Here is the game story from Yale's 47-24 loss to Colgate on Saturday.

Plenty of freshmen are making an instant impact for the Bulldogs. Here's a feature on Yale's newcomers.
Also, a prediction for today's game.

A reminder, Saturday is Youth Day at the Yale Bowl.
There will be clinics led by Yale athletes, games, activities beginning at 10 a.m. and at halftime of the Yale-Colgate game children are invited to go on the field.
Admission to Saturday’s game is free for children 12 and under.

I spoke with wide receiver Austin Reuland for a story on Yale’s freshmen, which will run Saturday.

Reuland was one of the few bright spots in the Bulldogs 45-6 loss to Cornell last weekend. He finished with six catches for 79 yards and was an Ivy League honor roll selection for the week.

Reuland’s quick success shouldn’t be much of a surprise. He’s learned plenty from his brother Konrad a starting tight end for the New York Jets, along with his other brother Warren who played wide receiver at Stanford.

“Techniques on how to block, run routes, they know everything,” Reuland said. “They’ve been through it all. Any time I have a question, I call them up.”

Of course, I had to ask about Tebow Mania. Konrad actually went on a recruiting trip to USC with Tebow and now it’s come full-circle in New York.

“[Tebow] is a pretty low key guy,” Reuland learned from his brother. “He’s not about the media at all. He loves him. “

And Reuland knows Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez pretty well, too. In fact, Reuland’s father coached Sanchez in youth league basketball.

Also, here’s a story on DE Allen Davis. He’s given the Bulldogs some consistency in an expanded role this season on the defensive end.  

Another four turnovers, three resulting in touchdowns for Cornell. Big Red QB Jeff Mathews put on a passing clinic and freshman RB Luke Hagy made his debut by scoring two touchdowns.
The result was a 45-6 loss for Yale, its biggest defeat since falling 63-21 to UConn back in 1998.
Needless to say, it wasn’t much fun for Yale to go back and watch film early this week.
“It was honestly heart breaking,” senior OL Roy Collins said. “We thought we just killed ourselves.All the credit to Cornell. They came out and made the best of every opportunity we gave them. We didn’t execute. We gave them the opportunity to beat us and they definitely did. It was tough. There is a lot to learn from and now we’re focused on Colgate.”

Senior RB Mordecai Cargill is expected to play Saturday against Colgate head coach Tony Reno said.

Cargill suffered an injury in the second quarter of Yale’s 45-6 loss to Cornell Saturday. After catching a pass, Cargill had his legs taken out on a tackle attempt and came down hard. He sat out the remainder of the game. He has 86 yards and a fumble on 22 rushing attempts this season.

UPDATE ON LEWIS

A couple of readers asked to get an update on freshman WR Avery Lewis.

Reno said Tuesday that he’s been battling some injuries, but nothing serious. Lewis is No. 2 on the depth chart this week behind Cam Sandquist. At 6-5, 197, Lewis has good size and he’s athletic.

"He’s improving every day," Reno said. "We’re definitely excited about him and where he’s going to be in the next eight weeks and in the future."

Yale freshman WR Austin Reuland was named to the Ivy League honor roll after finishing with six receptions for 79 yards in Saturday’s 45-6 loss to Cornell Saturday. 

Also, for those attending Yale home games this season check out this link. Traffic plans have changed.

Yale will face quite a challenge today going up against Cornell QB and reigning Ivy League Offensive Player of the Year Jeff Mathews.
Also, here is a look at what to expect for today's game.

Here’s some more on Tyler Varga.

The Canadian freshman made quite a first impression Saturday rushing for 103 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries and consequently earning Ivy League rookie of the week honors.

Varga (5-11, 220) is a powerful, downhill runner.

“After first contact he never goes down,” quarterback Eric Williams said. “You need two people to bring him down because he’s such a powerful runner. He’s a real asset to the offense.”

Did head coach Tony Reno see this kind of immediate impact?

“You can’t forecast that,” he said. You come to the campus and settle into college life and see how fast you pick up the playbook. I give our seniors some credit for that. For our seniors and juniors, they welcome guys in.”

POWERS PLAYING WELL

It appears that former Hopkins standout John Powers will have a much bigger role this season.

Powers started one game at free safety last season, but was known for his special teams play. Well Powers started in Saturday’s win against Georgetown and finished with a nine tackles and a fumble recovery.

“He’s a skill guy playing DB,” Reno said. “I remember recruiting him as a QB at Hopkins. If he wasn’t starting at safety we’d probably play him at WR too.”

LITTLE OUT

The injury bug has hit another WR for Yale. Already without Chris Smith and Deon Randall for the season, Cheshire product and freshman Sebastian Little will miss “a few weeks” according to Reno.

Little went down with an injury in Saturday’s game against the Hoyas. Before getting injured, Little caught three passes for 19 yards.

In case you missed it, here's a feature on WR Cam Sandquist. He looks to be the top target of QB Eric Williams and a legit playmaker, especially with Chris Smith and Deon Randall out for the year.

Check back later tonight for a few more notes.

Eric Williams watched as his brothers Sean (graduated last year) and Scott (now a senior) played for the Bulldogs. He waited for his turn.

Well Williams got it. And perhaps much sooner than expected.

Williams became the first freshman to start at QB since Mike McClellan was under center in the 1997 season opener against Brown.

Williams looked solid in his debut completing 19-of-30 passes for 250 yards and a touchdown in Saturday’s 24-21 win over Georgetown. That included a 98-yard touchdown to Cam Sandquist, the longest play from scrimmage in program history. But he also threw three interceptions.

"There’s a lot of things to correct, especially in my game," said Williams Tuesday. "I was a little nervous with the first snap, but once the game got going it was football from there on out. Going into next week, it’s going to get easier to get in the game quicker, know my reads quicker and just feel more comfortable leading the offense."

SNAPPING TROUBLES

Junior center John Oppenheimer had some issues with his snaps Saturday. A few of Oppenheimer’s snaps went high and wide, and one resulted in a fumble that led to a go-ahead score for the Hoyas in the third quarter. Head coach Tony Reno didn’t seem to be worried.

"It’s kind of like a pitcher who throws 100 pitches in the game," Reno said. "He throws 70 strikes and 28 balls and two wild pitches. John’s been so consistent for us. A couple of bad snaps. He’s a hard-working kid and he’ll correct it. Not something I’m concerned about at all."

Added legendary coach Carm Cozza: "Snapping on synthetic turf is different than on grass (Georgetown’s Multi-Sport Field was synthetic turf). Now he has a game under belt. It’ll help him."

A RETRO LOOK

Yale's helmets have an old-school look to them. There is no more white and blue outlining the Y. Now the Y stands alone, bringing back the look from the late 1960-1980s. 

Here are a few things to take away from Yale’s season-opening 24-21 win over Georgetown on Saturday...

 

1. Tyler Varga is for real. If there were any concerns about how Varga would adjust to American football, he put those to rest Saturday. The freshman running back was last year’s CIS National Freshman of the Year while at Canada’s University of Western Ontario. He split carries with Mordecai Cargill and pounded his way for 103 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries in his debut. Varga was named Ivy League rookie of the week.

2. Perhaps it was first-game jitters or some miscommunication, but center John Oppenheimer struggled with his snaps, and that’s something that needs to be addressed heading into Ivy League play. The junior who started every game last year, had trouble Saturday with high and wide snaps throughout. One snap resulted in a fumble that set up a go-ahead touchdown for Georgetown in the third quarter.

3. Freshman quarterback Eric Williams looked solid in his debut. He also showed at times that he is a freshman. Yes he set a Yale record with a 98-yard touchdown pass to Cam Sandquist, the longest play from scrimmage in the program’s 140-year history. But Williams also threw three interceptions. He finished 19-30 for 250 yards and a touchdown.  

4. The Bulldogs lost a lot of speed with Chris Smith and Deon Randall out for the season. But Cam Sandquist showed why Yale still has at least one speedster and playmaker at WR. Sandquist finished with 187 yards and a touchdown on nine catches.

5. The Bulldogs looked pretty good defensively considering all the new faces on that side of the ball this season. Yale allowed just one offensive touchdown Saturday (the two others were on a punt return and an interception return). Georgetown threw for just 94 yards and Collin Bibb came up with a game-sealing interception in the final minute.