The times for all of this fall's games except the week five tilt against Penn are now posted on the athletic department website.
Just so no one is confused, I want to make it clear again that Columbia's schedule this coming season is tough.
A cynic could say that with a team like Columbia going 1-9 last year, ANY schedule would look tough the following season!
But the 2012 slate is challenging any way you look at it. Here are some of the highlights:
1) Road games against the three strongest teams in the Ivies for the last several years; Harvard, Penn, and Brown.
2) A road game against one of the best teams in all of the FCS, Lehigh.
3) What? Numbers 1 and 2 weren't good enough for you?
But wait, there really is more.
The new "Beyond Sports Network" preseason All America list is out and its chock full of names from Columbia's opposing teams in 2012.
It starts with Marist TE Anthony Calcagni, who makes the first team. His Red Fox teammates OL Phede Celestin and DT Terrence Fede made the honorable mention list.
Week two opponent Fordham has only one player on the list, but he is a 1st teamer... luckily it's just the punter, Patrick Murray.
Week three foe Princeton has one player on the 2nd team, DT Caruan Reid.
Week four opponent Lehigh is loaded with TWO 1st teamers in WR Ryan Spadola and OL Mike Vuono. A third Mountainhawk, TE Jamel Haggins isn't far behind on the 2nd team.
Week five at Penn will be a tough enough, but only Quaker WR Brandon Copeland makes the list as an honorable mention.
Week eight at Harvard will feature four Crimson players on the list, led by kick returner Seitu Smith on the 1st team. H-back Kyle Juszczyk is a 2nd teamer and OL Jack Holuba and TE Cameron Brate are honorable mentions.
Cornell's QB-to-WR tandem of Jeff Matthews to Shane Savage are both 1st teamers. WR Kurt Ondash is a 3rd teamer, and OL JC Tretter is an honorable mention.
Finally, Brown has DB AJ Cruz on the 2nd team and OL Jack Templeton on the 3rd team.
No, Columbia didn't get a single player on the 1st, 2nd, 3rd or honorable mention teams. But Dartmouth and Yale were also shut out.
But that doesn't mean we don't have some great MARKETABLE stars on this team.
I think of them appearing in massive banners hanging from the outside of Wien Stadium. (You know, like the massive banners they unfurled from outside of the A's stadium in Moneyball?).
I'd alternate each of those banners between offensive and defensive players and feature:
QB Sean Brackett, DL Josh Martin, TE Hamilton Garner, LB Ryan Murphy, OL Scott Ward, DL Seyi Adebayo.
In general, I'm a lot more excited about our defense than our offense when it comes to genuine stars. Guys like Zach Olinger, Wells Childress, Nick Melka and Mike Waller are poster-worthy too.
But other than Brackett, Garner and Ward I'm just not sure who the offensive team leaders and standouts will be. And unless 2-3 other offensive players really do break out, this is going to be another long season.
6 comments:
Columbia is going to be a much faster, much more athletic team this season so I have no doubt that there will be plenty of "breakout players" on both sides of the ball. Josh Martin is as good as any of our opponents' "All-Americans." It's just a matter of the other school's Athletic Departments doing a better job of publicizing players. I believe everyone familiar with Columbia Football is aware of that. Dianne needs to strengthen her sports information staff.
With all due respect, it's a matter of winning, not PR. Nobody gets recognized for playing well when you go 1-9. If we win five games this year, it will be because players stepped up. Those players will get recognized. If we go 1-9 it will be because our players aren't good enough, and they won't get any honors. Simple and fair. The most tiresome thing about this blog is the whining about the Times, the SI department, TV, etc. for not respecting CU football. Win five games and see what happens!
The point that we have to win as a TEAM is an excellent one and the program deserves little recognition until we do.
HOWEVER, the individual outstanding players deserve MUCH more publicity from the ath dept. and it's a disgrace they don't get it.
Marketing Columbia football as a program is silly. We need the fans to connect with individual stories and players. Every Columbia fan should be bombarded with pictures and features on Brackett, Martin, Garner, Murphy, Adebayo, Ward, Olinger, etc.
Win or lose last year, these guys played very well. They are making a big commitment to the game when they can always quit and stay at CU no questions asked.
I think there is too much negativity here. Brackett when healthy tilts the playing field. Keep Brackett healthy and we are going to surprise a lot of people. And yes, you will see a much faster, more athletic and better coached Lion team this Fall. Coach M knows what he is doing. He also knows that it all starts on the OL. He doesn't want fat guys lining up for us.
How does Brackett not merit at least Honorable Mention ?!!
What has made Columbia what it has been for the past 50 years is the fact that people want to glorify individuals ahead of the team. This is college football, which is a team sport. The team comes first. If you want to put individuals 1st and the team 2nd then go follow a sport thats played by only one person, like singles tennis or golf because you only hurt the team with that type thinking.
When a team starts to achieve greatness as a whole then AND ONLY THEN, can you start give individuals credit. Why would anyone read an article about a player on a team that stinks? Can anyone tell me (without looking it up) the star player on University of New Mexico football team? No, because they stink so people don't care. I'm willing to bet someone could tell me some players (without looking it up) from LSU and/or Alabama. Why? Because those teams won and were in the championship. Those programs don't put stories and players in the media because they're trying to get people's attention, they do it to keep people's attention, and there is a BIG difference between the two.
Two quotes to finish, “It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.” - Coach M (on his blog) and "There's no I in team." Time to buy into these two concepts.
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