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MOUNT VERNON – Cornell (2-3 overall, 0-3 Iowa Conference) hopes Saturday’s homecoming football game can help steer it back into the win column against the resurgent Dubuque Spartans (4-1, 2-1). Kickoff is 1 p.m. at Ash Park Stadium.

The Rams have fared well in homecoming contests, standing 55-32-6 all-time and 2-0-1 with Dubuque as their guests. Cornell scored a 25-21 win over the Spartans in the 2005 game, marking the Rams’ last victory in IIAC play.

Cornell has won 21 of its last 28 homecoming games, although the eighth-ranked Central Dutch spoiled last year’s festivities, 34-7.

“This is our home field and we have to make Ash Park an advantage for us like it was a long time ago,” said Cornell head coach Matt Dillon, who starred as an All-American quarterback for the Rams three decades ago. “We feel good about how we’ve played at home this season.”

The Rams will try to regroup after suffering a 42-7 loss to Buena Vista last week in Storm Lake. It was Cornell’s third loss in a row and 15 th straight in IIAC play.

Last week, Cornell marched down the field on its opening possession before turning the ball over on downs. Momentum switched and stayed with the Beavers the rest of the day. Buena Vista scored three first-quarter touchdowns, raced to a 42-0 lead and fired a school-record six touchdown passes. Cornell sophomore fullback Mike Thompson ( Eaton, Colo./Windsor) broke up the shutout with a 2-yard touchdown run with 6 minutes, 15 seconds left to play.

“We moved the ball on our first possession and were about a foot short on fourth down,” Dillon said. “It all went downhill from there. After that first drive, we were never in it. I was disappointed in all aspects, but we’ve got to put that game behind us now.”

Dubuque is fresh off an emotional 28-21 overtime win at previously unbeaten Coe last week. The Spartans blocked a punt deep in Coe territory and then tied the game on a fourth-down touchdown pass with a minute remaining in regulation. Quarterback Jermar Jackson scored the game-winning points on a six-yard touchdown run in overtime.

Jackson, who averages an IIAC-best 271.4 yards of total offense, rushed for two touchdowns and passed for two more against Coe. He accounted for 236 yards and three touchdowns in last year’s 32-14 victory over the Rams in Dubuque. Jackson heads a unit that leads the league in scoring offense (38.2 ppg), rush offense (263.2 ypg) and total offense (452.8 ypg).

“It seems like ( Jackson) has been there forever. He’s very difficult to defend because he can beat you with his legs and his arm,” Dillon said. “From a pure athletic ability standpoint, Dubuque is the most athletic team in our league. They have real good team speed. They are a very talented group.”

The series – Cornell and Dubuque meet for the 19 th time on the grid iron. The Rams hold a 12-4-2 edge in the series and have won seven of the last nine meetings. Dubuque turned the trend with a win last year, snapping a six-game losing streak against Cornell.

Homecoming history – This is the 94 th homecoming game in Cornell history. The first game was played in 1913 when the Rams grinded out a 2-0 win over Grinnell. Cornell’s largest margin of victory was a 56-0 shutout of Grinnell in 1976. The Rams’ longest win streak was nine games from 1979-87. Cornell has not been shut out at homecoming since 1959, a 6-0 loss to Coe.

Man in the middle – Cornell senior middle linebacker Chris Gustafson ( Lakewood, Colo./Bear Creek) registered a career-high 18 tackles last week, including 5.5 stops behind the line of scrimmage for minus-10 yards. His 13 solo tackles tied the school’s single-game record shared by Doug Pipolo (1988 vs. Monmouth) and Pat Dolphin (1986 vs. Wartburg).

Gustafson has reached double figures in tackles in 12 consecutive games and 28 times in his career. He has 406 career tackles with 33 tackles for loss. John Crane (1998-2001) holds the school record with 481 career tackles.

Ranked in the IIAC – Sophomore defensive tackle Zach Zasada ( Sauk City, Wis./Sauk Prairie) ranks second in the IIAC with 4.5 sacks this season. Gustafson is second in tackles per game (13.8) and third in total tackles for loss (11.0). Dubuque defensive back Mark Mashburn leads the league with 14.0 tackles per game. “Mashburn may be the most talented player in the conference,” Dillon said.

TD streaks – The Rams have scored a rushing touchdown in each of their five games this season. Cornell’s streak of seven straight games with a touchdown pass was snapped last week.

Field possession pays – Opponents have had an average starting field position at their own 43-yard line during Cornell’s current three-game slide. The Rams’ average starting drive is their own 28. Buena Vista started five drives in Cornell territory last week.

Slow starts – Slow starts have plagued the Rams throughout the season. Cornell has been outscored 43-0 in the first quarter of games, including 21-0 last week. The Rams have trailed in every game this season.

Purple and Pink – The Rams will recognize National Breast Cancer Awareness Month at Saturday’s game. The coaching staff will show its support by wearing pink shirts and ribbons. The players will have pink ribbon decals placed on their helmets and wear pink and white wristbands.