Tomorrow we will learn the names of the three (up from two in the recent past) nominees each for the offensive and defensive Ivy Football players of the year award or Bushnell Cup.
I don't think it's a stretch to say senior WR Bryson Canty and senior S Hayden McDonald should be offensive and defensive finalists, respectively.
But when it comes to Columbia and Bushnell Cups, you never know. Two years ago, I thought LB Scott Valentas '23 was a very likely finalist for Defensive POY, but he was snubbed.
Columbia only has TWO Bushnell Cup winners in its history, QB John Witkowski in 1983 and RB Doug Jackson in 1975. SInce then, not even one Lion has been named as a finalist for the award.
Canty was a part of so many dynamic plays for the Lions this year, it would be hard to list them all. Working against him is the fact that he missed some playing time to injury early in the year, and the fact that QB changes and high winds in some games definitely deflated some of his stats.
McDonald was dominant at safety versus the pass, but also the run. He made key plays in every game, punctuated by an impressive interception in the end zone at a crucial moment in the win over Cornell.
The toughest competition for Canty will be Harvard WR Cooper Barkate, who sparked a very good year for the Crimson offense.
McDonald's toughest competition for the award will be Dartmouth's DL Josiah Green.
Cornell QB Jameson Wang has a shot to be a finalist on the offensive side, while LB Mitchell Gonser from Harvard could be a defensive finalist as well.
But it's all very hard to predict.
13 comments:
Doug Jackson won in 1975
CORRECT! Fixing,
Des Werthman and Marcellus Wiley would have each easily gotten DPOY had it be been offered when they were playing.
If Wang is chosen, that award loses a lot of credibility; flashy player but a TO machine his entire career. For my money, the two most impactful players on O for their teams that I saw ( in multiple games) were Giorgi and the Yale WR #10.
Usually the Bushnells are given to guys who made first-team All Ivy, so Giorgi has an uphill climb.
The Penn RB should be a finalist given his tremendous season.
Agree on Giorgi, was just giving my opinion. That also was a major snub. He was CU's MVP w/o a doubt. There is no title w/o him.
There is no Giorgi, without Poppe.
There is no Poppe without Bagnoli. Where is this going?
No Bangnoli without the Mangurian candidate. For Pete’s sake.
Hosely was not as good as Q, who was the best back I saw from all of our opponents. Giorgi was more important to his team than any other back in the IL. As far as other positions, I thpoight that Canty was the most talented WR in the IL and a real NFL prospect. But the fact that he missed several games hurts his candidacy. McDonald was the glue that held our league leading defense together, especially once Townsend went down.
Disagree about Q. But for what it’s worth, I think Barkate will win. He was basically unstoppable, and he has the numbers to back it up. On D, I think McDonald should and will win. He was a key piece of the league’s best defense, he led the league in picks, and he made several timely plays, perhaps none bigger than the pick against Cornell. He broke up a ton of passes, and as Jake mentioned, he was also very strong against the run. And did I mention he was a unanimous selection for first team all-Ivy? Also, great discipline, and no dumb penalties, unlike Green. I may be accused of being a homer, but I have a hard time seeing how there’s anyone more deserving than McD.
All roads lead to sweet Lou Little
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