CU Aims for Ivy Win in Final Game

The Columbia football team has a final chance at redemption in the form of an Ivy League win on Saturday as it takes on Brown and the league’s most potent offensive attack.

The Bears lead the Ancient Eight in yards per game, averaging 429.9 for the season—25 more yards per game than the next highest team, Harvard. The Brown offense prefers to score through the air, as the Bears lead the Ivy League in passing yards per game with 316.2, making them the only team to average more than 300 yards per game in the league.

Quarterback Michael Dougherty leads the Ivy League in passing yards per game and passing touchdowns, and his receivers have flourished because of this. Wide receivers Buddy Farnham and Paul Raymond lead the league in receptions and receiving yards, respectively. In addition, wide receiver/quarterback Bobby Sewall has been an offensive threat, proven last week when he rushed 15 times for 144 yards and four touchdowns, threw for another touchdown, and caught 18 passes for 141 yards.

Defensively, the Lions will have their hands full against the passing game, as Brown spreads the field and forces defenses to try to cover many receivers while getting a solid rush on the quarterback.

“If you’re going to send more guys than they can protect, then you’ve got to do a great job covering,” head coach Norries Wilson said. “So it’s a catch-22: do you want to do a good job covering and give him nowhere to throw the football, or do you want to force his hand and make him throw it and take your chances in man coverage? And we’ll probably do a little bit of both and see which one is working best for us.”

The trade-off, however, is that Brown has the second-worst rushing assault in the league, leading only Columbia in terms of rushing yards per game.

The Bears have had close games this season, not because their offense has had problems, but because their defense has allowed the second-most yards and touchdowns this year in the Ivy League. Both in the air and on the ground, Brown has had trouble this season, and it shows, as the Bears are seventh in the league in both pass and rush defense.

The Light Blue offense must be ready to match Brown’s offense score for score. To do this, the Lions will need a balance between rushes and passes. The Bears have proven that they are susceptible to both; the Lions will thus need to keep them off balance and use each one in order to gain consistent positive yardage and put points on the board.

In the final game of his collegiate career, senior quarterback Craig Hormann looks to shake off a rocky performance against Cornell last week and lead his team and his fellow 11 seniors to victory on Saturday. This will be no easy task, but in order for Columbia to come away with its first Ivy win of the season, Hormann must have a standout performance. If he can direct the offense on extended drives, take advantage of the weaknesses of the Brown secondary, and avoid turnovers, the Lions will have a chance to get that elusive Ivy League win.

Whether the game turns out to be close, a shoot-out, or a blowout, it is the last chance for the Lions to put any kind of positive spin on this season.

“I think it is very important to finish the season on a high note with a win,” Wilson said. “You carry some momentum into your winter conditioning and your spring football, going into recruiting, and being able to show some improvement to what your football team has done. So I think it’s [the game] very important to us.”