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| Junior quarterback Mike Saraceno threw for three touchdowns and ran for one to lead Colgate to a 34-20 win over Cornell. |
(Game Statistics)
HAMILTON, N.Y. (10/1/05) – After 13 turnovers in the first three games, the Colgate football team played a near perfect contest en route to a 34-20 win over Cornell Saturday at Andy Kerr Stadium.
The Raiders, who didn’t commit a turnover, won their 10th straight game over the Big Red, and 19th in the last 21 meetings.
Junior quarterback Mike Saraceno completed 16-of-32 passes for 224 yards and a career-best three touchdowns, and carried five times for 16 yards and one touchdown, while freshman tailback Jordan Scott carried 42 times for 153 yards to lead the Colgate offensive attack.
Scott is the first freshman running back to rush for over 100 yards since Ed Weiss gained 185 yards against Princeton in 1997. He is also the first back to gain over 100 yards against the Cornell defense during Coach Jim Knowles tenure with the Big Red.
“I think our whole team played well,” said Colgate head coach Dick Biddle, who is now second all-time in career wins with 78. “I don’t think any areas played bad. We made all our field goals, had good kickoff and punt return coverage, and return the ball well on special teams. The defense was good, and it was a good effort.”
Cornell came out strong in the first quarter taking a 6-0 lead on a pair of field goals by A.J. Weitsman. Weitsman nailed a 42-yarder before kicking a career-long 47-yarder with 6:09 left in the quarter.
The Raiders scored their first touchdown early in the second quarter on a seven-yard pass play from Saraceno to junior wide out Kenny Parker, capping an 83-yard, 14-play drive. It was Parker’s first collegiate TD. Mike Rava kicked the extra point to put the Raiders ahead, 7-6.
Colgate increased its advantage to 10-6 with 8:01 remaining in the first half, when Rava booted a career-long 43-yard field goal.
The Big Red, behind the running of tailback Luke Siwula who gained 165 yards on 20 carries, retook the lead with 1:05 left when Joshua Johnston scored on a two-yard run for a 13-10 advantage.
Colgate, however, took advantage of a 59-yard kickoff return by Geoff Bean to the Cornell 38-yard line with 54 seconds remaining. Then with three seconds left, Saraceno completed an 11-yard touchdown pass to Parker to give the Raiders a 17-13 halftime lead.
On the first possession of the second half, Cornell marched to the Colgate one-yard where Siwula scored to give the Big Red a 20-17 lead. The Raiders came right back on their first possession to tie the game 20-20 on Rava’s 36-yard field goal. Rave is a perfect 6-of-6 on field goal attempts this season.
Colgate took control of the game in the fourth quarter with over 11 minutes of possession and two touchdown downs.
The first touchdown came on 39-yard pass play from Saraceno to senior wide out DeWayne Long on third-and-two with 12:32 left. On its next possession, following a 22-yard punt return by Bean, the Raiders tallied on a three-yard rush by Saraceno.
GAME NOTES – Colgate had 418 yards of total offense, while Cornell managed 302 (only 79 passing) … sophomore Erik Burke had four catches for 83 yards, while Parker finished with four receptions for 44 yards and two touchdowns … Long finished with four catches for 60 yards and one TD, while freshman tight end Brent Dillingham grabbed three passes for 22 yards.
Senior cornerback Chris Williams and senior linebacker Jared Nepa had one interception apiece. Williams has had an interception in each of the first four games … Bean was Colgate’s leading tackler with 10, while Zach Dollar had nine and Andrew Moore eight … Defensive tackle Chris Petrone had his second sack of the season.
Colgate is 25-5 against Ivy League opponents under Biddle … Long is now 15th in career receiving yardage with 1,119 yards.
