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| Senior running back Deshawn Salter (31) rushed for 143 yards and scored three times to lead the Elis over the Big Red on Saturday. (Photo courtesy Yale Athletic Department) |
NEW HAVEN–Senior Deshawn Salter and freshman Zane Dudek led a ground attack that accounted for 342 yards as Yale opened its 2017 Ivy League schedule with a resounding 49-24 win over Cornell on Saturday. It was also the home opener for the Bulldogs, and the 10,926 fans in attendance couldn’t ask for better weather on this gorgeous early autumn day at the sun-drenched Yale Bowl.
Leading 14-10 after two quarters, the Elis scored four
straight touchdowns, including two on the ground. Salter ran for 143 yards and
three scores, while Dudek enjoyed a second straight triple-digit performance
with 173 yards and one touchdown.
The Bulldogs, who gained 287 of their 342 rushing yards in
the second half, needed the big day on the ground to overcome a pair of early
deficits—and Salter was more than happy to comply. The 5-10, 215-lb., Syracuse
native scored on one- and three-yard scampers, before reeling off an 82-yard fourth-quarter
dash that sealed the deal for the Elis.
“I really got around the corner and there was no one there,”
said Salter about his game-breaking jaunt. “At that point, it was a track meet.
It was easy on me, but I have to thank those big guys up front. Our offensive
line did really well.”
Dudek averaged 10.8 per carry and set up a pair of Yale
scores with long runs, including a 47-yarder.
“I need to adapt to getting lower on plays, just getting
three or four yards on plays instead of going for the long run the way I used
to in high school,” said Dudek, a Kittanning, Pa., native, who held the Keystone
State’s high school record for yards in a game with close to 500 yards until
last week. “I have to get used to not being wide open. Our O-line does a great
job, so I can focus on getting us second and five, which makes it easier on our
offense.”
Sophomore quarterback Kurt
Rawlings, coming off a 308-yard, four-TD performance last week at Lehigh, finished
10-for-17, with 123 passing yards, including a four-yard scoring pass to senior
tight end Jaeden
Graham.
Despite a 272-yard passing performance by Cornell QB Dalton
Banks, the Yale defense registered another solid overall performance. The Blue D
registered six sacks and now have 11 for the season. Junior defensive end Kyle
Mullen accounted for two of them vs. the Big Red, and played a key role in
the Eli’s defensive effort that kept the heat on Banks throughout the contest.
“It definitely helps that we have some coverage behind us,”
said Mullen, an All-Ivy pick last fall. “We work hard every day, and I think
our D-line is playing really well. We must continue to play aggressively and
work together.”
The defensive pressure set up seniors Jason
Alessi and Hayden
Carlson for first-half interceptions that enabled the home team to take a
14-10 lead into the locker room at intermission. Carlson snatched a first-quarter
tipped pass at the visitors’ 19-yard line, then sprinted to the right corner of
the end zone before plowing through a few white shirts for his first career
score on his seventh interception as Bulldog.
‘We have a lot of guys who have an aggressive mentality who
will not sit back and let an offense attack us. We want to be the attackers,”
said Yale captain Spencer
Rymiszewski.
The most significant series of plays in this contest may
have been Yale's last on offense in the second quarter. Trailing 10-7, Rawlings
connected with sophomore receiver Reed
Klubnik on plays of 27 and 22 yards before the second-year signal-caller
danced out of the pocket to run for a 14-yard touchdown with 53 seconds left.
Rawlings used a Jon
Bezney block near the line of scrimmage and then a Graham play on a Cornell
defender at the five-yard line to get the space to find the end zone untouched
for his first career rushing score.
“You tell what a football team is made of when they're not
playing well,” surmised Yale head coach Tony Reno on his team’s first-half
shortcomings. “It's easy to be on top and play your best, but it's really hard
to come back when you're not playing your best.
“It's very difficult, in a game, to make the adjustments you
need to be successful,” Reno continued. “To me, that's the mark of good team.”
—Staff Reports
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