Yes they were. At 0800 things were going great. 1st Corps had caved in Ewell's Division under Lawton (minus Early detached) and the Stonewall division by 0700. Hood's counterattack was destroyed before 0730, and his division completed routed. At 0800 Ripley's and Colquitt's brigades were in the process of breaking, and the 12th Corps were going into action.
Hood's counterattack was over by 0730, and Hood made little impression, and by 0730 the Federals were advancing over the Cornfield.
At 0800 Ripley had tried to enter the Cornfield, and the 128th Pa of the 12th Corps charged them and stop-punched that movement, driving Ripley back in disorder.
It is not well supported that Colquitt entered *the* Cornfield. If you read Colquitt's report the geography and situation doesn't fit. However, there is another cornfield that does fit. It appears what happened was this:
View attachment 320764
Colquitt and Garland deployed to oppose French's advance towards the Sunken Road position. They were pushed back and fell back on Rodes' position on the Sunken Road.
Fighting through Colquitt's line in front of the Roulette Farm is the second paragraph of French's report:
"
The enemy, who was in position in advance, opened his batteries, under which fire my lines steadily moved until the first line, encountering the enemy's skirmishers, charged them briskly, and, entering a group of houses on Roulette's farm, drove back the force, which had taken a strong position for defense. Whilst Max Weber was clearing his front and driving before him the enemy's first line, a sudden and terrible fire was opened upon his right by the troops, which had succeeded in breaking the center division of the line of battle. At the same time a heavy column endeavored to turn my left and rear. "
Kimball describes the line as running from the orchard, through the cornfield, to the hill side:
"In this position I moved directly forward about three-fourths of a mile, when General Weber encountered the enemy's pickets and drove them back, and soon came upon the enemy in force, posted in a strong position in an orchard, corn-field, ditches, and upon the hill-sides. "
Rodes of course says he formed on the sunken road behind Colquitt et al., who had moved away from "the" cornfield.
Yet in this period Hooker does push forward, and ca. 3 divisions have broken on him.