Ringing in the new Highmark Stadium
For as long as Thursday Night Football has existed, most of the matchups have been lackluster on the surface. They typically comprise of two mediocre teams from the AFC South or NFC South duking it out in a sloppy, low-scoring affair. It’s not easy on the eyes, especially for legendary play-by-play broadcaster Al Michaels who has had to suffer through plenty of unwatchable football.
But it felt like a reprieve to see two legitimate teams with high-powered offenses duking it out to begin a week of football action. That was exactly the case between the Lions and Bills. While the game was expectedly a shootout with 72 combined points, there wasn’t much drama at the end of the night. For the sake of all the Bills fans that packed the new Highmark Stadium for its debut, their hearts weren’t put through the ringer like usual.
The 41-31 scoreline doesn’t paint the full picture of how Buffalo controlled the game from start to finish. The Bills jumped out to a 21-0 lead, one that would be insurmountable even when Detroit’s offense started to inevitably wake up. Given the electric atmosphere on their new stomping grounds and all the hype surrounding the occasion, those early nerves for the Bills could’ve led to a slow start. But they clearly fed off the crowd’s energy to propel them right off the bat.
When the Lions made it a 34-24 game in the fourth quarter and got the ball back, I had no doubt the Buffalo would not let it slip away. A quick three-and-out proved my thoughts correctly, and the ensuing James Cook rushing touchdown put the game on ice.
Josh Allen was his brilliant self under center. Yes, the Lions’ defense leaves much to be desired. But you can’t argue with 317 total yards (248 passing, 69 rushing) and five total touchdowns (three passing, two rushing). Paired with his masterclass the week prior against a fearsome Texans’ defense, he became the first quarterback in NFL history to have at least five passing touchdowns and four rushing touchdowns through the first two games of the season.
And oh by the way, Allen apparently had flu-like symptoms. OK, not to the same level as the Michael Jordan “flu game,” but still impressive to put up those numbers while under the weather. That second MVP trophy could be back in Buffalo before you know it.
Over on defense, it was another typical outing for them where they bent but did not break. It seemed like they’d be in for a long game with the ultra-powered Lions offense led by arguably the best running back in the league in Jahmyr Gibbs, made even worse by the fact that defensive tackle Ed Oliver was a last-minute scratch. But to hold that unit scoreless for over a quarter to allow the offense to build up a big lead was more than commendable.
Deone Walker had to step it up in Oliver’s absence, and he more than delivered with seven pressures and a sack. Through the first two weeks of the season, it appears they’ve gotten a steal with the 2025 fourth round selection.
Greg Rousseau also starred with another two-sack performance. He became the first Bill to record two or more sacks in the first two games of the season since Bruce Smith. Pretty elite company, and only fitting to do so after he was the first Legend of the Game at the new stadium to hype up the crowd.
If there were any slight criticisms about the performance, it’s that the offense did slow down a bit in the second half, especially when wideout DJ Moore was knocked out of the game late in the second quarter for what looked like a serious shoulder injury. Luckily it only ended being an AC joint sprain and is considered a day-to-day injury.
If Moore does have to miss any games, the Bills should be just fine like they were last year without his services. It would be wise to play it cautious and rest him against a Chargers team that’s started off the year horrendously with losses to the Cardinals and Raiders. After all, a big-time showdown against the Patriots awaits them in Week 4.
Red Dragons rout Hartwick
SUNY Cortland football had quite the challenge to start the year. The Red Dragons ventured to two tough opponents in Grove City and Union, and they passed both tests with flying colors. That early-season momentum was expected to carry over to Saturday’s home opener and conference opener against Hartwick, and the game went as expected: absolute domination.
The Red Dragons soared past the Hawks 55-3 to begin their Empire 8 run with a bang. The victory extends their winning streak against conference foes to 34 games and their all-time series against Hartwick to 21-0.
Because Cortland has such high expectations for itself, the 20-0 halftime lead could very well have been a lot more. But the Red Dragons turned the ball over twice, one of which was a fumble in the red zone. Those were rare miscues, but ones that they would easily overcome.
After the halftime break, the Red Dragons slammed their foot on the gas pedal, getting into the end zone on their opening drive en route to outscoring the Hawks 34-3 the rest of the way.
Mike Rescigno was once again the star of the show on offense, showcasing his duel-threat ability in front of over 3,000 Red Dragon fans. He had 241 through the air and two touchdowns while rushing for a further 179 yards and two scores. Those 179 rushing yards are the second-most in program history for a Cortland quarterback in a single game.
The running back room also put on a clinic. Ethan Gallo had 61 yards on the ground and two touchdowns and added 51 receiving yards, while Lucas Singleton ran for 31 yards and a touchdown and 44 receiving yards and a score. Grady Field was even treated to a taste of the wildcat formation with Gallo and Singleton the lone players in the backfield. Gallo had both of his rushing scores off the wildcat as he did his best impression of Ronnie Brown on the 2008 Miami Dolphins.
While there are a plethora of weapons on offense for the Red Dragons, don’t overlook what they’ve put together defensively. After pitching a shutout against Union, they didn’t allow a single touchdown against the Hawks and were pretty darn close to another blanking had Hartwick not gotten a garbage time field goal. After the game, I asked head coach Tom Blumenauer what has made that side of the ball tick over the past couple of games. In his mind, it goes back to the work they put in outside of gameday.
“Their practice habits are tremendous,” Blumenauer said. “They’re excited to show up on Mondays and dive into a new gameplan. You can just see they’re eager to learn the plan of attack so they can try to master it by the weekend. I’m proud of them because they don’t care who makes the plays. They’re doing their jobs at a really high rate right now.”
Cortland has jumped up five spots in the latest D3football.com poll to #18 in the nation. They’ll stay home this Saturday to take on Morrisville, but be on the look for their following matchup at Utica. The Pioneers are now part of the rankings at #23. But as always, it’s one opponent at a time for Red Dragon football.
Moresco Stadium madness
I have broadcasted dozens of high school football games throughout my time with ESPN Ithaca. I have seen all kinds of games, ranging from utter blowouts to instant classics. What transpired on Friday night at Ithaca High School certainly fits in the latter category, and I will go as far as to say that was the best football game I have been on the call for.
The Little Red came into its home opener with plenty of hype and anticipation. They started off the season with back-to-back wins for the first time since 2010, but they welcomed a Homer team that was hungry to get in the win column after starting 0-2.
In front a packed home crowd, Ithaca got off to a hot start. On their first drive, the Little Red faced a 4th down and 2 at the Trojans’ 45-yard line. They gave the rock to Jasmir Robbins, and the elusive junior broke out of multiple tackles and broke free to the end zone to put the Little Red up first. That would be far from the last explosive play for Robbins on the night.
The Trojans responded valiantly with 16 unanswered points. After sacking Shy’von WIlliams in the end zone for a safety, the Trojans’ first touchdown was one of the most bizarre plays. On 4th down at 4 in the red zone, the ball was snapped over quarterback Miles Franco’s head, he retrieved it and rolled to his left, and threw the ball short of the goal line to an open teammate. The pass ricochet off of his hands and into the arms of Camiron Durham in the end zone for an absurd touchdown to make it 10-7.
What followed was a bit of sloppiness as each team fumbled the ball away twice. Homer was able to take advantage of one of those turnovers as Durham found the end zone again with a scoop-and-score to extend the Trojans’ lead to 16-7. Robbins got one back for the Little Red by mossing his defender and taking it to the house for a 51-yard receiving TD. But Homer responded with a Mekhi Myles one-yard rushing TD to go up 24-13 entering the halftime break.
This was a true test of adversity for the Little Red that it hadn’t quite faced through the first two weeks of the season. They got exactly what they needed to start the second half as Eddie Peck darted away with a 64-yard rushing touchdown plus a two-point conversion to pull the Little Red within three points.
When Homer went back up 30-21 after Anthony Dalola hauled in his first career receiving TD, the Little Red was undeterred. Robbins emerged once again with a 67-yard rushing TD for his hat trick of scores as Ithaca cut the deficit down to two points.
The fourth quarter was a stalemate until the very final possession. Ithaca drove down the field and got all the way to the Trojans’ seven-yard line, well within field goal range for James Daugherity. But after Robbins was bottled up for a loss of 11 yards and a false penalty pushed them back to the 21-yard line, and Williams spiked the ball with exactly one second left to set up the dramatics.
It would be a 38-yard try for Daugherity, who had his previous field goal attempt blocked mainly due to a high snap. But this time around, the snap was perfect, the hold was pristine, and the kick sailed through the uprights to complete the comeback and win an unforgettable contest for the Little Red 31-30.
Ithaca is now 3-0 for the first time since 2009 when it won its first five games. The Little Red will look to keep the good times rolling with another home contest this Saturday against Johnson City.
Other things that caught my eye
- Amidst all the football kicking off, there was some championship lacrosse to be played on Sunday in the Premier Lacrosse League. The Philadelphia Waterdogs and Denver Outlaws. It was a win-win for Cornell fans, as a Big Red alum would be guaranteed to win the title no matter who came out on top. As it turned out, the team with more Big Red representation ended up coming out on top, and it wasn’t particularly close. The Waterdogs routed the Outlaws 14-4 to win their second title in franchise history. League MVP CJ Kirst was unsurprisingly named the Championship MVP as well by putting up PLL championship-record seven points (five goals and two assists), on his 24th birthday, no less. There’s a few more accolades to add to his never-ending list. Gavin Adler and Brendan Staub were the other Cornellians to help the Waterdogs triumph, completing quite the turnaround after they went 2-8 last year.
- It was a milestone victory for Cornell men’s soccer on Saturday at Western Michigan. The Big Red defeated the Broncos 2-0, giving head coach John Smith his 92nd career victory, now the most wins in program history. The 17th-ranked team in the nation is back home tonight to battle Binghamton.
- The Jets were awfully close to starting out 2-0 for the first time since the “Fitzmagic” 2015 season. Gang Green held a 17-7 lead over the Packers with 7:58 remaining. But the same old story unfolded as Green Bay rattled off 10 points to tie things up. Neither team could score on their final drives of regulation (including the Jets failing to convert a 4th and 1 from midfield), so overtime it was. The Jets got the ball first, but back-to-back sacks on Geno Smith and a false start penalty ended the drive before it even started. The Packers ended up with great field position, drove down the field, and ultimately knocked through the game-winning field goal. A tough one to take for Gang Green, but it was another encouraging performance in Year 2 under Aaron Glenn.
- As a Giants fan, I know to not get my hopes up even when things are trending in the right direction. Last Sunday night’s win over the Cowboys was impressive, no doubt. But heading out West to battle the Rams is an entirely different beast, especially an Los Angeles team coming off a pitiful display against the 49ers in Australia. They’ll be much better now that they’re back in the states and will boast a much better defense (even without Myles Garrett) than the one the G-Men faced in Week 1. But if they can pull off the upset, I’ll really start to believe.
- There’s not much to discuss for Ithaca College football in their matchup against Hilbert as they expectedly blew the doors off of Hilbert 76-6. The Hawks have only been in existence since 2022 and have never won a game in their program’s brief history. But the game was notable for the Bombers because of the multitude of records they set. Their 759 total yards of offense is a program-best, while they tied the school mark with six passing touchdowns, 35 first downs and most points in a quarter when they leaped to a 35-0 lead after one quarter. It’s safe to say it only gets tougher from here for the Bombers, including this Saturday’s home contest vs. St. Lawrence.
- At long last, Cornell football finally got its season underway Saturday at Colgate. The Cortaca rivalry was reunited to some extent, as Big Red head coach Dan Swanstrom and new defensive coordinator Mike Toerper both led the Bombers, while Raiders head coach Curt Fitzpatrick led the Red Dragons for four seasons, highlighted by the 2023 national championship. Cortland (Colgate) ended up prevailing over Ithaca (Cornell) 20-7. The Big Red was shut out for three quarters until a Jordan Triplett 6-yard touchdown run got the on the board. But they had already allowed all 20 points by that point, all in the first half. The big positive was the defense showing some improvements after a slow start, forcing two turnovers, four punts and a missed field goal. But Garrett Bass-Sulpizio will look to bounce back after a three-interception performance. A tough test awaits them at Schoellkopf Field in the form of #19 Yale on Saturday.
- If there was one word to describe Syracuse football‘s performance at Pitt on a rare Thursday night showdown, it would be “sloppy.” The 27-13 defeat to the Panthers was filled with miscues. Steve Angeli struggled under center, completing just 52% of his passes, throwing no touchdowns and two interceptions. They committed 10 penalties for 94 yards. Worst of all, kicker Tripp Woody missed a 29-yard chip-shot field goal so wide left that he ended up getting benched. The bye week comes at the perfect time for the 1-2 Orange as it gears up for a trip to UConn on October 3.
- Quite a lot of local high school football teams got in the win column in Week 3 alongside Ithaca. Groton is also off to a 3-0 start as they recorded another blowout victory, 56-10 over Whitney Point. Kam McClain once again dazzled under center with six total touchdowns (five passing, one rushing). Moravia edged Lansing 16-14 after blocking a late field goal. The two teams will go at it against this Friday, and this upcoming meeting will count towards the 8-man league standings. Watkins Glen/Odessa-Montour made it back-to-back wins after beating previously-unbeaten Deposit-Hancock 21-8. Newark Valley also recorded a second straight win after blanking Walton 28-0 on the road. Trumansburg picked up its first victory of the year by defeating Bainbridge-Guilford/Afton/Harpursville 42-24 led by Chris Clarke-Cabezas’ three total touchdowns. Dryden achieved the same feat at Elmira Notre Dame, dominating the Crusaders 70-24 powered by Joe Oliver’s five touchdowns and a further three TDs from Kenny Annonson. Spencer-Van Etten/Candor was the other local team in action, but they remain winless on the year after falling to Greene/Oxford 20-13.
- With the Yankees dropping two of three at the Diamondbacks and the Rays taking two of three against the Red Sox, the gap for the AL East lead sits at six games. At this point, New York have no choice but to sweep the upcoming four-game set against Tampa Bay in order to have even a remote chance of winning the division. FanGraphs gives the Yankees a 0.8% chance to take the AL East crown, while Baseball Reference has a slightly rosier outlook at 0.9% chance. In the famous words of Lloyd Christmas: “So you’re telling me there’s a chance.”
