Cornell had three players earn first-team honors and seven cited overall when the All-Ivy League Football team was announced on Tuesday afternoon by the conference office. The team was selected in a vote of all eight Ivy coaches.
Seniors Hunter Nourzad (offensive line) and Thomas Glover (offensive line) and junior Jake Stebbins (linebacker) were selected for the first team, while seniors Lance Blass (linebacker), Jack Burns (offensive line) and Michael Irons defensive back) were slotted on the second team. Senior safety Logan Thut was an honorable mention pick.
Nourzad, a second-team All-Ivy pick in 2019, anchored an offensive line that led the Ivy League, ranked fifth nationally and set a school record for fewest sacks allowed with 0.9 per game. That total was three fewer than any other Ivy school. Nourzad started 20 consecutive games at right tackle, including all 10 in 2021. The Big Red averaged 121.7 yards rushing with 12 touchdowns on the ground despite not having one individual average more than 7.0 carries per game.
In his first season at wide receiver, Glover posted one of the best seasons in school history with 55 catches for an Ivy-best 767 yards and four touchdowns. He also hauled in a pair of two-point conversions. Glover averaged 14.0 yards per catch and had three 100-yard receiving games, including 159 yards and a touchdown against VMI and 133 yards and a score vs Princeton, both nationally-ranked squads. He caught seven passes for 126 yards and a touchdown, as well as a two-point conversion, against Brown. Glover posted seven or more catches in five contests and finished his season ranked in the top 30 nationally in both receiving yards and receptions.
Stebbins led the Ivy League in total tackles (95) and ranked in the top 25 nationally while adding team highs of 10.0 tackles for loss and 3.0 sacks. He was credited with 16 more tackles than any Ivy player in conference games, with his 10.1 tackles nearly a full stop ahead of No. 2 (9.2). His 8.5 tackles for loss in conference games ranked third overall. Stebbins added three pass breakups, a forced fumble and five quarterback hurries. In four games against nationally ranked teams, the junior posted 35 tackles with 7.5 for a loss, 3.0 sacks, a forced fumble, three quarterback hurries and two pass breakups. Stebbins recorded a career-high 13 tackles with 3.0 TFL, 2.0 sacks, a FF and hurry against Princeton and also had double figure tackles against Bucknell (12), Brown (12) and Penn (12). Stebbins, like Nourzad, was elevated to the first team after a second-team nod in 2019.
Burns joined in with Nourzad to form one of the top offensive lines in the nation, starting all 10 games at center. In his critical spot on the offensive line, Burns was part of a group that ranked second in the Ivy League 16th nationally in fewest tackles for loss allowed (4.2 per game). The Big Red didn’t allow a sack against nationally-ranked VMI, Colgate or Penn and no more than two in any game.
The team’s first solo captain since 1973, Blass ranked second on the team with 55 tackles along with 7.5 for a loss, a half-sack, an interception and three quarterback hurries. He was credited with nine tackles with one for a loss and a quarterback hurry at Yale and eight stops in the win over Colgate. He posted four tackles and a quarterback hurry on a play that was intercepted against Brown and intercepted a pass himself in his final collegiate game against Columbia.Blass closed his career with 137 tackles with 13.0 for a loss, 2.5 sacks and a pair of interceptions in 30 games played.
Irons starred for a defense that ranked fifth in the Ivy League and top 50 nationally, allowing 212.6 passing yards per game. He closed his Cornell career with 31 tackles with 2.5 for a loss, a sack, nine pass breakups and a quarterback hurry while starting nine games. A full 26 of his 31 tackles were solo stops. Irons made four pass breakups, one off a single-game school record, in the win over Colgate. He registered five tackles, including a half-tackle for loss, and broke up a pass at Yale, then was credited with five tackles with two stops for a loss and his first career sack, along with a pass breakup, at No. 22 Harvard.
Thut also earned his first All-Ivy nod after tying for third on the team with 45 tackles, adding an interception returned for a touchdown, four pass breakups and a fumble recovery. Thut was credited with seven tackles against both No. 22 VMI and defending Ivy champion Yale to open the season and recovered a fumble at Harvard. His first career interception was returned 82 yards for a touchdown in the win over Colgate. He also made seven stops vs. Brown and broke up passes against Penn and Columbia.
Cornell closed the season with a 2-8 record and tied for sixth in the final conference standings. The Big Red will set its sights on 2022, beginning with a visit to VMI on Saturday, Sept. 17, 2022.
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
Joe Green, Columbia (So., QB)
COACH OF THE YEAR
Buddy Teevens, Dartmouth
FIRST TEAM ALL-IVY^
OFFENSE
Hunter Nourzad, Cornell (Sr., OL)
Evan Hecimovich, Dartmouth (5th, OL)
Jake Guidone, Dartmouth (5th, OL)
Spencer Rolland, Harvard (Sr., OL)
Henry Byrd, Princeton (Sr., OL)
Reily Radosevich, Princeton (Sr., OL)
EJ Perry, Brown (Sr., QB)
Dante Miller, Columbia (Sr., RB)
Nick Howard, Dartmouth (Jr., QB)
* Aaron Shampklin, Harvard (Jr., RB)
Collin Eaddy, Princeton (Sr., RB)
Thomas Glover, Cornell (Sr., WR)
* Jacob Birmelin, Princeton (Sr., WR)
Carson Bobo, Princeton (Sr., TE)
JJ Howland, Yale (Sr., TE)
DEFENSE
Chris Smith, Harvard (Jr., DL)
Jacob Sykes, Harvard (Jr., DL)
Prince Emili, Penn (Gr., DL)
Samuel Wright II, Princeton (Sr., DL)
Clay Patterson, Yale (So., DL)
Jake Stebbins, Cornell (Jr., LB)
Jalen Mackie, Dartmouth (Sr., LB)
Jordan Hill, Harvard (Sr., LB)
Jack McGowan, Harvard (Sr., LB)
Brian O’Neill, Penn (Gr., LB)
* Jeremiah Tyler, Princeton (Sr., LB)
James Johnson, Princeton (Sr., LB)
John Dean, Yale (Sr., LB)
Ben Mathiasmeier, Columbia (Sr., DB)
Isaiah Johnson, Dartmouth (Sr., CB)
Alex Washington, Harvard (So., CB)
Trevor Forbes, Princeton (Sr., DB)
Rodney Thomas II, Yale (Sr., DB)
SPECIAL TEAMS
Jonah Lipel, Harvard (Jr., K)
Will Powers, Princeton (Jr., P)
Michael Ruossos, Columbia (Sr., RS)
SECOND TEAM ALL-IVY^
OFFENSE
Chad Broome-Webster, Brown (Sr., OL)
Tyler Worrell, Columbia (Sr., OL)
Jack Burns, Cornell (Sr., OL)
John Paul Flores, Dartmouth (Sr., OL)
Trevor Radosevich, Penn (Sr., OL)
David Hoffman, Princeton (Sr., OL)
Derek Kyler, Dartmouth (5th, QB)
Aidan Borguet, Harvard (So., RB)
Isaiah Malcome, Penn (Gr., RB)
Wes Rockett, Brown (Jr., WR)
Andre Iosivas, Princeton (Jr., WR)
Melvin Rouse II, Yale (Sr., WR)
Mason Tipton, Yale (So., WR)
JJ Jones III, Dartmouth (5th, TE)
DEFENSE
Paul Akere, Columbia (Sr., DL)
Shane Cokes, Dartmouth (Jr., DL)
Seth Walter, Dartmouth (5th, DE)
Nate Leskovec, Harvard (So., DL)
Uche Ndukwe, Princeton (Jr., DL)
Cam Dillon, Columbia (Sr., LB)
Junior Gafa, Brown (Jr., LB)
Scott Valentas, Columbia (Jr., LB)
Lance Blass, Cornell (5th, LB)
Marques White, Dartmouth (Jr., LB)
Michael Irons, Cornell (Sr., CB)
Niko Mermigas, Dartmouth (5th, S)
James Herring, Harvard (Jr., S)
Jason McCleod, Jr., Penn (Sr., DB)
Wande Owens , Yale (Jr., DB)
SPECIAL TEAMS
Alex Felkins, Columbia (Jr., K)
Jack Bosman, Yale (So., P)
Melvin Rouse II, Yale (Sr., RS)
HONORABLE MENTION
OFFENSE
Calvin Atkeson, Dartmouth (Sr. OL)
Hunt Sparks, Harvard (Sr., OL)
Kiran Amegadjie, Yale (So., OL)
Cameron Warfield, Yale (Sr., OL)
Cole Smith, Princeton (Sr., QB)
Allen Smith, Brown (Sr., RB)
Ryan Young, Columbia (Sr., RB)
Spencer Alston, Yale (Jr., RB)
Graham Walker, Brown (So., WR)
Paxton Scott, Dartmouth (So., WR)
Dylan Classi, Princeton (Sr., WR)
Robbie Mangas, Dartmouth (Sr., TE)
DEFENSE
Jake Heimlicher, Penn (Sr., DL)
Micah Morris, Penn (Sr., DL)
Reid Nickerson, Yale (Jr., DL)
Jordan Colbert, Columbia (Sr., DB)
Will Allen, Columbia (Sr., DB)
Logan Thut, Cornell (5th, S)
Delan Stallworth, Princeton (Sr., DB)
Miles Oldacre, Yale (Jr., DB)
SPECIAL TEAMS
Connor Davis, Dartmouth (Sr., K)
Drew Schmid, Columbia (Sr., P)
Jamal Cooney, Dartmouth (Jr., RS)
^ First and Second Teams Expanded Due to Ties in Voting
* Unanimous Decision
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to [email protected].