The football team enters its Saturday Homecoming matchup with Cornell looking again to end its losing streak, which now stands at four games. Yet as much as the Bears were stung by their ugly 17-3 defeat at the hands of Princeton last week, they have already managed to channel their focus entirely into the Cornell game.
"We've always done a pretty good job of letting it go after we watched film Sunday night," said Head Coach Phil Estes. "It's more about who we are and what we have to do to win. Everything we do is geared toward us and more about getting this win and building on this win."
According to quarterback and tri-captain Joe DiGiacomo '07, if there is one thing that can erase memories of last Friday night, it would be a strong start by the offense.
"We still know we're a good offense. Last week was just a tough game for us and a tough defense we saw," he said. "We're going to look to come out a lot stronger."
Of course, coming out of the gates strong is easier said than done, but DiGiacomo said it will all be a matter of keeping the drives going.
"As long as we can avoid the three-and-outs, that will get things going," he said. "We have to keep drives alive and keep the sticks moving until we get in the end zone."
Standing in the way of Brown's offense will be a disciplined and opportunistic Big Red defense, the pillars of which are standout defensive ends Jonathan Lucas and Ryan Kiscadden.
"(Cornell has) two players that are as good as we'll see at defensive end," Estes said of Lucas and Kiscadden. "They're both just great athletes that are relentless getting to the football. They can change direction and are very good with a four-man rush at getting to the quarterback."
The first step the offense can take to regaining its early-season form is protecting the pocket from those two-edge rushers, the onus of which falls on an offensive line that has struggled recently.
"(Lucas and Kiscadden) are going to put pressure on us all day, and it's up to (the offensive line) to not let that happen," DiGiacomo said. "In any pass protection you want to get them going outside the pocket. If you get the D-ends rushing hard and you can step up as a quarterback, it helps to develop the pocket."
Meanwhile, as the offense tries to rebound from its Princeton debacle, the defense seeks to maintain the stout play it displayed a week ago. The 17 points allowed last week was a season low, much to the delight of its personnel.
"We came out and we actually played really well," said linebacker and tri-captain Zak DeOssie '07. "We played our roles and we feel good going into this game."
Against Princeton's option-based attack, Bruno's defense finally fulfilled Estes' wishes: each player stayed disciplined and stuck to his task.
"If we could get penetration and play our responsibilities on all these different misdirections and options, I thought we would be okay," Estes said. "If they trust each other, they'll execute the game plan very well."
Trust has appeared to grow among the defense as players have matured. Last Friday was a coming-out party of sorts for linebacker Eric Brewer '08 - whose 12 tackles equaled DeOssie's total - and a defensive line that got consistent penetration.
"It's hard to step in and become a leader, and Brew has come a long way since the beginning of the season," DeOssie said. "Right now he's making big plays. Now (the opposing offense) can't isolate one player, they have to worry about myself, Brewer and Kai Brown ('08) and a lot more (of us)."
For the third time this season, the defense faces a run-happy option offense. A very big Cornell offensive line will try to plow the way for first-team All-Ivy running back Luke Siwula, who has eclipsed 100 yards three times in 2006.
"He's a kid with great balance and speed and doesn't easily go down," Estes said. "He gets the ball going north and south very quickly and reads his blocks very well. He's one of those guys in this offense where all you have to do is create a small hole and he'll take full advantage of it."
Unfortunately the defense cannot afford to key in on Siwula. Cornell quarterback Nathan Ford has proven to be dangerous in his own right. The reigning Ivy League Offensive Player of the Week, Ford accounted for four touchdowns - two passing and two rushing - in Cornell's 38-14 victory over Colgate University last Saturday.
"Some people panic and don't make good decisions, but he makes good decisions," Estes said of Ford. "The other thing he's good at is his play-action. You think he's giving the ball and the next thing you know he's dropping back to pass."
Just like the offense, the defense has to set the tone early in order to have a good game.
"If they get success with their option we're going to worry about the quarterback," DeOssie said. "We just have to knock them out of it in the beginning. All we have to do is our job and we'll be fine."
Even at 1-4 overall and 0-2 in league play, Estes and his team realize that a lot can happen in the Ancient Eight in the last five weeks of the season. With the Ivy League's four undefeated teams all playing one another, there is still a window of opportunity for the Bears.
"This is the showdown weekend where the four undefeated teams play each other and you got the four 0-fers playing each other," Estes said. "Something's got to give now, and it'll be interesting to see how this league shakes out after this weekend."
