Building the Foundation

One thing you may have noticed about the four best recruiting classes of the last 30 years that I identified last week is that fact that they were two sets of two consecutive years.

That’s not a coincidence.

Great recruiting classes don’t happen overnight. They rely on momentum and build up over time.

So no matter how many great-looking commits we see in this year’s incoming class, we have to remember that a huge part of their purpose is to attract even more excellent recruits for next year… and so on and so on.

Obviously, the influential impact of getting a top recruit to publicly commit can help more of his peers decide to join Columbia in the same year. For example, it really looks like a number of incoming freshmen and current varsity players put some good natured pressure on Hunter Lunsford to commit by using Twitter and other social media.

Some fans, however, are worried that if potential top players see too many Tweets and posts about great players at their position committing to Columbia, they will be discouraged to enter such a crowded field. There may be some truth to that, but I’ve always believed that the best players are usually at least very privately cocky about their abilities and chances to stand out among even the best competition. In fact, many of the best athletes crave the toughest competition just to get on the field. Otherwise, working just to compete 10 days out of the year for Ivy football would simply not offer them enough of a challenge.

But this year is very much about building. Columbia needs to create a pipeline of talent and right now we’re just digging the holes to put that pipe in the ground.

This weekend is another big recruiting weekend with players visiting campus. They’ll meet a number of varsity players who will talk to them about what they hope to accomplish this coming season and all the seasons they have left at Columbia.  More importantly, they’ll find out what their rest of their lives can be like if they decide to choose this university and join its unique group of football and non-athlete alumni.

And if Head Coach Al Bagnoli is able to keep doing the work he’s started at Columbia for another 4-5 years, there’s a great chance the kids visiting campus this weekend will be the true foundation of a major turnaround for this program not unlike the JunctionBoys under Bear Bryant at Texas A&M.  

More on Lunsford and Updated List

Hunter Lunsford was not exactly a surprise commit based on his interactions on Twitter with earlier commits like Levi McQuinn.

Lunsford will be the first Consumnes Oaks HS grad to come to Columbia football according to my Lionfeeder recruitment database.

The list of reported committed players and expected walk-ons has swelled to 30:

1) Kyle Baskin WR/DB 6-4 210 lbs. Quakertown HS Quakertown, PA

2) Christian Boujaoude WR 5-11 165 lbs. Monmouth Regional HS Eatontown, NJ

3) Parker Coogan OL/DT 6-2 270 lbs. Kingwood HS Houston, TX

4) Matt Dame QB 6-2 185 lbs. Suncoast HS Riviera Beach, FL

5) Chris Everett WR 6-2 200 lbs. Whitney Young HS Chicago, IL

6) Danny De Lorenzi LB 6-3 230 lbs. Bergen Catholic HS, Oradell, NJ 

7) John Fischer OL 6-3 290 lbs. Sacred Heart-Griffin HS Springfield, IL

8) Alex Gibson RB 5-10 195 lbs. Central Bucks High School East Doylestown, PA

9) LinDon Harris DE 6-2 215 lbs. Sidwell Friends Washington, DC

10) Ben Hill TE/DE 6-3 230 lbs. Christian Brothers HS Memphis, TN

11) Tyler Houston DE/TE 6-3 245 lbs. Olentangy HS Lewis Center, OH

12) Hogan Irwin RB 5-10 180 lbs. Central Cathedral HS San Diego, CA

13) Hunter Lunsford DB 6-1 195 lbs. Consumnes Oaks HS Sacramento, CA

14) Ben McKeighan WR/DB 6-0 187 lbs. Scottsdale Prep/Cheshire Academy (PG year) Scottsdale, AZ

15) Levi McQuinn LB 6-0 205 lbs. Fort Myers HS Fort Myers, FL

16) Max Mullaney LB 6-2 225 lbs. Colts Neck HS Colts Neck, NJ

17) Michael Murphy LB 5-11 194 lbs. Plant HS Tampa, FL

18) Van Neils RB 6-0 210 lbs. Mankato East HS Mankato, MN

19) Lamine Nouck-A-Nwal DE/OL  6-4 250 lbs. Central Bucks High School East Doylestown, PA

20) Will Ontiveros WR/DB 6-2 175 lbs. Assumption HS Davenport, IA

21) Hunter Petlansky QB 6-2 225 lbs. Modesto Central Catholic HS Modesto, CA 

22) Alex Robin DT 6-0 260 lbs. Vestavia Hills HS Vestavia Hills, AL 

23) Arman Samouk DT 6-2 270 lbs. Copley HS Copley, OH

24) Drew Schoeberl DE/TE 6-5 250 lbs. Columbus North HS Columbus, IN

25) Joseph Scowden OL 6-4 290 lbs. Montgomery Bell HS Nashville, TN

26) Tanner Thomas RB 5-10 183 lbs. Farragut HS Knoxville, TN 

27) Matt Tofano LB 6-2 217 lbs. Archibishop Mitty HS San Jose, CA

28) Jonathon Webster DB  6-0 180 lbs. Eastside Catholic HS Sammamish, WA

29) Taylor Weldon DE/TE 6-2 240 lbs. Soutland Academy Americus, GA

30) Jalen Williams LB 6-0 215 lbs. Hewitt-Trussville HS, Trussville, AL

Breaking: Lunsford Commits

DB Hunter Lunsford has committed to Columbia. He's a 6-1 195 pound speedster. 

More later 

Four Classes

Marcellus Wiley

I have to admit I've been putting off writing this post for weeks, months, and maybe years.

I did so because it's just very hard to really judge recruiting classes, sometimes even 20 years after they graduate.

And when you're dealing with a program that has frequent coaching changes, it's often hard to give credit to the people and staff that actually recruited the most players in a given class.

But as we are in the height of recruiting season now with on-campus visits resuming this weekend, I thought I'd look at what I think are the four main contenders for the title of "Best Columbia Football Recruiting Class" in my lifetime.

Starting by chronological order, let's begin with the group of players that entered in 1992, (for reference hereinafter I call this the "Class of 1996," regardless of when each of the players actually did graduate from Columbia).

For this and the other three classes I want to consider, I list all the players who were either All Ivy, All Ivy contenders, or just key leaders on the field.


1996

Marcellus Wiley
Mike Cavanaugh
John Harper
Jim Jim Jones
Ryan Ornellas
Will Payne
Chris Valvo
Mike Quinn
Jason Lill
Jim Lill
Craig Valentine
Erik Olson
Ralph Hudson
Matt Lenzen
Frank Congiusta

I know most of the players above aren't completely familiar to even longtime Columbia fans. But the big stars were Wiley, Cavanaugh, Harper, and Valentine. The just-below-star-level players were the Lill twins, Hudson, Valvo, and Ornellas. In practice, this was the group most responsible for Columbia's first winning season in 23 years in 1994. They also got the team off to a very strong 1995 start before the outstanding QB Cavanaugh went down with a career-ending broken leg at Princeton.

This group has a special place in my heart because of what they overcame historically. Columbia's sudden ascension to a contender in the Ivies really came out of nowhere. The most wins then-Head Coach Ray Tellier had earned in any of his six seasons at the helm prior to 1994 was three and the 1993 team was 2-8.

And of course the big name is Wiley, who remains the #1 best Columbia recruit and developed player of the last 50 years.

Rory Wilfork


1997

Rory Wilfork
Randy Murff
Ryan Gabriele
Austin Milliken
Ray Gerena
David Ramirez
Dennis Lee
Mike Jennings
Charlie Bettinelli
Guy Poppe


Wilfork was one of the best players and best ambassadors for Columbia athletics in history. He was a truly feared force at linebacker and when he was playing with Wiley, the Lions had a defense that could win games all by itself.

Murff and Milliken were excellent linemen who made a huge difference for what was an offense that lacked a great QB after Cavanaugh went down. Ramirez was a great WR who opposing defenses feared.

But this is a smaller list of stars than the '96 group, and much of the magic of this class' best season was due to the fact that Wiley took 1995 off and was around to lead the team in the 8-2 season of 1996. But even as sophomores, enough of these players made a big enough impact on the historic 1994 breakthrough team for this group to be singled out in their own right.

Austin Knowlin


2010

Austin Knowlin
M.A. Olawale
Lou Miller
Andy Shalbrack
Evan Sanford
Ray Rangel
Taylor Joseph
Justin Masorti
Jared Morine

Three of these players were probably the best Columbia has seen at their respective positions in 25 years. Knowlin at WR, Miller at DE, and Shalbrack at Safety. That fact alone makes this group made up of a mix of Norries Wilson and Bob Shoop recruits really stand out. Injuries and other misfortunes stole some added glory from this squad with only abbreviated careers for Rangel, Masorti, and even Olawale who really only started one full season's worth of games at QB. But this was the group most responsible for the 2009 season that was the best the Lions have had since 1996.

Alex Gross and friends


2011

Alex Gross
Andrew Kennedy
Adam Mehrer
Calvin Otis
Matt Bashaw
Matt Moretto
Mike Stephens
Augie Williams
Dan Cohen
Leon Ivery
Nico Gutierrez
Mike Murphy
Ian Quirk
Marc Holloway

This was an all-Norries Wilson class and was clearly his best. Gross and Kennedy really stood out and losing both of them to graduation in May of 2011 was the biggest reason for the disastrous season that ensued that fall. Mehrer was an underrated top flight safety and was half of the best single play of the entire decade of the 2000's when he intercepted a Hail Mary Brown pass and lateraled it to Shalbrack for a spectacular TD in 2009. Otis was often banged up, but a great corner who played right away as a freshman. Moretto was an extremely smart player who was also effective when he was healthy. Stephens was a dynamic WR and Williams was the joyful spirit of a team that was briefly very much on the rise.

So which one of the above classes was the best? I think the quick answer is 1996 because of Wiley. But take him off the list and then I think I would very easily pick the 2011 crew even though they never put together a winning team.

Of course, you can't strip Wiley away from that 1996 class. And it was filled with just the right amount of stars and plugger guys playing way above their heads with extreme effort that they helped turn around a program that was circling the drain.

The good news is that even that 1996 class is not something that I think is too hard for Al Bagnoli and his staff to match or exceed. Bagnoli's name alone will attract players at or above most of the 1996 group in greater numbers. The key will be to grab one or two truly outstanding stars and then making sure they play that way on the field.

Superior Branding

Welcome campers!

A year ago at this time, Columbia didn't even have a head coach, now it has a leader with one of the most respected names in all of college football.

That's why yesterday's early announcement about the Al Bagnoli football camps this summer is a big step up for the program's recruiting future. The high school players who come to these camps should include some top recruits for the 2021 and 2022 classes. And for those players still on the fence about coming to Columbia this fall, hearing more about Coach Bagnoli in any context will help steer then to New York City.