Cornell just pulled off an upset that people will be talking about for decades, beating No. 4 Lehigh 48-38 on Saturday. This wasn’t just any win, either: it was the Big Red’s first time knocking off a top-five team since way back in 1939. Seriously, 1939! What a statement game.
Bass-Sulpizio Goes Off, Leads Historic First Half
The main man making all this happen? Garrett Bass-Sulpizio. The guy had himself a day, putting up a career-high 366 yards through the air and adding another career-high 103 yards on the ground. When you’re racking up those kinds of dual-threat numbers, you’re not just playing, you’re *dominating*. Lehigh, who came into this game as the No. 4 team in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25, just couldn’t handle the pressure. Cornell jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter, and from there, the Mountain Hawks were playing catch-up the whole game. This is big time stuff, especially when you consider Cornell was 2-10-2 all-time against top-10 opponents before this, with their last win against a No. 4 team being Ohio State in ’39 and No. 5 Dartmouth in ’38. Talk about breaking a drought! Cornell stacked up an insane 410 total yards and 31 points in the first half alone. Bass-Sulpizio dropped five completions of 20 yards or more, including a 37-yard touchdown bomb to Ja’von Broussard, helping Cornell lead 31-17 at halftime. What a performance!
Lehigh Fights Back, But Cornell Has All The Answers
Lehigh tried to make it a game in the second half, putting up three touchdowns. Derek Morgan tossed two of them, and Luke Yoder added one on a short run. Each time Lehigh chipped away and got within seven points, you could feel the tension, right? But every single time, Cornell slammed the door shut with an answer. After Yoder’s 3-yard run cut the lead to 38-31 early in the fourth quarter, Cornell marched 81 yards down the field, finishing with Jordan Triplett’s 3-yard touchdown run to push the lead to 45-31. Lehigh still had some fight, making it 45-38 on Morgan’s 41-yard strike to Bryce Werner, but then Cornell kicked a field goal to extend their lead, and Morgan got picked off on Lehigh’s final drive. Lehigh was completely shut down in the first quarter, only gaining minus-3 yards compared to Cornell’s 311. They went three-and-out on both their possessions, though they did manage to get on the board when Luke Denny recovered a Cornell fumble in the end zone and ran it back 100-plus yards for a touchdown. Morgan finished with three touchdowns and 204 yards passing, and Yoder ran for 142 yards for Lehigh, who now sit at 6-1. What a crazy back-and-forth battle!
Next up, Lehigh hits the road to face Villanova next Saturday. Cornell will look to keep this momentum rolling when they visit Brown next Saturday. Can they keep the energy from this historic win going? We’re all watching to see if this is the start of something big!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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