-So put this in the “Encouraging News” file: a current student
told me yesterday that not only are the football players excited about QB
transfer Brett Nottingham coming to
the Lions this fall, but so are the athletes from the other teams and so are
many of the NON-athletes on campus! Does this mean we’ll see better attendance
for the Columbia football games this fall? Well, it won’t hurt. I’ll predict
right now that if Nottingham has a solid game or better in the season opener
against Fordham and Columbia comes away with a win, we’ll see a decent turnout
for the home opener in week 2 against Monmouth.
-Apparently, the athletes at Columbia are beginning to refer to the non-athletes on campus as "reggies," as in "regular student." So, can I now say that some of the "reggies" are excited about Brett Nottingham?
-Right now, CU Baseball’s Joey Falcone is getting some good exposure as a U.S. war veteran
who is taking advantage of some of Columbia’s unique outreach and financial aid
for vets. Hopefully, the football team will get one or two players with similar
backgrounds very soon. I am hearing that another Ivy school might have a war veteran
joining its football team this fall, but it’s not confirmed yet.
-Perhaps today’s weekly official update on football from the
athletic department will give us a few more details on what to expect Saturday
night for the end of spring practice. It does look like the weather will be
nice and it should be a fun day of baseball morphing into a night of football.
-Is it just me or am I the only one who doesn’t understand
why no member of our excellent baseball team is a finalist for the Maniatty
Award?
9 comments:
... Nottingham's success is also related to improvement of the O-line ... despite all the criticism that was heaped on them and the coaching staff last year, we need to remember that we still had a running back that rushed for 900+ yards even with a young, light line ... I do expect that they will pass protect better this fall and look forward to a fun Fall ... keep your fingers crossed ....
Motivations for incoming players come in all shapes and sizes. I would not anoint any new player a starting position without first seeing all incoming players including Brett. Particularly this important position. I've learned long ago that can be very dangerous. I've done my homework on our Freshman commit and the reasons for BN not winning the job at Stanford during the past year and am not willing to predict a starter until the Fall competition for all positions is complete. Suffice to say we have upgraded our chances for the next few years regardless. Can't wait to see the new weapons in full force this year.
As a general rule, I would agree with you. But Nottingham is an exception. This guy is very special, and remember that the current Stanford program is actually a Top 10 program, not just a run-of-the-mill D-I team. This is a big freaking deal.
Hilinski is a super prospect too and I still think Trevor McDonaugh will make a real contribution too. But there's just never been this high quality a transfer at QB coming into the Ivies before. Gavin Hoffman from Northwestern is kind of close, but that wasn't during NU's best years.
I think we set ourselves up for a fall by hyping BN so much, and goodness knows we've done that often enough. No question, though, with the talent we now have at the skill positions, including three dynamic running backs (Garrett, Molina, and the incoming Alan Watson), if the O-line shapes up, it will be like Coach Mangurian says about the baseball team's winning ways, "No reason why we can't do that, too."
I do agree that BN leaving and coming out to CCU is a big deal-no question. And getting people excited? Also strong. That is the story. I'm simply not ready to crown him starter and talk about him winning our first game etc...whether it's Hilinski or an incumbent or BN, my point is that Coach M is preaching competition and I agree. Why a kid or family leaves a top program or why a kid or family passes up other opportunities is not known to me. I have pieced together what I can because I feel so much momentum going into the Fall that I am excited to see how this part of the competition shapes up. I just think it's a disservice to name a starter even here-and can serve as a let down if BN gets hurt or can't play. How good will the starter be if it's NOT BN? If the best man plays at the end of that process we will have the best chance to win. Gonna be fun to watch
Pretty cool idea the Columbia Football team came up with on Twitter (via @columbialionsfb) -- looks like Chad Washington is "guest" tweeting. Has to be good exposure to recruits and fans alike about what these players do everyday, right?
I have a close friend who is a Stanford grad who lives in nearby Los Gatos and follows Stanford football very closely. He thinks BN is terrific and is the casualty of the new HC wanting his own recruit, Hogan, to,start. Harbaugh recruited BN to succeed Luck and that is what would probably have happened if Harbaugh had stayed. So instead,of sitting on the bench for the next two years we are getting a player who loves this game and wants to be on the field. As Coach M said in his blog, BN can make all the throws. As much as we loved Brackett, he was a great athlete who happened to line up at QB, but he was not a great passer.
Really? What did he say about BN losing that chance to start for Stanford to Harbaugh recruit Josh Nunes? Gonna be a great year!
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