Cornell football looks to make strides in Midwest Conference opener against Beloit

MOUNT VERNON — Cornell Coach Dan Pifer finally witnessed his team in competition.

Despite being hired in December 2019, he had yet to see the Rams play a bona fide game until the season opener against Coe. He knew this would be a learning experience for players and coaches. The 38-7 loss shined a light on the good things that transferred from practice to the game and what didn’t carry over from workouts.

“There were definitely some good things and bad things,” said Pifer, in his first season as Rams head coach. “I think we have a better idea of where we are now. This is really the first time we’ve gotten to see our team play live in game situations.”

The Rams will attempt to rebound with their first Midwest Conference game in 21 months. They face Beloit (Wis.) College Saturday at Van Metre Field of Ash Park, starting at 1 p.m. Cornell is looking for its sixth straight win in the series, hosting the Buccaneers for the first time since 2017.

Pifer emphasized the importance of this week and the possible gains that can be made between the first two contests.

“I told them you make your biggest improvement from Week 1 to Week 2 and that’s we have to do,” Pifer said. “We had a good week of practice this week, so we’re getting better for sure.”

One of Saturday’s bright spots was the freshman play. Cornell has its biggest freshman class, listing 46 on the current roster. Twenty-four are in the Rams’ two-deep rotation, including Week 1 starters Trey Birdsong at wide receiver and linebackers Anthony Hoffman and Jacob Buehler.

Twenty-eight Rams played in their first college football game against Coe.

“I thought our young kids did a very good job,” Pifer said. “They played hard. The moment wasn’t too big for them. We had some guys step up. Some were freshmen, so that’s a positive for us. We had some young guys make some plays.

“I was happy overall with the number of freshman that we’re playing and that played pretty well. They made mistakes and after they moved on to the next play. They didn’t pout or hang their head. They kept playing hard and I said that was a huge positive. We can build on that.”

Offensively, the Rams only managed 140 yards, but did not commit a turnover. The defense surrendered 458 yards. Pifer was disappointed in the number of missed tackles, including 16 total on the first three drives.

Special teams provided a few positives and could be a key for Cornell. Punter Landon Lockington averaged 40.3 yards on six punts, including two that went for at least 50 yards flipping the field. The Rams pinned Coe inside its 5 twice. The unit also blocked a punt that resulted in a short field and Cornell’s lone touchdown that day.

“I thought the special teams were really good,” Pifer said. “We pride ourselves on having really good special teams. We have to be sound there. I told them that has to be the difference maker for us in close games.”

Pifer challenged the seniors and more experienced players this week. He wants to see them take more of a lead and make plays on the field in all three phases.

“Seniors have to play like seniors,” Pifer said. “I didn’t think we did a great job of that, so we had a talk with them. I said, ‘If we want to have any kind of success we’re counting on you guys to make plays for us. You’re the older guys. You’ve been here four years. You have to make plays when they’re there.’

“That was the big thing we harped on and I thought they stepped up this week, too, along with those younger guys. We just have to get them to believe they can be a pretty good team.”

Beloit (0-1) lost its opener to Concordia Chicago, 30-7. The Buccaneers resemble the Rams, boosting their roster to 77 with their largest freshman class in program history. Beloit was 1-9 in 2019 and was picked two spots back of Cornell in the MWC pre-season coaches poll.

“I think we’re very similar with where we’re at,” Pifer said. “They’ve got some young kids, too. I think it’s going to boil down to, like it does every week, who can execute. You can’t turn the ball over, you can’t have penalties and you can’t give up big plays.”