November 14, 2009. The Ithaca College Bombers kept hold of the Cortaca Jug for the third consecutive season, holding off a late rally by Cortland to win 23-20. Cortland out-gained Ithaca in total offensive yardage 308-268, but Ithaca forced four Cortland turnovers. Cortland was also out-gained on punt returns 77 to 2.

 

Eric Hajnos caught seven passes for 86 yards and a touchdown to pace the Red Dragons receiving corps. Wayne Wheeler had four catches for 54 yards and two touchdowns. Alex Smith passed for 208 yards and three touchdowns, but was intercepted twice.

 

Ithaca scored on its first possession, capped off by a Dan Ruggiero 1-yard touchdown run to take a 7-0 lead. Early in the second quarter, Bomber Dan Ruffrage returned a Kyle Peterson punt 48 yards to the Cortland 24-yard line to set up a Andrew Rogowski field goal. With Ithaca leading 10-0, SUNY Cortland put together a 61-yard drive for their first touchdown. A 22-yard touchdown pass from Alex Smith to Wayne Wheeler cut the lead to 10-6, but Cortland had the extra point blocked. Rogowski added another field goal before half-time to put Ithaca ahead 13-6.

 

Ruffrage struck again in the middle of the third quarter with a 25-yard punt return to the Cortland 39-yard line. The Cortland defense forced another Rogowski field goal, with Ithaca extending its lead to 16-6. Cortland rallied early in the fourth quarter for a 69-yard touchdown drive. Smith again found Wheeler, this time a 25-yard hookup. A failed two-point conversion left Cortland trailing 16-12.

 

Dan Ruggiero scored again on a 5-yard rush late in the fourth quarter to put Ithaca ahead 23-12 with only 2:57 to play in the game. But Cortland still had another rally in them. Joe Aston returned the ensuing kickoff 48-yards to the Ithaca 40-yard line. On the first play from scrimmage, Alex Smith connected with Eric Hajnos for a 36-yard pass play to the Ithaca 4-yard line. A 2-yard touchdown pass from Smith to Hajnos, and a two point conversion pass play from Smith to Hajnos, brought Cortland to within 23-20 with 2:18 to play.

 

Cortland elected to attempt an onside kick rather than try to pin Ithaca deep, but the Bombers recovered. After a defensive stand by Cortland, the Red Dragons got the ball back at their own 6-yard line with 1:09 to play. Three plays later, Ithaca's Kevin Cline intercepted Smith near midfield to cement a 23-20 Ithaca victory.

 

The Cortland defense held Ithaca to 14 first downs and 268 yards of offense. Cody Allen and Evan Wyler combined for 19 tackles for Cortland. Will Schroeder intercepted a pass and had six tackles. Bobby Somerville had seven tackles and a pass breakup.

 

Cortland and Ithaca each end the regular season at 7-3. Cortland is hopeful for an ECAC Bowl Championship birth for next Saturday.

 

 

 

 

Team Statistics

Team Statistics (Final)
2009 SUNY Cortland Football
SUNY Cortland vs Ithaca College (Nov 14, 2009 at Ithaca, NY)

Team Totals	CORTLAND	ITHACA
FIRST DOWNS	17	14
Rushing	6	4
Passing	9	8
Penalty	2	2
NET YARDS RUSHING	100	110
Rushing Attempts	26	40
Average Per Rush	3.8	2.8
Rushing Touchdowns	0	2
Yards Gained Rushing	108	125
Yards Lost Rushing	8	15
NET YARDS PASSING	208	158
Completions-Attempts-Int	18-29-2	12-27-1
Average Per Attempt	7.2	5.9
Average Per Completion	11.6	13.2
Passing Touchdowns	3	0
TOTAL OFFENSE YARDS	308	268
Total offense plays	55	67
Average Gain Per Play	5.6	4.0
Fumbles: Number-Lost	3-2	1-0
Penalties: Number-Yards	4-48	7-60
PUNTS-YARDS	6-225	6-259
Average Yards Per Punt	37.5	43.2
Net Yards Per Punt	24.7	42.8
Inside 20	3	2
50+ Yards	0	2
Touchbacks	0	0
Fair catch	2	0
KICKOFFS-YARDS	3-170	6-329
Average Yards Per Kickoff	56.7	54.8
Net Yards Per Kickoff	32.3	29.3
Touchbacks	0	0
Punt returns: Number-Yards-TD	2-2-0	3-77-0
Average Per Return	1.0	25.7
Kickoff returns: Number-Yds-TD	6-153-0	3-73-0
Average Per Return	25.5	24.3
Interceptions: Number-Yds-TD	1-4-0	2-22-0
Fumble Returns: Number-Yds-TD	0-0-0	0-0-0
Miscellaneous Yards	0	0
Possession Time	28:13	31:47
1st Quarter	6:03	8:57
2nd Quarter	6:52	8:08
3rd Quarter	8:20	6:40
4th Quarter	6:58	8:02
Third-Down Conversions	4 of 9	3 of 14
Fourth-Down Conversions	0 of 0	1 of 2
Red-Zone Scores-Chances	1-1	5-5
Sacks By: Number-Yards	2-11	0-0
PAT Kicks	0-1	2-2
Field Goals	0-0	3-3