Cornell football opens with night game

The oldest college football rivalry west of the Mississippi River will be seen in a brand new light.

Cornell College will open the 2014 season this fall by hosting rival Coe for the first game under recently installed lights at Ash Park in Mount Vernon. The Rams and Kohawks will play for the 125th time Sept. 13, beginning at 7 p.m.

Permanent lights were put in place less than two weeks ago and Cornell athletics director John Cochrane said the goal is have the lights on by the end of the month, depending on the ground's spring thaw.

'We're just thrilled to provide an atmosphere for our student athletes that we think will be a memorable one,' Cochrane said. 'Playing under the lights early in the year is going to be a great experience.'

Cornell has made renovations to Ash Park, installing ProGrass field turf before last season. Lights are the next phase and have been in the works since the start of the improvement projects. It is another step forward for the athletics department.

'The institution has done a great job to move forward ever since I've been here,' said Rams football coach Vince Brautigam, in his fourth year. 'They had a plan and now you see the plan in process. We're extremely excited.'

Coe cooperated with the change. Brautigam and Coe Coach Steve Staker exchanged calls about the possibility. They let Cochrane and Coe athletics director John Chandler hash out the details, agreeing to a time about a week ago.

'They were receptive,' Cochrane said. 'We appreciate Coe's willingness to play at night. I think they see it as a potential exciting experience for their athletes as well.'

The game is set for the same day as the annual Iowa vs. Iowa State game in Iowa City. The CyHawk Series has regularly been a day game, so an evening kickoff will allow more fans, including Cornell and Coe alumni, to attend.

'That wasn't lost on us either,' said Cochrane, noting early-season night games allow athletes to avoid competing in the heat of the day. 'Hopefully, that frees people to come out at night and watch our game.'

Both teams were 7-3 last season. Coe won the Bremner Cup contest, 42-7, and has won the last 14 meetings. The Rams' last win over the Kohawks was a 32-23 victory in 1999. It was only fitting that Cornell's inaugural night game is against its longtime rival.

'I think it's a win-win all the way around,' Brautigam said. 'A lot of freshmen come in and they are used to playing at night. For some of our older kids, who haven't played a night game in three or four years, I think it's exciting.'

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