In the midst of an up and down season, the 2-2 Cornell sprint football has been able to rely on senior running back Doug Famularo. After earning first-team All-CSFL honors in 2010, Famularo has provided the veteran leadership necessary to guide a young offense in transition.
“Dougie’s a beast on the field, and I know from personal experience in practice that he’s no fun to tackle,” said senior cornerback Matt Rosenthal. “He’s an extremely hard worker on and off the field — whether that’s in the weight room or classroom. He leads by example and is just the kind of guy you want on your team.”
The Cornell offense has struggled with consistency — putting up a combined 86 points in wins over Mansfield and Post, but only 36 in losses to Post and Navy.
“The one thing about our offense is that we have a lot of new faces,” Famularo said. “There’s four new starters on the offensive line, but they’ve all gotten so much better. In fact, even though we lost, I think last week may have been their best game.”
Famularo added that the offense is undergoing a slight scheme shift.
“We’ve been more focused on the pass this year. In the past we were more of a running team, but now we have a quarterback who can throw 100 miles per hour so why not throw it more,” he said, referring to first year starter Brendan Miller.
With so many changes on offense Famularo’s steadying presence has been key to keeping Cornell in position to post its sixth consecutive winning season.
“I just try to eliminate my own mental errors and help the other guys out,” Famularo said modestly when asked about his role as a leader.
His teammates give him more credit.
“Dougie’s dedication to the team is inspiring,” said junior defensive back Alberto Quintero. “You see him at practice and at games — he just works hard every day to get better.”
Even with only three games remaining in his final season with the Red, Famularo is still looking ahead.
“This week is huge,” he said, referring to Cornell’s upcoming clash with Penn. “I don’t know about this year, but last year we were a game away from a championship. In fact, we were yards away, so for me it’s all about revenge. I want to beat the team that beat us last year.”
Original Author: Will Clark