Volume LXVVIII, No. 2
September 23, 2017
YALE FOOTBALL NEWS Published by the Yale Football Association
Bulldogs Top Cornell 49 - 24
Publication authored by Chip Malafronte
If the first two games are any indication, Yale’s offense is a force to be reckoned with in the Ivy League. A week after hanging 56 on Lehigh, the Bulldogs went to work on Cornell both through the air and on the ground in a 49-24 victory last Saturday at the Yale Bowl. The Bulldogs are scoring points at an historic pace. The 105 points scored are the most for a Yale team over the first two weeks in 129 years. Only three teams – North Dakota State, Penn and Sam Houston State – are averaging more points per game this season than Yale’s average of 52.5. Eight games remain, including Ivy opponents sure to provide stiffer competition. But there’s great reason for optimism at Yale. “How good are we going to be? Time will tell,” said Joel E. Smilow ’54 Head Coach of Football Tony Reno. “But I was very proud of the culture of this team, the ability of these guys to play together, not to have any doubt in their ability, in our ability as a team.” It took two quarters before Yale’s offense really got rolling on Saturday. The Bulldogs only first-half touchdown came on a 19-yard interception return by Hayden Carlson late in the first quarter, at least until a late scoring drive gave them a 14-10 halftime lead. Cornell’s Dalton Banks found Chris Walker with a 14-yard touchdown pass with 4:21 to play in the half, giving the Big Red a 10-7 lead. Yale’s defense, which pressured Banks all game, helped get the ball back late in the half after a sack by defensive end Kyle Mullen. Sophomore quarterback Kurt Rawlings, running Yale’s 2-minute offense to perfection, found Reed Klubnik for completions of 27 and 22 yards to put the ball on the Cornell 14. Rawlings ran it in from there, a 14-yard scamper with 37 seconds remaining that gave his team the lead for good.
at least 45 points in each of its three losses. Yale could be in for another big offensive outing. Reno, knowing Penn, Princeton and Harvard won’t be nearly as generous on either side of the ball, believes there’s still much work to be done. “There’s a lot of area to clean up and a lot of room to grow,” Reno said. “We have standards and our standards are pretty high. I thought we played a good 20 minutes of offense, a good 20 minutes of defense. We have to play a complete game. But I’m so proud of these kids; proud of the team. I’m excited to see us move forward next week.”
The offense found its bearings in the second half. Deshawn Salter scored the first of three touchdowns on the first offensive series, a 3-yard run set up by freshman Zane Dudek’s 47-yard run on the previous play. Yale strung together a 12-play, 80-yard scoring drive on its next series, Salter’s 1-yard run extending the lead to 28-10. On the defensive side, Yale’s defense, which had limited Cornell through three quarters, stumbled in the fourth quarter. The Big Red scored twice in the final 15 minutes, including a 57-yard touchdown pass from Banks to James Hubbard that cut Yale’s lead to 35-24. Salter, a senior from Syracuse, New York, wasted little time regaining Yale’s comfortable cushion. His 82-yard touchdown run made the score 42-24. Dudek added a 14-yard scoring run on the Bulldogs next series to make it 49-24. Dudek finished with 173 yards on 16 carries, just 12 yards off the single-game record for a Yale freshman running back. Salter’s line was just as impressive – 143 yards on 12 carries. The Bulldogs are averaging 300 yards rushing per game, making it one of the most lethal ground attacks in FCS. “We have some good running backs,” Reno said. “We feel we have a great offensive line. We feel like those guys will keep moving the chain. I think that they work really well together.” Yale’s defense finished with six quarterback sacks, led by Mullen’s two, and has 11 sacks on the season, tops in the Ivy League. Jason Alessi added an interception. “It definitely helps that we have some coverage behind us,” Mullen said. “We work every day and I think the D-line is playing really well and they continue to play aggressive and work on rushing and play together.” Next week’s opponent, Fordham, has allowed
“We have some good running backs, we feel we have a great offensive line. We feel like those guys will keep moving the chain. I think that they work really well together.” Tony Reno, Joel E. Smilow ‘54 Head Coach of Football
YALE 49, CORNELL 24
BULLDOG BITES
SCORING BY QUARTERS Cornell 3-7-0-14-24 Yale 7-7-14-21-49 1st QUARTER C – FG Mays 21, 10:11 Y – Carlson 19 interception return (Galland kick), 1:45 2nd QUARTER C – Walker 14 pass from Banks (Mays kick), 4:13 Y – Rawlings 14 run (Galland kick), 0:37 3rd QUARTER Y – Salter 3 run (Galland kick), 11:50 Y – Salter 1 run (Galland kick) 1:18 4th QUARTER Y – Graham 4 pass from Rawlings (Galland kick) 14:56 C – Coles 90 run (kick failed) 14:33 C – Hubbard 57 pass from Banks (Galland kick) 8:23 Y – Salter 82 run (Galland kick) 8:12 Y – Dudek 14 run (Galland kick) 5:38
GAME STATS CORNELL
YALE
27
21
Rushes-Yards
35-114
39-342
Passing Yards
317
123
29-53-2
10-17-1
Total Offense
431
465
Fumbles/Lost
0-0
2-1
Penalties/Yards
7-67
14-124
Punts (Avg.)
6-39.8
6-43.3
Time of Possession
28:06
29:03
TEAM STATISTICS
First Downs
Passes
2
Team celebrates Deshawn Salter’s TD
Dudek earns Ivy League Rookie of the Week.
Matt Oplinger was only 11 in 2006, the last time Yale won an Ivy League championship. But he’s as familiar with that title run as anyone. His older brother, Justin ‘10, was a freshman linebacker on that team, and young Matt was in the stands for just about every game.
This sort of early-season point explosion isn’t that uncommon at Yale. In 2014 the Bulldogs opened the season with 103 points, wins over Lehigh and Army, and followed those games with 51 against Cornell in the third.
So as his high school career at New Jersey’s Delbarton School was winding down, Oplinger held a special for Yale during the recruiting process. “Yale was definitely on my mind the whole time,” Oplinger said. “It was definitely the only Ivy League school that I would have gone to.” Coach Tony Reno, listening to his senior linebacker at a recent Yale football luncheon, cracked a smile. “He made us work,” Reno said. Oplinger has contributed since his arrival at Yale. He played in every game his first year and was the recipient of the Charles Loftus Award as most outstanding freshman. Each of the past two seasons he’s made honorable mention AllIvy League. His best outing as a junior was likely Yale’s victory at Harvard. At 6-foot-3, 243 pounds, Oplinger is a leader on and off the field. Teammates voted him the strongest “pound-for-pound” player on the team, and he’s not shy about speaking up in the huddle. “I just try to be as loud as possible, make sure everyone’s on the same page,” Oplinger said. “Because that’s the most important thing about defense. On offense, everyone knows the plays, but defense is entirely reactionary. You have to be able to mold a play based on what the offense is doing in front of us, formation, personnel, etc. So, I have to be loud in order to make sure everyone’s on the same change.” OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION Yale has scored 105 total points so far this season, the most over the first two games of a season since the days of Walter Camp. The last time the Bulldogs began a season with more points was in 1888, when the team, then coached by the immortal Camp, beat Rutgers and Wesleyan by a combined score of 141-0.
Yale is getting the job done on the ground and through the air. Quarterback Kurt Rawlings has completed nearly 70 percent of his passes with five touchdowns and one interception. And he’s spreading the wealth. Eight different receivers have made at least one reception, with senior Chris WilliamsLopez leading the balanced attack with 10 catches for 117 yards. Of course, Yale’s ground game, averaging 8 yards per carry, might be the most versatile and dangerous in the league. Zane Dudek is averaging an astounding 12.2 yards-per carry. Deshawn Salter isn’t far behind at 7.4.
EXTRA BITES >> Alex Galland, a junior, is leading the Ivy League in punting with an average of 44.1 yards per kick. He has also made all 13 of his extra point kick attempts. >> Here’s to Yale’s offensive and defensive lines. The Bulldogs lead the Ivy League with 11 sacks, and have allowed only three, fewest in the conference. >>Handsome Dan celebrated his first birthday on Saturday. The crowd at the Bowl sang “Happy Birthday” at halftime. >> Freshman running back Zane Dudek set a Western Pennsylvania high school record for single-game rushing last fall with 492. That mark was broken earlier this month, when another back went for 524. >> Zane Dudek earns Ivy League Rookie of the Week against Cornell.
THE IVY LEAGUE REPORT
STANDINGS (Ivy/Overall) YALE HARVARD COLUMBIA DARTMOUTH
1-0 | 2-0 1-0 | 1 -1 0-0 | 2-0 0-0 | 2-0
THIS WEEKEND
PENN PRINCETON BROWN CORNELL
0-0 | 2-0 0-0 | 2-0 0-0 | 1 -1 0 -1 | 0-2
Fri., Dartmouth at Penn, 7 p.m. Sat., Yale at Fordham, 6 p.m. Sat., Rhode Island at Brown, 12:30 p.m. Sat., Columbia at Princeton, 12:30 p.m. Sat., Colgate at Cornell, 1:30 p.m. Sat., Harvard at Georgetown, 2 p.m.
LAST WEEKEND... Harvard 45, Brown 28:
Harvard rebounded from an embarrassing loss to Rhode Island in the season-opener, taking a 38-2 lead after three quarters in an easy victory. The Crimson intercepted three passes and used a balanced offensive attack that finished with 222 yards passing and 200 yards rushing.
Penn 65, Lehigh 47:
Running back Karekin Brooks rushed for 268 yards and three touchdowns and passed four a fourth to lead the Quakers. Brooks missed the Penn single-game rushing record by four yards, and has run for 410 in two games.
Columbia 35, Georgetown 14:
Anders Hill threw for four touchdowns to lead Columbia, which is off to a 2-0 start for the first time since 2006.
Princeton 38, Lafayette 17:
Chad Kanoff passed for 256 yards and three touchdowns while Charlie Volker added 111 and a touchdown on the ground to pace the Tigers.
Dartmouth 27, Holy Cross 26 (OT): Holy Cross opted for a 2-point conversion pass and the victory and overtime but came up short. The score was tied at 20-20 after four quarters only because the Crusaders had an extra-point attempt blocked with 3 seconds remaining in the game.
RENO’S RUNDOWN Joel E. Smilow ’54 Head Coach of Football ispum a dolor sit amet,team condecteur ad- of when they’re not playing well. “You can Loram tell what football is made ipiscing edit. Aenean eros ut cursus cursus. It’s easy to be on top and play your best but it’s really hard to come back In rhoncus, lacus id rutrum gravida, nibh when you’re not playing your massa best.urna Very accumsan lectus, in rutrum valdifficult, in a game, to make the adrisus fermentum. justmentstellus. youMauris needintoeros benec successful. To me, that’s the mark of good team.” in rutrum massa urna
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UP NEXT...
YALE (2-0) at FORDHAM (1-3)
THE SERIES
SAT, SEPTEMBER 30
RADIO: WELI-960
6:00 PM
TV:
TICKETS: 203-432-1400
ONLINE: PATRIOT LEAGUE NETWORK
Fordham leads the all-time series with Yale 5-4, which dates back to 1953. The Rams have won the past two games, and three of the last four, including a 44-27 victory in the Bronx last season.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT Fordham has fallen on hard times since the departure of coach Joe Moorhead in 2015. Moorhead led the Rams to three straight FCS playoff berths, but was hired as Penn State’s offensive coordinator. Fordham has won five of 15 games since, including a 45-40 loss to Bryant last weekend. Quarterback Kevin Anderson can be dangerous when given time, and freshman running back Zach Davis, who broke the Connecticut high school record for rushing yards in a single game, is coming off his first career 100 yard effort in college. Fordham’s weakness is defense. It has failed to hold an opponent under 31 points this season. All three losses have been particularly porous. Army scored 64 points in the opener, Eastern Washington, ranked 12th in FCS, had 56 before Bryant’s 45. Yale’s vaunted attack could be in for another big day.
BULLDOGS OF THE WEEK
Kyle Mullen, Jr., Defensive end 6-4, 250, Manalapan, N.J.
Salter had touchdown runs of 1, 3 and 82 as the Bulldogs ran past Cornell, part a huge day for the Yale running game. Salter finished with 143 yards rushing on 12 carries, an average of 11.9 per rush. The 82-yard run was a career long, as were the three scores.
Yale has excelled at pressuring opposing quarterbacks so far this season. Mullen led the charge against Cornell, with two of the Bulldogs six sacks. He added a third tackle for a loss, finishing with five total tackles on the day.
2017 SCHEDULE
Deshawn Salter, Sr., Running back 5-10, 215, Syracuse, N.Y.
SEPT. 16 SEPT. 23 SEPT. 30 OCT. 7 OCT. 14 OCT. 21 OCT. 28 NOV. 3 NOV. 11 NOV. 18
LEHIGH CORNELL* FORDHAM DARTMOUTH* HOLY CROSS PENN* COLUMBIA* BROWN* PRINCETON* HARVARD*
W 56-28 W 49-24 6:00 PM 1:30 PM 1:00 PM 1:00 PM 1:00 PM 8:00 PM 1:00 PM 12:30 PM
JUNIOR VARSITY SCHEDULE SEPT. 24 OCT. 15 NOV. 17
PHOTO CREDITS
MILFORD ACADEMY BROWN HARVARD
L 35-24 1:00 PM 1:00 PM
Jack Warhola, Stephen Fritzer, Ron Waite’s Photosportacular
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* Ivy League Game
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