HAMILTON, N.Y. — Déjà vu must have set in for the football team early in the first quarter when Colgate sophomore tailback Nate Eachus ran for a 10-yard score. The setting changed, as did some of the players, but the outcome certainly didn’t; for the second year in a row, Colgate's offense physically overwhelmed Cornell’s defense for a 45-23 win.

“You’re looking for answers and when they take what you’ve practiced and ram it right back down your throat and score, that’s a little unnerving,” said head coach Jim Knowles ’87. “We did everything we could to regroup but they’re a great team. We could not match up today, that’s for sure.”

The Raiders logged 561 total yards, 344 on the ground. The three-headed rushing attack of junior quarterback Greg Sullivan (84 rushing yards and one touchdown) and sophomore running backs Jordan McCord (98 rushing yards and two touchdowns) and Nate Eachus (129 rushing yards and three touchdowns) netted an average of 5.7 yards per carry and accounted for 20 of Colgate's 32 first downs — Cornell had just 15 total first downs. In addition to logging impressive yardage, Colgate’s rush also used up clock time and kept Cornell’s defense on the field for almost 39 minutes. The Raiders converted 9-of-12 third downs, including a third-and-28 in the third quarter. Colgate wasn’t forced to punt at all in the second half.

“It’s tough when you know there’s no way they should get this first down,” said sophomore cornerback Rashad Campbell. “We try to just forget about it and take it play by play.”

Freshman running back Nick Mlady’s first career touchdown was also Cornell’s first of the day, a one-yard run that capped off a five-play, 75-yard drive. Big plays facilitated Cornell’s scoring drive, starting with a reverse to Abdul Taylor that netted 25 yards and brought the Red to the 50-yard line. On the next play, Ganter found senior wideout Bryan Walters open on the right sideline, and he streaked to the Colgate 11-yard line. Walters was Ganter’s favorite target in the game, catching four passes for 96 yards. Senior running back Randy Barbour carried the ball to the 1-yard line to set up Mlady’s score.Run away train: No. 25 Colgate was able to run all over the Red this weekend. The Raiders were able to plow through the Red’s defenses for 344 rushing yards, while picking up six touchdowns in their 45-23 victory.

“[Mlady] is a big, tough runner,” Ganter said. “We’ve got to give Randy a break every once in awhile because he’s been taking some blows, Mlady’s stepped in and done a good job.”

Cornell’s offense was battling Colgate’s defense as well as the clock throughout the game, as the Raiders put up two early touchdowns then ate up time with long, methodical drives. In his first touch of the game, Eachus barreled through Cornell’s defense for a 34-yard touchdown run. After a Cornell three-and-out, Colgate rushed seven times in an eight-play drive capped off by McCord’s first touchdown of the day, a five-yard run.

“[Colgate’s] line is the best line that I’ve gone against at this level,” Knowles said. “The quarterback does an outstanding job of reading things and managing the offense and they’ve got great running backs that break tackles and get extra yards. When you can’t stop the run or slow them down, you’ve got very little chance to win.”