klitzman@dailypennsylvanian.com
Brown and Princeton might have only been picked to finish third and fifth, respectively, in the Ivy League preseason media poll, but when the Bears (2-2, 1-0 Ivy) visit the Tigers (2-2, 1-0) tomorrow at 1 p.m., at least a share of first place will be on the line.
Preseason co-favorites Harvard and Yale have already picked up an Ivy loss, so the winner in Princeton, N.J., tomorrow will either have sole possession of first place or be tied with Penn at 2-0.
Both teams are coming off non-conference losses - Brown to Holy Cross and Princeton to Colgate.
Expect the game to have lots of offense. The Bears have averaged 22 points and 373.8 yards per game, Princeton's at 21.2 and 361.5, and neither team is strong defensively.
Colgate (4-2) at Cornell (3-1, 1-1 Ivy)
It might be the biggest cliché in sports, but when Colgate makes the trip to in-state rival Cornell tomorrow at 1 p.m., an unstoppable force will meet an immovable object.
The Big Red's top strength is their rush defense. They're tops in the Ancient Eight, surrendering only 63.2 yards per game, which is good for fifth in the Football Championship Subdivision.
Meanwhile, the Raiders have the fourth best rushing attack in FCS, averaging exactly 259 yards per game thanks to senior Jordan Scott.
Cornell upset Yale, 17-14, on Sept. 27, and is one Ivy win away from matching its 2007 total.
While the team obviously won't be able to match that mark tomorrow, this game is still its biggest non-conference matchup each year. Since 1896, these New York rivals have played 90 times, with Cornell leading 48-39-3.
Lehigh (2-3) at Harvard (3-1, 1-1)
If tomorrow's 12:30 p.m. game is as exciting as last year's meeting, the Harvard Stadium crowd will be in for quite the treat.
Last season in Bethlehem, Pa., Harvard had the ball in the last minute of regulation when quarterback Chris Pizzotti fumbled and Lehigh's Paul Bode returned it 27 yards for the game-winning touchdown.
Now, Harvard's seeking revenge, as the Lehigh loss was one of just two in 2007 for the Crimson, who went undefeated in the Ivy League.
Looking to redeem himself will be Pizzotti, who already has had a stellar start to the 2008 campaign. He is currently fifth in FCS in total offense with 311.5 yards per game.
Holy Cross (2-3) at Dartmouth (0-4, 0-2)
It's Dartmouth's homecoming weekend, but other than that, not much looks good for the Ivy League's smallest school.
The Big Green are in the midst of a six-game losing streak and have lost four straight to the Crusaders.
While Holy Cross technically has a losing record, it's not that far away from being undefeated.
The Crusaders' three defeats have been by a total of seven points, including a double-overtime loss at Yale and a one-point loss at Harvard.
Yale (3-1, 1-1) at Fordham (2-3)
Just like Holy Cross, Yale could very easily be undefeated right now, as its only loss on the year is a 17-14 upset at Cornell.
Fordham also lost close games, including at Dayton by just a field goal and at home against Colgate by seven.
Yale tailback Mike McLeod has struggled this year, but he just recorded his second straight 100-yard day last week and became the sixth Ivy back to rush for more than 4,000 career yards.
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