When Monmouth and Cornell kick off at 1 p.m. Saturday in Mt. Vernon, Iowa, it will mark the first meeting of the teams since 1997.
      A founding member of the Midwest Conference, Cornell dropped out of the league 15 years ago and rejoined the conference this fall. The Rams were riding a seven-game win streak against the Scots when the series was halted.
      The resumption of the matchup follows a week off for both teams. Two weeks ago, Monmouth (1-1, 1-0) picked up its first Midwest Conference win of the season with a 31-14 victory at Beloit, while Cornell (1-1, 1-0) fell 34-14 to Coe in a non-conference affair. Cornell had outgunned Lawrence 41-39 in Week 1 to resume their MWC membership with a win.
      Last week’s bye came at an unusually early stage of the season for both teams.
      “It’s a little different than what we’re used to,” said Steve Bell. “I think we accomplished what we wanted to. We had some possible starters that needed time to heal, so we needed the week off from a health standpoint.”
      Bell’s healthier Scots may get a dose of their own medicine from previous years when they meet the Rams, who have been airing it out. Junior quarterback Juan Flores threw for 358 yards in his last game, setting the Cornell single game records for completions (30) and attempts (57).
      “They’ve got a terrific quarterback,” said Bell. “He’s very athletic and spreads the ball around very well. They’ve got some very good skill kids to go with him.”
      Running a spread offense, Flores has found seven different receivers for a total of more than 650 yards through the first two games. His favorite target has been sophomore receiver Justin Cox, who has three touchdowns and has averaged more than 100 yards per game.
      The Rams have also had a youth movement on the ground. Freshman D.J. Hall and sophomore Preston Ritchie have gotten the bulk of the carries, but Cornell also likes newcomer Spencer Shepherd in the backfield.
      Thanks to the bye, Bell has had extra time to digest what Cornell brings to the table, but the Cornell staff has had the same opportunity.
      “Neither team really has a scouting advantage,” said Bell. “We’ve both been able to study each other’s game film for an extra week. As far as preparation is concerned, we won’t change all that much. At this stage of the season, we’re still focusing on what we do and doing it correctly and at the right speed.”
      When it comes to Cornell’s speed, a pair of junior linebackers has been flying to the ball, as Geoffrey Miller and Jeremy Demlow have already combined for 60 tackles. Twenty-four of Miller’s stops have been solos.
      “We think we have a pretty good feel for what they do from a defensive standpoint,” said Bell. “We’ll definitely need to get a hat on a couple of guys and make sure we know where they are. Structurally, their defense is similar to some of the conference teams we’ve seen in the past.”
      When it comes to the past, Bell has a plan to end Cornell’s streak in the series.
      “We need to manage the game well,” claimed Bell. “That’s something we didn’t do in the first two games. We’ve killed our own drives. We moved the ball or made some stops and then shot ourselves in the foot. Our opponents haven’t made the miraculous plays. It’s been a penalty or a turnover that has hurt us. We just need to take care of ourselves and move the ball. When we do what we’re supposed to do, we’ve moved the ball.”