1988 Cornell Big Red football
Ivy League co-champion
ConferenceIvy League
Record7–2–1 (6–1 Ivy)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorEddie Wilson (6th season)
Defensive coordinatorPete Noyes (8th season)
CaptainDoug Langan, Scott Malaga, Mike McGrann
Home stadiumSchoellkopf Field
Seasons
← 1987
1989 →
1988 Ivy League football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
Penn + 6 – 1 – 0 9 – 1 – 0
Cornell + 6 – 1 – 0 7 – 2 – 1
Princeton 4 – 3 – 0 6 – 4 – 0
Dartmouth 4 – 3 – 0 5 – 5 – 0
Yale 3 – 3 – 1 3 – 6 – 1
Columbia 2 – 5 – 0 2 – 8 – 0
Harvard 2 – 5 – 0 2 – 8 – 0
Brown 0 – 6 – 1 0 – 9 – 1
  • + – Conference co-champions

The 1988 Cornell Big Red football team represented Cornell University in the 1988 NCAA Division I-AA football season as a member of the Ivy League. The Big Red were led by sixth-year head coach Maxie Baughan and played their home games at Schoellkopf Field. The Big Red finished the season 7–2–1 overall and 6–1 in Ivy League play to win Cornell's second Ivy League championship, sharing the title with Penn.[1]

Cornell began the season dubbed by sports analysts to have Ivy League championship potential[2] and coach Maxie Baughan described his team as "the sleeping giant of the Ivy League."[3] The Big Red eventually entered the final week of the season, in which they would face their undefeated rival Penn, having lost two games and tied one; Penn was the last remaining undefeated Division I-AA football team in 1988 and had won or shared the Ivy League title five times in the previous six seasons. During the game, which Cornell would have to win to share the conference title with Penn, nine personal fouls were assessed between the two teams. Cornell eventually broke a 3–3 halftime tie to deliver Penn's first defeat of the season and win a share of the Ivy League title for the first time since 1971.[4]

The 1988 season was Maxie Baughan's sixth and final season as head coach of the Cornell Big Red; he resigned in early 1989 after allegations surfaced that the married Baughan had a romantic relationship with top assistant coach Peter Noyes' wife. Baughan cited "personal tensions" as the rationale for his decision.[5] Assistant coach Jack Fouts was appointed head coach shortly thereafter.[6]

Schedule

DateOpponentSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 17Princeton
L 17–2612,000[7]
September 24Colgate*
  • Schoellkopf Field
  • Ithaca, NY (rivalry)
W 17–1414,000[8]
October 1at Lehigh*
L 14–2713,000[9]
October 8at Harvard
W 19–172,000[10]
October 15Brown
  • Schoellkopf Field
  • Ithaca, NY
W 35–011,000[11]
October 22at Dartmouth
W 24–73,222[12]
October 29at Lafayette*
T 21–219,500[13]
November 5Yale
  • Schoellkopf Field
  • Ithaca, NY
W 26–015,000[14]
November 12at Columbia
W 42–198,308[15]
November 19Penn
  • Schoellkopf Field
  • Ithaca, NY (rivalry)
W 19–618,000[3]
  • *Non-conference game

References

  1. ^ "1988 Football Schedule". Cornell Athletics. Archived from the original on October 12, 2017. Retrieved October 11, 2017.
  2. ^ "College Football: Ivy League; Princeton Stops Cornell by 26-17". The New York Times. September 18, 1988. Retrieved October 12, 2017.
  3. ^ a b Wallace, William N. (November 20, 1988). "College Football; Cornell and Penn Share Ivy Title". The New York Times. Retrieved October 12, 2017.
  4. ^ Lieber, Jill (November 28, 1988). "A Big Win for Big Red". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved October 12, 2017.
  5. ^ "Head Coach Maxie Baughan Quits Cornell, Cites 'Tension'". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. April 26, 1989. Retrieved October 12, 2017.
  6. ^ "Cornell Closes Book on Baughan". The Washington Post. April 27, 1989. Retrieved October 12, 2017.
  7. ^ Knobelman, Bob (September 18, 1988). "Princeton Opens by Shading Big Red". The Home News. New Brunswick, N.J. p. D1 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ Benson, Frank (September 26, 1988). "Cornell Slips Past Colgate". The Ithaca Journal. Ithaca, N.Y. p. B1 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ Fox, John W. (October 2, 1988). "Lehigh Wins 27-14 in Goodman Debut". The Morning Call. Allentown, Pa. p. C1 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ Concannon, Joe (October 9, 1988). "Harvard Lets It Slip Away; Cornell Takes Advantage, 19-17". Boston Sunday Globe. Boston, Mass. p. 69 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Cornell Runs over Brown in 35-0 Win". Press & Sun-Bulletin. Binghamton, N.Y. October 16, 1988. pp. 3D, 4D – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ Reinert, Bob (October 23, 1988). "Cornell Grounds Dartmouth, 24-7". Boston Sunday Globe. Boston, Mass. p. 74 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ Dennehy, Chris (October 31, 1988). "Cornell Ties Powerful Lafayette, 21-21". The Ithaca Journal. Ithaca, N.Y. p. B1 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ Smith, George (November 6, 1988). "Cornell Blows Away Yale's Ivy League Hopes, 26-0". The Hartford Courant. Hartford, Conn. pp. E11, E12 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ Curry, Jack (November 13, 1988). "College Football: Ivy League; Cornell Routs Columbia by 42-19". The New York Times. Retrieved October 12, 2017.
Categories