Cornell's teams did not have an official name until after 1905, when a recent graduate, Romeyn Berry '04, wrote lyrics for a new football song.

The lyrics included the words "the big, red team," and the nickname stuck.

In 1915, a live bear named Touchdown first appeared at football games to represent Cornell.

Cornell's colors, carnelian red and white, date back to the university's Inauguration Day on October 7, 1868.

The men's Lightweight rowing team varsity 8+ has won the IRA regatta seven times since 1992 (1992, 2006–08, 2014, 2015 & 2017).

Cornell soccer teams play on Charles F. Berman Field on the southeast side of campus.

There are also facilities about 2 miles east of campus that has multiple uses, but it is mainly used by the Cornell men's soccer team for practice.

The men's ice hockey team has a historic rivalry with Harvard, which dates back to 1910 and includes many championship meetings.

The Cornell-Harvard ice hockey rivalry was highlighted in the 1970 novel Love Story and its film adaptation.

Fellow upstate schools Syracuse University and Hobart are also considered Cornell's lacrosse rivals.