Last Liberty

Training camp doesn't start until all the players have to report on August 21st, (on the field work will probably not start before the 24th), but this is the last weekend before certain groups of players have to report for some assessments.

It all starts with the returning seniors who will be back this coming Monday. When they enter the locker room, the new jerseys will be hanging in their lockers. And the work will continue.

Some of what we can expect to learn in the coming days includes new weights for the players. Several sources tell me that just about every starting offensive lineman will be at 300 lbs, a welcome change from the ultra light policy of the previous regime that left our players at a tremendous disadvantage week in and week out. No one should be surprised by some big changes in that part of the roster.

The real mystery is the depth chart. And we're probably still almost 40 days away from really knowing who's getting the starting jobs at many key positions including QB. On the other hand, this coaching staff has been much more open and communicative and they may decide to let us know a little early in hopes of juicing up the fan base and boosting those starters' confidence. I have a good feeling Al Bagnoli's crew will handle the dissemination of this information in the best way to get fans, players, and maybe even some non-athlete students interested.

Now in other news...

Offers

Columbia's coaches aren't being shy about going after some very high quality and much sought after players.

One offer made this week went to Kyle Johnson, a 1st team all state Mike linebacker from the Bolles School in Jacksonville, FL. Johnson is racking up the offers from Army, Lafayette, Lehigh, Navy, Air Force, South Alabama, Ohio U., and probably a few more by the time you read this.

Another offer this week went to another Mike linebacker, Jalen Williams, from Hewitt-Trussville High School in Trussville, AL. Williams also has offers from Yale, Tennessee-Martin, Davidson, Middle Tennessee State, and Navy.

Baseball

The three-time Ivy League defending champion Columbia Baseball team announced the names of the incoming freshman class yesterday. I would expect some walk-ons to be added to roster in the coming months.

One thing that caught my eye is the fact that incoming freshman Chandler Bengston also got some recruiting attention as a center for his high school football team. His football highlights are pretty good! With Columbia football particularly hurting at the center position, does this mean that baseball Head Coach Brett Boretti is a better football recruiter than the previous Columbia football coaching regime? I'll let someone else answer that question.

One question about coaching has been answered. That would be the one about how long could Boretti hold on to his assistants after so much consistent success?

Pitching Coach Peter Maki has indeed left Columbia and taken the same position with the Duke baseball program. We wish him every success. Columbia is putting out a search for Maki's replacement. Take my word for it, with the great talent the Lions have on the mound coming back for 2016 this is going to be a great job.