In the fall of 1869, a student named Robert H. Trent organized a meeting with the goal of forming a football team at Cornell University. The meeting was attended by about 30 students, who agreed to form a team and elect officers. William L. Morris was elected as the team’s first captain.

The first game played by the Cornell football team was against a team from the University of Michigan on May 20, 1874. The game was played at White Park in Buffalo, New York, and ended in a scoreless tie. At the time, football was a relatively new sport, and the rules were still evolving. The Cornell team played with 11 men on each side, as opposed to the 15-man teams that were common at the time.

Over the next few years, the Cornell football team continued to play a small number of games each season, often against local opponents such as the University of Rochester and the Buffalo Athletic Club. The team’s first win came in a game against Hamilton College on November 12, 1875, which Cornell won by a score of 4-0.

By the early 1880s, football had become a much more popular sport, and Cornell was one of the leading teams in the country. The team won its first national championship in 1915, and has gone on to win several more championships and produce many successful players and coaches.