Football Goes Winless Against League Foes

After finishing last season at .500, the Columbia football team could not seem to put together a full game in the fall, finishing 1-9 and winless in the Ivy league.

After falling to Brown in the final game of the season, head coach Norries Wilson said his team had played 45 minutes of football twice this season: against Brown and against Princeton, two games the Lions had an opportunity to win.

With a defense that lost three all-Ivy starters, the Light Blue gave up an average of 300 yards on the ground per game. On offense Columbia finished last in the league in rushing, and despite a legitimate passing attack, the Lions often couldn't overcome an early deficit and clinch a win.

In the first game of the season, the Lions faced Fordham, where senior quarterback Craig Hormann made a surprising start—he was returning from a knee injury and not expected to start—and finished the day with 254 yards passing. Hormann's effort was wasted as the Rams running back tandem of Xavier Martin and Jonte Coven ran for 323 yards.

The Lions scored their only win of the season against Marist in the second week of play as junior running back Jordan Davis ran all over the Red Foxes, finishing the day with a career-high 177 yards and three touchdowns. The defense forced turnovers, but after the game Wilson acknowledged that the Light Blue had to step up and stop the run.

Against Princeton, the Lions fought back, overcoming an 18-point deficit to stay in the game late in the fourth quarter, but the Lions fell 42-32 despite another 100-yard performance by Davis. After Princeton, the running game faltered and the Lions turned to the air.

With sophomore receiver Austin Knowlin getting double-teamed in almost every game, sophomore Taylor Joseph and freshman Nico Gutierrez provided Hormann with reliable targets. Gutierrez hauled in five catches in his breakout game against Dartmouth, which won him Ivy League Rookie of the Week honors, but a fumble by senior Jamal Russell with the game tied in the final three minutes put the game out of reach.

When undefeated Yale came into the city with junior running back Mike McLeod, the Lions' defense held up under the most prolific running attack in the league. Heavy rain contributed to sloppy play by both teams, and forced Columbia to rely on a shaky running game. Ultimately, the Bulldogs walked away with their pristine record intact and Columbia continued its Ivy campaign winless.

Though the Lions finished the season with only one win, they kept themselves in most of their games in this season, with a few exceptions such as Homecoming against Penn and on the road against Cornell. With an offense that could score quickly, Columbia had its chances this season but an inability to stop the run, an inconsistent running game, and turnovers proved too much to overcome.

Columbia will return almost all of its skill position players next season. With a stingier defense and a consistent quarterback to replace the graduating Hormann, the Lions might have a chance to get back to .500.