Some additional news and notes…

Scouting Lehigh

Last year, Yale rallied from a 21-point deficit to beat Lehigh 54-43. Lehigh is 2-2 and coming off a 52-26 loss to Princeton. The Mountain Hawks have a similar spread offense to Yale’s. QB Nick Shafnisky can beat offenses with his arm and legs. Led by Troy Pelletier, Lehigh is loaded at WR and will spread the ball. Defensively, Lehigh will use an odd front and bring pressure. The defense is similar to Colgate in that way. Rain and wind are expected for game day in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

Homesick

Yale will play four straight road games and will not return home to the Bowl until Halloween when it hosts Columbia.

“A hotel, a queen-sized bed, a good night sleep,” said DB Hayden Carlson about the benefits of playing on the road. “You’re around the guys for the day. It’s good for team camaraderie.”

Ivy success

With Dartmouth, Harvard, Princeton and Yale 2-0, the Ivy has four teams seeking to reach 3-0 for the first time in recent conference history, at least since 1984.

Upset

Penn's upset over No. 4 Villanova was the first win for the Ivy over a ranked non-conference opponent since Yale won 24-10 on the road at then No. 18 Cal Poly on Oct. 5, 2013.

This week’s schedule

Friday, October 2
Colgate at Cornell, 7 pm [ILDN]
Georgetown at Harvard, 7 pm [ESPN3/ILDN]
*Columbia at Princeton, 7 pm [NBCSN]

Saturday, October 3
Yale at Lehigh, 12:30 pm [SE2]
*Dartmouth at Penn, 3:30 pm [ILDN]
Rhode Island at Brown, 6 pm [ILDN]

Tony Reno told the Bulldogs at halftime of their comeback victory Saturday to “make a memory.”

They did. For the second straight week, Yale came from behind and pulled out the victory. Here’s a story from Register columnist Chip Malafronte on Yale’s ability to come back these first two games.

And some additional notes from Tuesday’s media luncheon…

DB Hayden Carlson led the team with 10 tackles on Saturday. Here’s what he had to say about the struggles early on.

“We had a lot of self-inflicted wounds,” he said. “That starts with penalties (Yale had 12). It comes down to mental execution. But as the game progressed, we played smarter. We had the confidence to make plays and get off the field on third down.”

Added Reno: “We’ve had issues with consistency right now. It’s something we need to continue to address. It comes down to mental focus on the play and on the job, and maintaining that mental focus through the drive and through the play. That’s the piece we need to improve upon. It’s a rep thing, a concentration thing. To be an upper level team, you need to have it for 60 minutes, not a shorter period of time with that.”

INJURIES

OL Mason Friedline and WR Bo Hines missed Saturday’s game against Cornell. DB Foye Oluokun and RB Candler Rich were both injured in the game. Reno listed all as day-to-day.

If Rich can’t go, that leaves Yale really thin at RB with just Deshawn Salter, Austin Reuland and possibly Jamal Locke. Reno said he will not move any other players to RB.

RUN GAME ISSUES

Yale’s rushing attack is averaging just 90 ypg and 2.7 ypc. With some OL dealing with injuries and illnesses during the preseason, that made it difficult to Yale’s OL to develop consistency. Reno says it will come. The complexion of the games, too, was a factor as Yale needed to throw.

“But we definitely need to improve in the run game,” Reno said.

SUPERB PLAY FROM ROBERTS

Reno says he is really pleased with the play of QB Morgan Roberts. He is 54 of 88 for 664 yards and five TDs with just one INT.

Blocking kicks

Oluokun blocked a pair of FGs at Colgate in the season opener. Marty Moesta blocked a Cornell PAT and Hunter Roman did the same on a FG attempt against Cornell. That’s pretty impressive.

“We have the personnel to block kicks,” Reno said. “The amount this early, I’m surprised a bit. This is what we hoped for with this unit. We have guys who can jump and move the line of scrimmage.”

When: Saturday, 12:30 p.m. at Goodman Stadium

Record: 2-2

All-time series: Yale leads 16-6

Last week: Turnovers  and penalties doomed Lehigh in its 52-26 loss to Princeton last week. Lehigh turned the ball over four times and had 10 penalties. It's high-powered offense, however, gained 561 yards. QB Nick Shafnisky threw for 348 yards, Dom Bragalone rushed for 129 yards and Troy Pelletier set a school mark with 15 catches for 158 yards. . 

Top players: QB Nick Shafnisky (281 ypg, 7 TDs, 6 INTs, 70 ypg rushing), RB Dom Bragalone (59 ypg), WR Troy Pelletier (75 ypg, 4 TDs), LB Colton Caslow (51 tackles), DB Brian Githens (2 INTs).

Interesting read from over the weekend in case you missed it. It's a column signed by six health professionals with Yale affiliations about the potential of a turf field at the Yale Bowl.

From the Ivy League...

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Penn sophomore wide receiver Justin Watson (Bridgeville, Pa.) helped launch the Quakers to their first-ever road win over a Top 5 ranked opponent in a 24-13 upset over No. 5/4 Villanova. Watson played just one half before leaving to injury, yet racked up 87 receiving yards and two touchdowns on five receptions for 17.4 yards per reception. Four of his five catches went for first downs and helped the Quakers own time of possession in the first half (24:25 to 5:35) to spur the upset. Watson accounted for all of the game's scoring in the first half, which turned out to be the difference in the game.

Watson's Statistics for the Week
5 rec. for 87 yds., 2 TDs

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Penn junior linebacker/long snapper Donald Panciello (Succasunna, N.J.) scooped up a fumble and ran 90 yards for a game-changing touchdown late in the fourth quarter as the Quakers stunned No. 5/4 Villanova for head coach Ray Priore's first career victory. Panciello also led Penn with eight tackles, seven of which were solo efforts, and had a pass breakup, but but it was his fumble return touchdown that was the play of the game. With seven minutes remaining, the Quakers led 17-7, but Villanova had first-and-goal and was poised to close within a possession. That was until Panciello picked up a fumble and sprinted 90 yards to slam the door on one of the biggest wins in school history.

Panciello's Statistics for the Week
8 tkls. (1 solo), 90-yd. FR for TD, 1 BrUp

SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Yale junior placekicker/punt Bryan Holmes (Holland, Mich.) handled all three phases of the kicking game for the second-straight game in Yale's 33-26, come-from-behind victory over Cornell. Holmes connected on the first two field goals of his career -- a 26-yarder in the third quarter and a 37-yarder in the fourth quarter -- which brought the Bulldogs within a touchdown. He posted a 64.1 kickoff average with three touchbacks and punted for a 36.7 average on three punts.

Holmes' Statistics for the Week
2 FGs (26, 37), 3 PATs, 64.1 yds./kickoff, 36.7 yds./punt, 1 In20, 1 FC

ROOKIE OF WEEK
Harvard freshman running back Noah Reimers (Leesburg, Va.) scored two touchdowns and compiled 60 rushing yards on eight attempts in the Crimson's convincing 53-27 win over Brown. Reimers had a long rush of 27 yards for one of his touchdowns at 5:40 of the third quarter, while the other was a 16-yard dash earlier in the third quarter.

Reimers' Statistics for the Week
8 car. for 60 yds., 2 TDs

HONOR ROLL
David Caldwell, Dartmouth (Sr., DB - Charlotte, N.C.)
7 tkls. (2 solo), 77-yd. INT for TD, 2 BrUps

Hayden Carlson, Yale (So., DB - Glen Ellyn, Ill.)
10 tkls. (8 solo)

Zachary Gillen, Brown (Sr., FS - Mountain Brook, Ala.)
12 tkls. (5 solo)

Scooter Hollis, Columbia (Sr., WR - Bowling Green, Ky.)
10 rec. for 131 yds.

Scott Hosch, Harvard (Sr., QB - Suger Hill, Ga.)
12-19-0, 151 yds., 3 TDs, 20 rush yds.

Jacob Lindsey, Harvard (Sr., LB - Cleves, Ohio)
10 tkls. (4 solo), 11-yd. FR for TD

John Lovett, Princeton (So., QB - Hyattsville, Md.)
71 rec. yds., 59 rush yds., 33 pass yds.

Kyle Moreno, Brown (Jr., QB - Pleasanton, Calif.)
20-31-0, 307 yds., 2 TDs, 28 rush yds.

Morgan Roberts, Yale (Sr., QB - Charlotte, N.C.)
25-27-0, 371 yds., 3 TDs, 29 rush yds.

Collin Shaw, Cornell (Jr., WR - Plano, Texas)
7 rec. for 114 yds., 2 TDs

Dalyn Williams, Dartmouth (Sr., QB - Corinth, Texas)
21-28-0, 313 yds., 1 TD, 34 rush yds., 1 TD

Dorian Williams, Princeton (Jr., DB - Streetsboro, Ohio)
12 tkls. (11 solo), 2 FF, 1 FR

Victor Williams, Dartmouth (Sr., WR - Muskogee, Okla.)
11 rec. for 178 yds., 1 TD

Follow live updates for today's game below or follow @MikeMadera2 on Twitter.For mobile devices, click here.

The National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame announced Yale QB Morgan Roberts as one of its 135 semifinalists for the William V. Campbell Trophy, which recognizes the top scholar-athlete in the nation.

The NFF will announce 15 finalists on Oct. 29 and each of them will receive an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship as a member of the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Class.

According the NFF, the players are nominated by their schools, which are limited to one nominee each, candidates for the awards must be a senior or graduate student in their final year of eligibility, have a GPA of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale, have outstanding football ability as a first team player or significant contributor and have demonstrated strong leadership and citizenship. The class is selected each year by the NFF Awards Committee, which is comprised of a nationally recognized group of media, College Football Hall of Famers and athletics administrators.

Roberts is one of 23 players from the FCS that were nominated. Take a look at the complete list.

NEW HAVEN >> The sound of gun shots rang out. Vanessa Morrissette remembers hearing five of them. It was a little after 11 a.m. on a Saturday last March.

She ran into the bedroom of her son, Marquise Peggs, to make sure he was in there. He was, doing his chores with headphones covering his ears.

“Did you hear that?” she asked him, frantically.

Read the rest of the story.

It's time for four-down Friday. Here are four things to look for when Yale hosts Cornell in its season opener at the Bowl on Saturday at 1 p.m. 

Offensive consistency: Yale showed glimpses of a high-powered offense last week, including an opening 14-play, 71-yard drive that resulted in a touchdown.Yale also scored on its final three drives of the game. But the Bulldogs' attack also looked stagnant at times. Yale will need to get into a rhythm and prove it has a similar high-scoring offense that made the Bulldogs so effective last year. They will go up against an experienced Cornell defense that played well against Bucknell last week.

Halting Hagy: Cornell RB Luke Hagy is a four-year starter. He rushed 18 times for 105 yards and a TD in last week's loss to Bucknell. Expect the ball to be in his hands a ton on Saturday. Colgate had some success on the ground against Yale last week. If the Bulldogs can bottle up Hagy, it will be a long day for the Cornell offense.

Emerging target: WR Mike Siragusa waited his turn, as WRs like Grant Wallace and Deon Randall ate up most of the targets in the pass game last year. He's getting his opportunity now and making the most of it. Siragusa had a team-high seven receptions for 82 yards and two TDs last week. He's big receiver at 6-3, 205, so he's a tough matchup. If Bo Hines can't go, expect Siragusa to continue to emerge. 

Thriving in a new position: Victor Egu has moved to LB from DL this season. The former highly touted recruit finished with a team-high 13 tackles and a pass breakup last week. He looks quicker and should continue what is expected to be a big year for the junior. 

Yale hosts Cornell in its home opener on Saturday. What's your predicted score for the game? List your prediction below...

Portal 31 pick: Yale 38, Cornell 17

Some additional news and notes…

Scouting Cornell

The Big Red is experienced on the defensive side, returning 10 starters from last season. Cornell has a talented secondary and is physical up front. They played well in a 19-14 loss to Bucknell, a team that was picked to finish second in the Patriot League.

Offensively, Luke Hagy is a proven RB in the Ivy. He rushed for 105 yards and a TD last week. QB Rob Somborn has good arm strength. He made a 55-yard throw off his back foot against Bucknell. Cornell has a good group of WRs that are capable of making big plays. Tony Reno says the team really made strides from last season.

Yale leads the series 46-29-2 and has won four of the last seven. QB Morgan Roberts tied a school mark with five TD passes in a win over Cornell last year.

Beating the Big Red

Bucknell QB R.J. Nitti, son of former Yale RB John Nitti, threw a pair of TDs against Cornell last week including the game winner with under 2 minutes left.

Pedersen applying for redshirt

Former St. Joseph standout and Cornell freshman wide receiver Lars Pedersen will miss the season due to mononucleosis.

Pedersen, a Stratford native, is expected to apply for a medical redshirt.

Audible

Penn’s game against Villanova has been moved to Thursday because of the Pope’s visit to Philadelphia. It will be the first time an Ivy League team played on a Thursday since Princeton lost to Colgate in 2OT in 2009.

This week in the Ivy

Thursday, September 24
Penn at Villanova, 7 pm

Saturday, September 26
Georgetown at Columbia, 1 pm [ILDN]
Cornell at Yale, 1 pm [ILDN]
Lehigh at Princeton, 5 pm [ILDN]
Brown at Harvard, 7 pm [FCS]
Sacred Heart at Dartmouth, 7 pm [ILDN]

Last year, Yale trailed in five of its eight victories. The Bulldogs continued their comeback trend on Saturday, trailing by 14 twice before rallying to beat Colgate.

Some more notes from Tuesday’s luncheon…

Traffic advisory

Fans attending Yale’s home opener against Cornell on Saturday at 1 p.m. should be aware of two exit closings and detours in I-95.

Exit 47 on I-95 South will be closed from 9 p.m. on Friday until 6 a.m. on Monday. Exit 48 on I-91 South will be closed from 9 p.m. on Friday until 6 a.m. on Monday as well.

Fans should take Exit 44 to get to Yale Bowl.

Improved defense

After struggling defensively early on against Colgate, the Bulldogs allowed just seven points after 

halftime.

“We were more focused in the second half,” Spencer Rymiszewski said. “Coach was pretty upset at halftime. We didn’t want them to gain another yard. We played well and we can keep it up.”

Going for two

Following a Robert Clemons TD, LB Matt Oplinger took a direct snap and ran in for a two-point conversion. That two-point conversion cut Yale’s deficit to 28-22 in the fourth and proved to be critical, as Yale scored again to pull ahead.

  

“Our approach on XP opportunities is to stress defenses and see how they align,” Tony Reno said. “And if there is an alignment that we feel is advantageous that we’ve worked on, if we like it, we take it.”

Welcome back

Rymiszewski played well in his return. The Yale DB suffered a spinal concussion and missed the final four games last year. He had six tackles, a forced fumble and a key pass deflection on Colgate’s final drive. 

“I’ve been waiting for that for a long time,” he said. “I’ve been out for many games, many months. A lot of rehab, a lot of hard work in the offseason. It’s really rewarding to be back on the field. I’m just blessed to be able to play still.”

Run vs. Pass

Tony Reno insisted during the preseason Yale is still a run-first team. The Bulldogs ran 41 pass plays and 35 run plays on Saturday.

“We want to be as balanced as possible,” Reno said. “Some games threw more than ran, others we ran more than threw last year. The key to being a good offense is the ability to do both. The second half, the passing game was more accessible than the run game because of what they were doing up front. We took advantage of that. There will be times this year it’ll be the opposite.”

What started out as a promising Yale debut for sophomore wide receiver Bo Hines, turned ugly when he went down with a shoulder injury in Yale's 29-28 win over Colgate on Saturday.

Hines, a transfer from North Carolina State who led the Wolfpack in receiving last season, was injured making a 29-yard catch down the right sideline early in the second quarter. He left the game and did not return.

“Everything I’ve been told by the medical staff is day-to-day right now,” Tony Reno said.

Hines finished with six catches for 68 yards. He had four receptions for 36 yards on Yale’s opening drive.

More notes to come later...

When: Saturday, 1 p.m. at Yale Bowl 

Record: 0-1 (0-0 Ivy)

All-time series: Yale leads 46-29-2

Last week: Bucknell QB R.J. Nitti floated a pass to a double-covered Joey Floria on fourth down for a game-winning 20-yard TD with under 2 minutes left. The play lifted Bucknell to a 19-14 win over Cornell. RB Luke Hagy ran 18 times for 105 yards and a TD for Cornell. QB Rob Somborn completed 9-of-18 passes for 152 yards and a TD. He also threw an INT. Jackson Weber had seven tackles and a sack to lead the defense. 

Top players: QB Rob Somborn (9-18, 152 yards, 1 TD); (RB Luke Hagy (18 rushes, 105 yards, 1 TD), WR James Hubbard (3 rec., 60 yds, 1 TD); LB Justin Solomon (8 tackles, .5 TFL). 

From the Ivy League...

CO-OFFENSIVE PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Harvard senior quarterback Scott Hosch (Suger Hill, Ga.) set career-highs with 336 passing yards and three touchdowns, as the Crimson topped Rhode Island 41-10 in its season opener. Hosch was 18-of-27 on the day with scoring passes of 45 yards to junior tight end Ryan Halvorson, 21 yards to senior wide receiver Seitu Smith II and 19 yards to senior tight end Ben Braunecker. His longest pass of the day was a 60-yarder to junior tight end Anthony Firkser. Hosch is now 7-0 as a starter.

Yale senior quarterback Morgan Roberts (Charlotte) brought the Bulldogs back from a pair of 14-point deficits to grab a 29-28 victory at Colgate. Roberts finished the day 29-of-41 with 293 yards and three touchdowns. Yale trailed 28-14 with 10:05 remaining before Roberts connected on two of his three scoring passes -- a 30-yard connection with junior wide receiver Robert Clemons III with 7:19 left and the game-clinching 13-yard connect with sophomore wide receiver Michael Siragusa, Jr.

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Dartmouth senior linebacker Will McNamara (Chicago) made several big plays at Georgetown in the Big Green’s triumphant 31-10, season-win. opening win. None bigger than McNamara's interception early in the second quarter that he returned for a touchdown to aid the cause in the victory. The Hoyas were pinned close to their goal line when the quarterback was pressured in the end zone. His throw went directly to McNamara, who batted the pass into the air before securing it and returning it eight yards for the score, giving Dartmouth a 21-7 lead. It was his third career touchdown off an interception, as many as other Big Green players have had combined since the 1999 season. In addition, McNamara recorded six tackles and had a quarterback hurry on a third-down play in the fourth quarter.

SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Dartmouth senior wide receiver/return specialist Ryan McManus (Mendota Heights, Minn.) proved quite evasive during the Big Green's season-opening 31-10 win at Georgetown. McManus provided the spark to get Dartmouth going late in the first quarter while down 7-0 thanks to a career-long 63-yard return to the Hoyas' 10-yard line. That set up the first Big Green touchdown of the afternoon. He added returns of 23 and 16 yards later in the game and had a chance to set the school’s single-game record for punt return yardage but did not get another opportunity. McManus also led the team with 65 receiving yards on four catches.

ROOKIE OF WEEK
Penn freshman wide receiver Christian Pearson (Northridge, Calif.) made an impact quickly in his first game in a Quaker uniform in a 42-21 defeat at Lehigh. On the second series of his career, Pearson hauled in his first collegiate catch and it went for 45 yards for a touchdown. The score got Penn back into the game at the start of the fourth quarter, but the Quakers were unable to get into the end zone after that. Most of Pearson's first collegiate action was spent on special teams where he also recorded a solo tackle.

HONOR ROLL
DiAndre Atwater, Princeton (Sr., RB - Duluth, Ga.)
14 car. for 93 yds., 52 rec. yds.

Matthew Cahal, Columbia (Sr., DB - Paradise Valley, Ariz.)
10 tkls. (9 solo), 1 INT

Troy Doles, Brown (Sr., WR - Saratoga, Calif.)
6 rec. for 147 yds., 1 TD

Luke Hagy, Cornell (Sr., RB - Pittsburgh)
18 car. for 105 yds., 1 TD, 12 rec. yds.

Kurt Holuba, Princeton (So., DL - Ho-Ho-Kus, N.J.)
6 tkls. (5 solo), 1 Sack, 1.0 TFL

Seth Hope, Cornell (So., DL - Fort Thomas, Ky.)
6 tkls. (4 solo), 2.5 TFL

Matt Koran, Harvard (Sr., LB - Joliet, Ill.)
9 tkls. (8 solo), 1.0 TFL

Skyler Mornhinweg, Columbia (Jr., QB - Philadelphia)
21-25-1, 187 yds., 17 rush yds.

Dré Nelson, Princeton (Sr., RB - Stone Mountain, Ga.)
8 car. for 116 yds., 1 TD, 14 rec. yds.

Grant Senne, Brown (Sr., PK/P - Winter Park, Fla.)
3 FGs (career-high 45, 20, 23), 1 PAT, 29.3 yds./punt

Max Tylki, Brown (Sr., LB - Wethersfield, Conn.)
9 tkls. (4 solo), 2.0 TFL

Alan Watson, Columbia (Jr., RB/RS - New Albany, Ohio)
98-yd. KOR for TD, 15 rush yds.

Justin Watson, Penn (So., WR - Bridgeville, Pa.)
10 rec. for 143 yds., 1 TD