwing for 166 yards, a touchdown and zero turnovers. Reno's favorite target was wide receiver Nico Brown, who caught five passes for 119 yards and a 29-yard touchdown.
• Josh Pitsenberger made his mark to start the season. The captain led the Bulldogs in scoring, rushing for three touchdowns and 127 yards on 26 carries. It was Pitsenberger's first three-touchdown game since his sophomore season, when he rushed for 131 yards and three scores in a double-overtime game against Princeton on Nov. 11, 2023.
• The Yale defense kept Holy Cross out of the endzone for 59 minutes, only allowing a touchdown once the offense put the game out of reach. Abu Kamara and Inumidun Ayo-Durojaiye both led the Bulldogs with 10 total tackles. Osize Daniyan forced the only turnover of the game, stripping the ball from a Holy Cross runner with Ayo-Durojaiye recovering. The 10 points allowed is the fewest by the Bulldogs in a season opener since 2019.
• For their performances against Holy Cross, Pitsenberger and Kamara were named to the Ivy League Honor Roll on Sept. 22.
• Entering the matchup, Pitsenberger is 58 rushing yards away from entering the top 10 for career rushing yards in Yale history.

The Series vs. Cornell

• Yale has opened Ivy League play against Cornell in every season since 2000.
• The Bulldogs are 16-8 in those games, but have not won in the series since 2022, when they took down the Big Red 38-14 in Ithaca behind three Josh Pitsenberger touchdowns. 

The Last Matchup

• In 2024, Cornell defeated Yale 47-23 in Ithaca. Josh Pitsenberger scored two touchdowns on the ground for the Bulldogs that day, with Ry Yates scoring one through the air.

Scouting The Big Red

• Cornell is looking to avoid its first 0-2 start since the 2021 season, when they went 2-8 overall and 1-6 in the Ivy League.
• The Big Red were picked to finish seventh in the 2025 Ivy League Preseason Poll, only ahead of Brown. Cornell has not won an Ivy League championship since 1990 and has never won the title outright.
• The team opened its season on the road against Albany, losing a low-scoring contest 13-10. It was the fewest points allowed by Cornell in a season opener since 2019.
• Against the Great Danes, Cornell split reps between quarterbacks Devin Page and Garrett Bass-Sulpizio. The pair combined for 153 passing yards, one touchdown and one interception. Page also led the Big Red in rushing to open the season, running for 57 yards on 10 carries.
• The lone Cornell touchdown scorer was reigning All-Ivy Honorable Mention tight end Ryder Kurtz, who led the team with 68 receiving yards on six receptions.
• Linebacker Joey Cheshire led the Big Red in total tackles, accumulating 10 against Albany. Defensive back Michael O'Keefe had the most solo tackles (5), as well as an interception. Cornell is one of four Ivies that kicked off the season allowing less than 14 points, joining Yale (10), Harvard (7) and Brown (0).

Looking Ahead
After hosting Cornell, the Bulldogs hit the road for their first two away games of the year beginning with an Oct. 4 tilt at No. 10 Lehigh and then Oct. 11 at Dartmouth (RV).