#18 Tartans Open Season With 20-0 Win at Chicago

(CHICAGO, Ill.) – The Carnegie Mellon University football team, ranked 18th nationally, traveled to the Windy City on Saturday and left with a 20-0 win over the Maroons of the University of Chicago to open the 2025 season.

Game Information
#18 Carnegie Mellon 20, Chicago 0
Records: Carnegie Mellon (1-0), Chicago (0-1)
Location: Chicago, Ill. (Stagg Field)

How it Happened

• After stopping the Marrons to a three-and-out on the first possession of the game, Carnegie Mellon marched 58 yards on seven plays and took a 7-0 lead on an 11-yard touchdown swing pass from senior quarterback Joey McGinnis IV to senior running back Willem Bouma.
• On the second play of the second quarter, a 36-yard field goal by senior Justin Caputo extended the Tartans lead to 10-0. The seniors boot capped off an 11-play, 45-yard drive.
• With 8:09 to play in the first half, McGinnis IV found junior Brendan McCullough at the goal line for a 4-yard touchdown strike. Following Caputo's PAT, the score was 17-0 Tartans.
• With 4:10 to play in the game a 38-yard field goal by Caputo made the score 20-0. Caputo's kick came four plays following a block punt by freshman Nick McCullough that set the Tartans up on the Marrons 23-yard line.  

Stats

• Carnegie Mellon recorded 435 yards of total offense, as the defense held the Maroons to 64 yards. 17 rushing and 47 passing.
• McGinnis IV completed 28-of-36 for a career-high 243 yards and two touchdowns.
• Nick McCullough led the Tartans receivers with eight receptions for 75 yards while Brendan McCullough had six catches for 64 yards and a touchdown.
• The Tartans ground attack totaled 166 yards with Bouma leading the way with 62 yards on 11 carries.
• The Cardinal and Gray defense was led by graduate student Mitchell Stokey and senior Jacob Franze. Stokey had five solo tackles and 1.0 tackles for a loss, while Franze finished with five tackles, 2.0 tackles for a loss and a sack.
• Sophomore Jack Lawson ended the game with five tackles, two solo, and recorded his first career interception.
• Junior punter John Norell recorded a career-long 57-yard punt in the first quarter and finished the game with three punts for an average of 44.0 yards per punt while placing two inside the Maroons 20-yard line.

Game Notes

• Carnegie Mellon leads the all-time series 23-7.
• This is the Tartans fourth shutout in the series.
• Carnegie Mellon improves to 71-43-3 all-time in season openers and 4-0 under Head Coach Ryan Larsen.
• It is the third consecutive season that Carnegie Mellon has started the season with a shutout.
• The Tartans have won 27 straight games when holding their opponents to 14 points or less.
• The Tartans have won 47 straight games when leading after three quarters of play.

Thoughts From Head Coach Ryan Larsen

• "I'm incredibly proud of the effort and energy our team played with today! We are very fortunate to be able to get a big shutout win on the road, but also recognize we have plenty of things to improve on to be our best. The good thing is everything we need to fix is within our control and our team and staff are excited to get back to work. A huge shoutout to our defensive unit and staff for putting together a great game plan and executing at a high level."

Up Next

• Carnegie Mellon will open its home slate on Saturday, September 13 with a 12:00 p.m. kick against 11th-ranked UW-La Crosse.