For followers of Cornell football, there hasn’t been much to celebrate this season. This Saturday, football not only showed signs of life on field, but gave a heartening glimpse of the potential that’s been waiting on the sidelines.
In his first Cornell start, sophomore running back Jordan Triplett logged 109 rushing and 34 receiving yards. Freshman running back John McAuliffe gained 89 rushing yards, including one touchdown, a feat unheard of for first-year players.
The fresh lineup of running backs, combined with strong performances at quarterback and on defense, catapulted Cornell (1-4, 0-2 Ivy) ahead into a 23-7 lead before Bucknell (4-4, 1-2 Patriot League) rallied a convincing response. Despite the Bison’s fourth quarter resurgence, early energy and a late-game interception sealed the victory, 30-20, for the Red.
“I think the big thing for us is making sure we understand the habits that got the results on this Saturday,” said head coach Dan Swanstrom. “We practice really well, with life and energy. [We have to] lock that in as the standard of Cornell football, because we've been back and forth with trying to get there.”
The Red held Bucknell off for the first three plays of the game, receiving the ensuing punt at its own 20-yard line. Junior quarterback Bass-Sulpizio fired off five complete passes and executed successful rushes to start Cornell’s day off with significant momentum.
On the Red’s fourth play, Bass-Sulpizio fired a pass to Triplett, which he caught one-handed and ran down the line for a gain of 20 yards.
"Our line really opened it up the whole time, and they really opened up that play,” said Triplett. “Without them blocking the way they have, that route wouldn't have worked out as well as it did. It was great to get the catch, even better to get the win.”
Triplett, a transfer from the U.S. Air Force Academy who logged 13 rushing yards against Harvard last week, was responsible for 59 yards in the first drive of the game alone. Senior wide receiver Doryn Smith, a favorite target for Bass-Sulpizio, was responsible for the other 14 yards.
Bass-Sulpizio made his first incomplete pass while on a 3rd down on the 15-yard line, robbing the Red of a touchdown but getting the team well within field goal range. Freshman kicker Jonathan Roost would log his second career field goal to give Cornell its first lead of the season.
The defense again showed up strong, forcing the Bison to relent possession on downs and taking over on Cornell’s own 25-yard line. A sack and incomplete pass prevented the Red from making much headway, punting to end the first quarter.
The second quarter began with the Red receiving an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, which gave the Bison a 15-yard head start to their offensive drive. The Bison made sure to take advantage of this, making a 41-yard completion that immediately put them in scoring range. Another 9-yard pass put the Bison on the 1-yard line, allowing them to easily run the ball in for their first touchdown of the game.
Cornell began its response with a 38-yard punt return by Smith, and an 18-yard pass to junior wide receiver Brendan Lee and 10-yard penalty on Bucknell catapulted the Red back into scoring range.
Bass-Sulpizio rushed the remaining eight yards for the touchdown, which, despite Roost missing the extra point, allowed Cornell to leapfrog back into the lead, 9-7.
This momentum would continue in the next drive, with the Red defense forcing the Bison into multiple bad plays that led to a quick punt.
Once again, Triplett got off to a quick start, rushing for 13 yards over two plays. Bass-Sulpizio followed with two 20-yard completions that put the Red just outside of scoring range. However, nothing significant came of this drive, after the Bison defense halted the building Red momentum. The Red would choose to go for it on fourth down but a defensive stop gave the Bison the ball on their own 35-yard line.
The Red defense, looking to make a statement, shut down the Bison drive, and did not allow Bucknell one first down. After only 47 seconds of play, the Bison were forced to punt the ball back to the Red.
With only a few seconds left in the quarter, the Red was only able to attempt one rushing play, giving Cornell the lead 9-7 as the halftime whistle blew. While the lead was small, the Red went back into the locker room with momentum from the successes of the underclassmen.
“The two tailbacks [Triplett and McAuliffe] are both literally freshmen, and they showed up in practice,” said Swanstrom. “It was making sure they go the right way, making sure that they know their protections, and making sure they could run the structure of the offense.”
The third quarter began with a huge 47-yard kickoff return from Smith, putting the Red on its own 49-yard line. The ball immediately went into the hands of Triplett, who rushed for 17 yards over three plays.
Another fresh face made his presence known as the Red neared the endzone: McAuliffe carried the ball for two rushing plays down the left sideline, gaining 15 yards and 13 yards for consecutive first downs. Bass-Sulpizio handed off to McAuliffe again to cover the last two yards for a touchdown, and Cornell catapulted into a 16-7 lead.
McAuliffe is the first freshman to score a touchdown for the Red since Sept. 17, 2022, when now-senior running back Gannon Carothers scored against Virginia Military Institute.
“That is awesome, it's great,” said McAuliffe when asked about this achievement. “I'll say [that about] the support as well from the whole team, just the amount of high fives and head bumps I got after that touchdown. I've never really felt that; the whole entire team seemed to have swarmed me after I scored that touchdown.”
This drive consisted of only rushing plays by Triplett, McAuliffe and Bass-Sulpizio, who together rushed for 49 yards over seven plays, demonstrating the skill and efficiency of the Red’s run game.
When the pressure was put on the Red defense to keep this lead, it delivered. Cornell once again shut down the Bison, allowing no first downs and forcing another quick Bison punt.
Once the ball was back in the hands of the Red offense, its dominance on the ground was once again put on display. The Red rushed for 26-yards that were seemingly uncontested. Once in scoring range, Bass-Sulpizio attempted three passes but would only come away with incompletions. After these attempts, the Red switched back to what was working for them, and Bass-Sulpizio swiftly rushed 12 yards to score the Red’s third touchdown of the game. After a successful extra point attempt from Roost, the score sat in favor of the Red at 23-7.
With the score now heavily in favor of the Red, defense had to ensure that this lead was in safe hands. Sophomore linebacker Keith Williams Jr. did just that when he intercepted the ball on the first play of the Bison’s drive, giving the ball back to the excitement-filled Red offense.
While it was clear the Red had a lot of momentum, the Bison were not ready to give up just yet. Anticipating Bass-Sulpizio’s use of Triplett, the Bison forced Triplett to fumble on the first play of the Red drive.
The Bucknell offense came out strong, however, a botched snap led to another fumble, allowing junior safety Johnny Williamson to recover it. Possession had, at this point, switched four times in five and a half minutes.
“[The defense] plays hard, they run, they hit, they do what they're coached to do,” said Swanstrom. “I have high expectations for them. Keith [Williams Jr] got the two picks, but we had opportunities all over the place to make a ton of plays down the field.”
The third quarter came to an end with the Red keeping its secure lead at 23-7.
Once the ball was back in the hands of the Red offense in the final quarter, McAuliffe and Triplett ran the football all the way into scoring range.
Just when it seemed like the Red were going to run straight into the endzone, Bass-Sulpizio threw a 30-yard rocket to junior tight end Ryder Kurtz, securing another touchdown for the Red.
After Roost secured another successful extra point kick, the Red held a dominant lead of 30-7.
While the score leaned heavily in favor of the Red, the Bison strung together a successful drive with multiple 10-yard completions, putting themselves in scoring territory. The Bison capitalized on this opportunity, completing a 15-yard pass that secured their second touchdown of the game.
The touchdown was followed by another Red fumble on the first play of its offensive drive, immediately giving the ball back to the Bison.
Bucknell took advantage of the lapse, making another gritty drive that put them in scoring range. A 13-yard passing touchdown from the Bison cut the Red lead down to 30-20 with just under three minutes remaining. The Bison attempted a two-point conversion, but would come away unsuccessful.
Another underwhelming attempt from the Red offense quickly gave possession back to the Bison, who now had another opportunity to cut the Red lead down. Bucknell completed two passes for 25-yards, coming dangerously close to the endzone.
The Red needed a big stop, and that is exactly what they got. For the second time during the game, Williams Jr. intercepted the ball, solidifying victory for the Red.
With the ball back in the hands of Bass-Sulpizio, the Red went into victory formation and ran out the remaining time on the game clock. This marked the first win of the Red’s 2025 season, coming in the form of a largely dominant home victory at a score of 30-20.
“This is a program that's learning how to win, how to win close games and how to compete for 60 minutes,” Swanstrom said. “The preparation this week wasn't perfect, but the energy, focus, and effort was really high, and now it has to be the standard for Cornell football.”
As it had been against Harvard and Colgate, Cornell’s most productive quarter was the third, but it broke the curse of slow offensive starts. The ability to come out on top early and stay cool even when its opponent was mounting a response ensured that Bucknell was never able to come too close to victory.
This game has the potential to be a turning point for Cornell. It demonstrated just how dominant the Red’s run game can truly be — between Triplett, McAuliffe and Bass-Sulpizio, the Red rushed for 234-yards and three touchdowns. Moving forward, the rest of the Ivy League will have to plan ahead to be able to handle Cornell’s run game.
The Red will return to Schoellkopf next week, hoping to continue its home success on Oct. 25 at 1 p.m. Cornell has only Ivy League play to look forward to for the rest of the season, which kicks off against Brown next Saturday. All the action will be available on ESPN+.
Alexis Rogers is the sports editor on the 143rd editorial board. She is in the Class of 2028 in the College of Arts & Sciences, and she can be reached at arogers@cornellsun.com.
Matthew Leonard is a member of the Class of 2028 in the School of Industrial and Labor Relations. He is the assistant sports editor of the 143rd Editorial Board. He can be reached at mleonard@cornellsun.com.
