Cole Freeman
Moment #3: Next Man Up
Injuries are a big part of football at any level, but they were really a key aspect of Columbia's 2024 campaign. The team's ability to bounce back and adjust to those injuries may really be the number one reason why the Lions snagged a share of the Ivy title.
The team's injury-coping skills began in week one vs. Lafayette when starting QB Chase Goodwin went down with what turned out to be a deep knee bruise with the Lions ahead by only 17-12 and about seven minutes left in the 3rd quarter.
The next three and a half minutes would turn out to be perhaps the best test of what Columbia was made of in 2024.
Backup QB Cole Freeman wasn't able to get a 1st down on two pass plays immediately after Goodwin left the game. The Lions ended up punting the ball to the Leopards and they took over at their own 23.
First, it was the defense's turn to step things up.
Three straight running plays by Lafayette netted just eight yards, thanks to two solo tackles by 5th year senior DL and co-captain Patrick Passalacqua and one solo stop by sophomore LB Charlie Newton. Passalacqua's second tackle on the series held Leopards RB Nhajee Adams to just one yard on a 3rd and 2 from the Lafayette 31.
Then it was the offense's turn.
A short punt set the Lions up at their own 40, and on the first play of the possession, RB Malcolm Terry burst through a huge hole on the left side of the CU line for a 53 yard scamper to the Leopard seven. On the next play, Freeman placed the ball perfectly to a pretty well-covered WR Ethan Hebb for a TD that turned what looked like a disastrous turn in momentum into a sign of Columbia's strength, depth, and resilience that remained constant throughout the season.
Adding to that sentiment was yet another TD drive for the Lions on their next possession, that came on a 38-yard TD pass from Freeman to WR Bryson Canty to put the game away.
Columbia's unusual penchant for finding ways to lose games came to an end during the Al Bagnoli era, but it took until 2024 for the Lions to really replace that with a gut-check style of finding ways to win games without tricks or miracles. When Columbia got behind or in trouble in 2024, the Lions simply relied on their strengths to recover. In this case the strong defense combined with an offensive line that made things happen, did the job,
66 comments:
Patty is 4th yr senior
Great description, Jake, you're the best. And if I may, I predict a solo crown in '26.
Lot of returning talent on offense. Need some depth at rb, te and wr
Defense will need guys to step up on all 3 levels
Dont be surprised if there is a step back next year. 13 5th years make a big difference. But no reason not to be optimistic, that is what off season is for!
Any fifth years likely to come back?
In MBB Dartmouth is playing ND tonight. Last night Cornell beat Cal, and Brown took down previously unbeaten URI in double OT. Princeton, Yale, Cornell, and Brown are all better than Columbia, and beating the MMA by 40+ means nothing. The Engles fan club is in for a rude awakening come January.
I agree. I think we have a legitimate chance of losing at least once to every team in conference. I’ll say another 4-10 season is on the horizon. Maybe 5-9, but I could also see 3-11. As someone else on this site predicted, the team struggled against Albany, and I imagine they’ll have a tough go of it at Rutgers. Engles’ teams usually underperform after long layoffs. I’m starting to think seventh or eighth in the Ivies isn’t out of the question.
If we lose twice to Yale, Princeton, and Brown, that’s six losses right there. Add in a few more against Cornell, Penn, and Dartmouth, and 4-10 seems pretty realistic. But I’ll say 6-8, with us losing twice to both Yale and Brown, and once each against Cornell, Penn, Dartmouth, and Princeton. I think we can beat Harvard twice. But if we split with Harvard and drop two to Princeton, there’s your 4-10.
Math major
This is a football blog. Maybe we can start a basketball blog.
Anyone have thoughts on Belichick taking the UNC job?
The real question is whether Engles can win as many games in conference as Poppe. I’m gonna say no.
If Belichick goes to UNC, he won’t be available to get the Giants to .500 next year. If I were he, I’d wait a few months to take the NYG job or another HC job in the pros.
Bill Belichek's wanted more than anything to become Columbia's Men's Basketball Coach, but settled for the North Carolina Head Football Coach position when he found our that Engles had a binding lifetime contract signed by former Columbia President Bollinger and guaranteed by*****
MBB should schedule both Bronx Community College and Manhattan CC next season. That would guarantee at least two wins. Even marshmallows are way too soft for coach Engles.
You're obsessed with him. I think you're in love with him.
Who doesn’t love an absolute winner?
Imagine if, out of every four days on the job in a leadership position, you only worked one. The other three you just never showed up. Not only that, but you were still around in year eight! Now here’s where it gets really incredible: the people seemingly aware of all your shortcomings INCREASED their support for you because of a two-month stretch in year eight during which you started to work two or three out of four days, but only when all the tasks and assignments your team had were very light and easy to accomplish.
Are we overreacting to what might have been an off night against Albany?
Or underreacting to the nightmare of the last seven years? Check out that Engles Ivy winning percentage.
Agree about underreacting. Rutgers likely to embarrass us on 12/30.
But first we have what should be another win, this time against Fairfield (whom Yale beat by 25). Meanwhile, Brown is playing Kansas(!) later this month.
Does anyone care about college football?
What are our bowl game predictions?
I’ll say ND to win at all.
Agree. Go Irish!
I think the Ducks will lose in a rematch to Ohio State (before the championship game).
Q: How quickly do you think Belichick will turn UNC into a CFP contender, and what is the support for your claim? I added this last bit so that we don’t get any more of the moronically glib answers such as “Very” from some of our sharpest commenters.
Been saying for years, ENGLES MUST GO! Pilling must stop riding the Poppe Wave and TAKE ACTION! Earth to Pilling, come in Pilling or you will end up in the T Rump admin!
You won't be saying that after we play in NCAAs this March.
Please don't insult Trump. What encampment are u in?
I don't think he will. UNC will improve a bit and will be a hot name for recruits for a bit but I think he'll be mediocre. NIL, recruiting, transfer
portal and dealing with 18 year old kids isn't easy.
Enough hoops talk. You haven't been saying this to Piling for years so shut up.
The NCAAs? Where do you get your crack??? How about a .500 record in conference first? Or even six wins? Engles will never win an IL championship.
Engles is the worst MBB coach in the history of the Ivy League, and padding his record OOC this year won’t change that. Not sure why you’re having such a hard time understanding that he should have been fired years ago. Get back to me after the Rutgers game.
Final Ivy League Football Power Rankings:
1. Harvard
2. Dartmouth
3. Columbia
4. Yale
5. Penn
6. Cornell
7. Brown
8. Princeton
Does my heart good to see Princeton last!
Columbia should be #1
Dartmouth and Harvard finished the season weak.
No
It's challenging NOT to insult Trump. But even he has the Buddha nature. Read my article, 'Trump and The Three Poisons,":at:
ajruskin.wordpress.com
Nam Myoho Renge Kyo 🌺
Alan R.
And the Lions should prevail year after next.
I should know, I was there in '61.
So does Goodwin go back to #1 QB, or is there going to be a real competition with Sanchez? I think Freeman is probably #3 but wonder if he should be moved to RB/wildcat.
Q&A with Jake/Lionheart...
https://www.stadiumjourney.com/stadiums/lionheart-q-a-with-jake-novak-columbia-football-s-biggest-fan
Columbia/Peter Pilling appears to have already hired its new head basketball coach to replace Engles in the event the Lions fall apart again during the Ivy League season, According to the Columbia Athletics website , Columbia has hired Jason Crafton as its "Chief Program Strategist." Crafton, is the former Head Coach of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore and has 11 years of Head Coaching Experience.
Fake news
Saying something’s fake doesn’t make it fake.
Not sure what to make of this hire. If he was as good at UMBC as the blurb on the CU athletics website suggests, why did he leave? And he’s already been working with Engles, even before this announcement? More questions than answers here.
They just added a guy to the staff. It's not hard to understand.
Hayden did not get DPOY; went to the Dartmouth DL, Hayden deserved it.
With a title no one’s ever heard of? Mid-season? Doesn’t make sense.
Hayden was robbed
We had the best defense in the league, by far, and Hayden was the best defender on the best defense. Dartmouth was shredded by Cornell. I really believe that the IL has an anti-Columbia bias.
"Hayden was robbed" The disrespect of Dartmouth continues...
Columbia had the best scoring defense. Dartmouth had the best total defense and the best rushing defense (by far). The disrespect of Dartmouth continues....
Dartmouth gave up 43 points to Yale and 39 to Cornell—best total defense? We gave up one TD to Yale and none to Cornell. To me the best defense is the one that gives up the fewest points, and we gave up the fewest points by far.
IMHO there is an obvious anti-Columbia bias in not giving MacDonald the award.
How about on the other side of the ball? Hosley wins OPOY, on a Penn team with a 2-5 League record, while Giorgi is the second leading rusher in the League on a Co-Championship team picked to come in last? Huh?
Columbia gave up 20 points to Georgetown. And lost. :)
Should also have mentioned that Dartmouth only gave up 14 to Fordham--a team that Columbia has been terrified to play for years!!
Hosley was much better statistically. Almost 1200 yards, 9 TDs.
Unlike the Columbia Men's Basketball Team, the Columbia Football Team does not have on its staff a Chief Program Strategist, an Assistant to the Chief Program Strategist, or even an Assistant to the Assistant to the Chief Program Strategist.
I agree, we need to add Fordham back to the schedule. It is a shame we ran away from this game with our tail between our legs. I remember going to games in the Bronx and it is always fun to travel to an away game that is in our backyard.
Staff of the Year!!!
Come on GG, I didn't know the manly men in the “woods” were always so in their feelings.
As for me, worrying about post-season awards is a worthless endevor Hopefully the Lion faithful will get more great teams to cheer on and they can learn to sit back not take these things seriously
Fordham in those days was a different program. The coach was out to become a major program and the rumor was that they were head hunting for our QB, Nottingham.
Head hunting? It's a football game with referees. Its not a tickling contest.
Maybe the fact that two of the three OPOY nominees, including the winner, had gaudy stats on teams that had losing records says something about stats in sports, especially football, including highly subjective POY awards. See in re "Mr. May".
BIG NEWS! Beginning in 2025, Ivy League Schools will be able to participate in the FCS National Championship tournament. GO LIONS!
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