Major Transfer, Bitter Losses, & Some Hope

Joe Green

Let's start with the newest and most exciting news:

Top class of 2019 QB recruit Joe Green, who once committed to Harvard before eventually joining San Diego State, has announced his transfer to Columbia Football.

Green was rated as a 3-star prospect by some analysts when he was going through the college recruiting process. The news that he was considering coming to an Ivy League school came out last week.

Green is from Skyline HS in Sammamish, Washington and will be the first graduate from his school to come to Columbia Football.

Green brings big size and excellent passing skills to the table.

Here is a look at our incoming freshmen and new players class as it stands now:

1. David Bartholomew DE 6-7 235 lbs. St. Francis HS Athol Springs, NY

2. Braeden Bellmer OL 6-4 260 lbs. Puyallup HS Puyallup, WA

3. Courtney Brown LB 5-11 200 lbs. Shadow Creek Pearland, TX

4. Dominic Busby TE 6-4 220 lbs. Seton Hall Prep West Orange, NJ

5. Jackson Coker WR 5-11 170 lbs. Westlake HS, Austin, TX

6. Ben Corniello OL/DE 6-2 250 lbs. Daniel Hand HS Madison, CT

7. Ty'son Edwards RB 5-11 195 lbs. Marcus HS Flower Mound, TX

8. Reid Englert DE 6-3 230 lbs. Ridgefield HS Ridgefield, CT

9. Joey Giorgi RB/LB 5-11 200 lbs. Grafton HS Grafton, WI

#10. Joe Green QB 6-4 205 lbs. Skyline HS Sammamish, WA

11. Gabriel Hollingsworth QB 6-3 207 lbs. Reagan HS Pfafftown, NC

12. William Hughes K/P 5-11 150 lbs. Chantilly HS Chantilly, VA

13. Kristopher Jenner QB 6-5 225 lbs. McDonough School Pomfret, MD

14. Trey King DB 5-9 175 lbs. Round Rock HS Round Rock, TX

15. James Knox DL 6-4 240 lbs. Newtown HS Newtown, CT

16. Clarence Krebs OL 6-5 275 lbs. Servite HS Anaheim, CA

17. Noah Layton OL 6-5 280 lbs. Benilde-St. Margaret's HS St Louis Park, MN

18. Marcus Libman WR 6-1 185 lbs. Pinnacle HS Phoenix, AZ

19. Carter McFadden DB/WR 5-10 165 lbs. Montgomery HS Montgomery, NJ

20. Wills Meyer WR 6-2 190 lbs. Southlake Carroll HS Southlake, TX

21. James Miller TE/LB 6-4 230 lbs. Ridgewood HS Ridgewood, NJ

22. Mahari Miller ATH 5-10 160 lbs. Springfield Central HS Springfield, MA

23. Seth Parker DB 5-10 168 lbs. Hoover HS Hoover, AL

24. Patrick Passalacqua OL 6-2 265 lbs. Old Tappan HS Old Tappan, NJ

25. Savon Rawlins TE/DE 6-4 230 lbs. Lawrenceville School Princeton, NJ

*26. Scott Rossati FS K 6-3 205 lbs Grosse Point HS, Grosse Point Farms. MI

27. Anthony Roussos LB 6-0 210 lbs. River Ridge HS New Port Richey, FL

28. Reid Spachman DE/LB 6-3 225 lbs. Blue Valley North HS Overland Park, KS

29. Cooper Thomas LB 6-2 215 lbs. St. Thomas HS, Houston, TX

30. Mason Tomlin CB WR 5-9 160 lbs. Shady Side Academy Pittsburgh, PA

31. Nico Valencia WR 6-0 185 lbs. Los Fresnos HS Los Fresnos, TX

#transfer from San Diego State University

*also did PG year at Hotchkiss School

Bagnoli Optimistic

In a Zoom conference organized last night by the CU Athletic Department, Head Coach Al Bagnoli talked extensively about the different adjustments the program is making in the face of the national coronavirus lockdown.

Bagnoli also talked about how he's optimistic that a normal 10-game season will happen this fall. But no one is certain.

Major Losses

Columbia Football has suffered three painful losses to its family in recent weeks, though none related to the virus outbreak.

The biggest name was Brian Dennehy '60 who passed away at age 81. Dennehy was great friend to Columbia, and even became the voice of many of the school's promotional videos.

People may not know that he was very funny, and had a great sense of humor about Columbia Football.

Another big loss was Tom O'Connor '63. O'Connor was a major cog on the 1961 Ivy championship team, and went on to become the captain in 1962. He was also a very friendly and kind man who befriended me many years ago.

Finally, the most personal loss for me is the death of Jim Daine '93, who died after battling Parkinson's Disease for several years.

NEW COMMIT! (and maybe 2 losses)

As we wonder when or if the 2020 Ivy Football season will begin, we have some updates on our incoming 2020 freshman class.

6-4, 230 pound TE/DE Savon Rawlins from the Lawrenceville School has become a late-announced commit to the Lions.

Amazingly, Rawlins will be only the fifth Lawrenceville grad to come to Columbia Football, and the first since the very talented CB Calvin Otis '11.

Ruben Sandwiched

Meanwhile Ruben Valenzuela has switched his commitment from Columbia to Yale. I have not other details or explanations on that one, but hey... we've poached a few guys from Tony Reno ourselves over the years if I'm not mistaken.

AND NOW... the updated list of our 30 reported commits so far:

1. David Bartholomew DE 6-7 235 lbs. St. Francis HS Athol Springs, NY

2. Braeden Bellmer OL 6-4 260 lbs. Puyallup HS Puyallup, WA

3. Courtney Brown LB 5-11 200 lbs. Shadow Creek Pearland, TX

4. Dominic Busby TE 6-4 220 lbs. Seton Hall Prep West Orange, NJ

5. Jackson Coker WR 5-11 170 lbs. Westlake HS, Austin, TX

6. Ben Corniello OL/DE 6-2 250 lbs. Daniel Hand HS Madison, CT

7. Ty'son Edwards RB 5-11 195 lbs. Marcus HS Flower Mound, TX

8. Reid Englert DE 6-3 230 lbs. Ridgefield HS Ridgefield, CT

9. Joey Giorgi RB/LB 5-11 200 lbs. Grafton HS Grafton, WI

10. Gabriel Hollingsworth QB 6-3 207 lbs. Reagan HS Pfafftown, NC

11. William Hughes K/P 5-11 150 lbs. Chantilly HS Chantilly, VA

12. Kristopher Jenner QB 6-5 225 lbs. McDonough School Pomfret, MD

13. Trey King DB 5-9 175 lbs. Round Rock HS Round Rock, TX

14. James Knox DL 6-4 240 lbs. Newtown HS Newtown, CT

15. Clarence Krebs OL 6-5 275 lbs. Servite HS Anaheim, CA

16. Noah Layton OL 6-5 280 lbs. Benilde-St. Margaret's HS St Louis Park, MN

17. Marcus Libman WR 6-1 185 lbs. Pinnacle HS Phoenix, AZ

18. Carter McFadden DB/WR 5-10 165 lbs. Montgomery HS Montgomery, NJ

19. Wills Meyer WR 6-2 190 lbs. Southlake Carroll HS Southlake, TX

20. James Miller TE/LB 6-4 230 lbs. Ridgewood HS Ridgewood, NJ

21. Mahari Miller ATH 5-10 160 lbs. Springfield Central HS Springfield, MA

22. Seth Parker DB 5-10 168 lbs. Hoover HS Hoover, AL

23. Patrick Passalacqua OL 6-2 265 lbs. Old Tappan HS Old Tappan, NJ

24. Savon Rawlins TE/DE 6-4 230 lbs. Lawrenceville School Princeton, NJ

*25. Scott Rossati FS K 6-3 205 lbs Grosse Point HS, Grosse Point Farms. MI

26. Anthony Roussos LB 6-0 210 lbs. River Ridge HS New Port Richey, FL

27. Reid Spachman DE/LB 6-3 225 lbs. Blue Valley North HS Overland Park, KS

28. Cooper Thomas LB 6-2 215 lbs. St. Thomas HS, Houston, TX

29. Mason Tomlin CB WR 5-9 160 lbs. Shady Side Academy Pittsburgh, PA

30. Nico Valencia WR 6-0 185 lbs. Los Fresnos HS Los Fresnos, TX
*also did PG year at Hotchkiss School

Commitment Updates (Part 3) AND THE LIST!

Continuing the updates on the players who committed to the coming freshman class since the beginning of last season...

Seth Parker

5-10 168 pound CB Seth Parker comes to is from Hoover HS in Hoover, Alabama. Parker will be the first Hoover HS grad to come to Columbia, but Hoover is also the hometown of great Lion LB Zach Olinger '14 and also Steven Silvio '15. Both of them went to nearby Spain Park, HS.

Reid Spachman

6-3 215 pound DE/OLB Reid Spachman is from Blue Valley North HS in Overland Park, Kansas. He and rising sophomore WR Cameron Burt are the only Blue Valley grads to come to Columbia Football, but Overland Park is also the home of rising junior TE Jackson Heath and former captain and LB John Alex '89 went to nearby Shawnee Mission HS.

Nico Valencia

6-0 185 pound WR Nico Valencia comes to us from Los Fresnos HS in Los Fresnos, California.  Valencia will be the first Los Fresnos grad to come to Columbia Football.

Ruben Valenzuela

6-2 179 pound DB Ruben Valenzuela comes to us from Calabasas HS in Calabasas, California. He also had offers from Portland State and Azusa Pacific. Valenzuela will be the second Calabasas HS grad to come to Columbia after Kent Sherman '04.

AND NOW... the updated list of our 30 reported commits so far:

1. David Bartholomew DE 6-7 235 lbs. St. Francis HS Athol Springs, NY

2. Braeden Bellmer OL 6-4 260 lbs. Puyallup HS Puyallup, WA

3. Courtney Brown LB 5-11 200 lbs. Shadow Creek Pearland, TX

4. Dominic Busby TE 6-4 220 lbs. Seton Hall Prep West Orange, NJ

5. Jackson Coker WR 5-11 170 lbs. Westlake HS, Austin, TX

6. Ben Corniello OL/DE 6-2 250 lbs. Daniel Hand HS Madison, CT

7. Ty'son Edwards RB 5-11 195 lbs. Marcus HS Flower Mound, TX

8. Reid Englert DE 6-3 230 lbs. Ridgefield HS Ridgefield, CT

9. Joey Giorgi RB/LB 5-11 200 lbs. Grafton HS Grafton, WI

10. Gabriel Hollingsworth QB 6-3 207 lbs. Reagan HS Pfafftown, NC

11. William Hughes K/P 5-11 150 lbs. Chantilly HS Chantilly, VA

12. Kristopher Jenner QB 6-5 225 lbs. McDonough School Pomfret, MD

13. Trey King DB 5-9 175 lbs. Round Rock HS Round Rock, TX

14. James Knox DL 6-4 240 lbs. Newtown HS Newtown, CT

15. Clarence Krebs OL 6-5 275 lbs. Servite HS Anaheim, CA

16. Noah Layton OL 6-5 280 lbs. Benilde-St. Margaret's HS St Louis Park, MN

17. Marcus Libman WR 6-1 185 lbs. Pinnacle HS Phoenix, AZ

18. Carter McFadden DB/WR 5-10 165 lbs. Montgomery HS Montgomery, NJ

19. Wills Meyer WR 6-2 190 lbs. Southlake Carroll HS Southlake, TX

20. James Miller TE/LB 6-4 230 lbs. Ridgewood HS Ridgewood, NJ

21. Mahari Miller ATH 5-10 160 lbs. Springfield Central HS Springfield, MA

22. Seth Parker DB 5-10 168 lbs. Hoover HS Hoover, AL

23. Patrick Passalacqua OL 6-2 265 lbs. Old Tappan HS Old Tappan, NJ

*24. Scott Rossati FS K 6-3 205 lbs Grosse Point HS, Grosse Point Farms. MI

25. Anthony Roussos LB 6-0 210 lbs. River Ridge HS New Port Richey, FL

26. Reid Spachman DE/LB 6-3 225 lbs. Blue Valley North HS Overland Park, KS

27. Cooper Thomas LB 6-2 215 lbs. St. Thomas HS, Houston, TX

28. Mason Tomlin CB WR 5-9 160 lbs. Shady Side Academy Pittsburgh, PA

29. Nico Valencia WR 6-0 185 lbs. Los Fresnos HS Los Fresnos, TX

30. Ruben Valenzuela DB 6-2 179 lbs. Calabasas HS Calabasas, CA

*also did PG year at Hotchkiss School

More Commitment Updates

Continuing now with a look at some of the newer commits to Columbia Football's incoming freshman class

Taylor Johnson

6-4 255 pound DE/T  Taylor Johnson joins the pride from Sheldon HS in Eugene, Oregon. Johnson had offers from Georgetown and a preferred walk on opportunity at Oregon.

Johnson is the second Sheldon grad to come to Columbia Football after Liam Talty '18.

Noah Layton

6-5 280 pound C, DE Noah Layton comes to us from Benilde-St. Margaret's School in St. Louis Park Minnesota. He had an offer from South Dakota.

Layton will be the second Benilde-St. Margaret's grad to come to Columbia Football after Mark Muston '12.

Wills Meyer

6-2 190 pound WR Wills Meyer from Southlake Carroll HS in Southlake, Texas is going to be a Lion. He had offers from Penn and some other smaller schools. Meyer will be the third Southlake grad to come to Columbia Football, and the first since Cody Hess '06.

James Miller

6-4 230 pound TE/OLB James Miller comes to Columbia from Ridgewood HS in Ridgewood, New Jersey. He had offers from Penn and some other schools. Incredibly, Miller is just the third Ridgewood grad to come to Columbia and the first since Mitch Thaw '87.

Mahari Miller

5-10 160 pound athlete Mahari Miller is currently at Central HS in Springfield, Massachusetts. He lists himself as playing seven positions, but it looks like he'll be slotted at DB for the Lions. Miller will be the first Central HS grad to come to Columbia Football after choosing the Lions over Brown, Cornell, and Bryant.

MORE LATER

Commitment Updates

Let's dedicate this weekly update to all the young men who have committed to Columbia since the fall. This will take a few days, but here goes...

Mason Tomlin

Last week, I wrote about Pittsburgh Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin's son, Mason Tomlin, committing to the Lions. I left out the details that he's coming to us from Shady Side Academy in Pittsburgh. According to my LionFeeders recruiting database, Tomlin will be the sixth Shady Side grad to come to Columbia Football, but the first since Sean Barnes '94. (I will officially update the LionFeeders database when the commits are officially reported by the CU athletic department in the spring).

David Bartholomew and friend

Going in alphabetical order now, let's resume with 6-7, 235 pound DE David Bartholomew from St. Francis HS in Athol Springs, NY just outside of Buffalo.

Bartholomew will be the third St. Francis grad to come to Columbia Football, and the first since Mark Calveric '94.

Bartholomew also had offers from Dartmouth and Bryant. If you get a chance, enlarge the photo of him above above and look at the size of his hands!

(Next in alphabetical order WAS Stephen Brooks, the talented TE/DL from the Boston area. But he switched his commitment to Georgetown)

Courtney Brown

Next, we have the extremely speedy 5-11 200 pound OLB/SS Courtney Brown from Shadow Creek HS in Pearland, Texas. Brown also had offers from Air Force, Brown, and Texas Southern.

Brown will be the first Shadow Creek grad to come to Columbia Football.

Ty'son Edwards

Staying in Texas, we have 5-11 195 pound RB Ty'son Edwards from Marcus HS in Flower Mound, TX. Edwards had offers from Wake Forest, Brown, Davidson, and others. Edwards will be the first Marcus HS grad to come to Columbia Football, but many CU fans will remember that WR/PR Mike Stephens '11 came to Columbia from nearby Flower Mound HS.

Joey Giorgi carries the ball

Another RB commit is 5-11 200 poound RB/MLB Joey Giorgi from Grafton HS in Grafton, Wisconsin. Giorgi had preferred walk on offers at Wisconsin and Minnesota, and regular offers at from a number of other schools. He will be the first Grafton grad to come to Columbia Football

Trey King

We go back to Texas for 5-9 175  pound CB/FS Trey King from Round Rock HS in Round Rock, TX. King ended up with offers from Brown, Valaparaiso and a few other schools. King will be the first Round Rock grad to come to Columbia Football.

James Knox

Coming to the Northeast, we have 6-4 240 pound DL James Knox from Newtown HS in Newtown, Connecticut. Knox also had an offer from Cornell. Knox will be the first Newtown HS grad to come to Columbia Football.

Marcus Libman

Entering the competition for the title of "most highly touted CU recruit" is 6-1 185 pound WR Marcus Libman from Pinnacle HS in Phoenix, Arizona. Libman plays a lot like CU WR Josh Wainwright. He ended up with offers from Penn, Cornell, Hawaii, New Mexico State, Northern Colorado, South Dakota State, and Northern Arizona. Libman will be the first Pinnacle grad to come to Columbia Football.

MORE LATER