Columbia University Athletics

BAGNOLI BY THE NUMBERS
NFL Draft Picks: 3
Players coached who have signed NFL free agent contracts: 27
Asa A. Bushnell Cup Winners (Ivy League MVP): 5
Ivy League Rookie of the Year: 3
First Team All-Americans: 9
NCAA Post-Graduate Scholarships earned: 4
All-Ivy League First Team selections: 140
All-Ivy League selections: 258
 
FAST FACTS ABOUT BAGNOLI

• With his 274 coaching wins upon entering the 2023 season, Al Bagnoli is tied as the second winningest active football coach, tied with North Carolina’s Mack Brown, and trailing only Alabama’s Nick Saban (280) at the NCAA collegiate level (all divisions and levels). At the FCS level, Bagnoli is the active wins leader.
• He is also 16^th on the all-time coaching victories list, which includes coaches at all collegiate levels.
• Bagnoli has guided teams to nine total Ivy League championships, a league-best six undefeated Ivy League 7-0 records, including three in back-to-back seasons. In 38 years of coaching, he has guided two teams to undefeated 10-0 records, five teams to 10-plus victory seasons and 31 of 38 teams to .500-plus seasons.
• Al Bagnoli is one of nine coaches in league history to head up two different Ivy League schools. He served as head coach at Penn from 1992-2014 and now at Columbia from 2015-present. Percy Haughton is the only coach to work at three different Ivy League schools: Cornell (1899-00), Harvard (1908-16), and Columbia (1923-24).
• Bagnoli owns five of the Ivy League’s top marks for most victories against one Ivy League school. Ironically, Bagnoli has defeated Columbia 20 times in his career, which ranks sixth all-time on the list. In addition, Bagnoli has defeated Dartmouth 19 times, Yale and Cornell 18 times and Princeton 17 times.
• Bagnoli amassed an 86-19 record in 10 years at Union College (N.Y.) and guided the Dutchmen to two NCAA Division III championship game appearances and six NCAA Division III playoff berths.
• Bagnoli is the only NCAA football coach with 200 or more career wins who has never been involved in a tie game as a head coach.

 
The nation’s second active winningest coach in college football at any level, a nine-time Ivy League Football Champion and one of the all-time winningest head coaches in NCAA Football Championship Subdivision history, Al Bagnoli was named Columbia’s Patricia and Shepard Alexander Head Coach of Football in February 2015. He begins his ninth season at Columbia in 2023.
 
Bagnoli has led the Lions to 35 victories in eight years at the helm, which are the most wins during such a span in program history. He and his coaching staff have brought in three top-25 nationally ranked recruiting classes (2016, 2017, and 2018) and have posted winning seasons in four of the past five years.
 
Nationally known for his ability to turn football programs into winners, Bagnoli arrived at Columbia after 23 years at the University of Pennsylvania, where he totaled a 148-80 overall record and a 112-49 record in the Ivy League. His Penn teams won nine Ivy League Championships, including a league-record six undefeated conference marks (1993, 1994, 2002, 2003, 2009, 2010) and three perfect seasons (10-0 in 1993 and 2003, 9-0 in 1994).
 
In 41 years as a head coach, Bagnoli’s career record currently stands at 274-129. His career winning percentage (67.1%) ranks first among active FCS coaches and fourth all-time among FCS coaches. His 274 victories rank 16^th all-time total in the history of college football, second among active college football coaches at any level, sixth among all-time FCS coaches and first among active FCS coaches. Bagnoli’s 128 career Ivy League victories rank as the second-highest total in league history. Players have achieved under Bagnoli as 27 of his former players were either drafted or signed a free agent contract by NFL teams, five earned the Ivy League’s Asa A. Bushnell Cup Award (league MVP), nine garnered First Team All-America honors, four received the prestigious NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship and 247 have secured All-Ivy League accolades.

In 2022, Columbia closed the season on a three-game winning streak and were 6-4 overall. The Lions earned a road victory over Harvard for the first time since 1995 after coming-from-behind in the fourth quarter for a 21-20 win. With Columbia’s win over Cornell to close the season, Bagnoli led the Lions to their fourth winning season in the past five years they have competed. Columbia had a ranked in the top-20 in FCS in scoring defense (20.8 PPG) and were fifth in the nation in stopping the run (98 YPG). Columbia posted 11 All-Ivy League honorees, including a unanimous first team selection by linebacker Scott Valentas.

The Lions had a successful return to the field in 2021 after the 2020 season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Columbia posted a 7-3 mark, securing a winning record for the third time in four seasons. Quarterback Joe Green was named Ivy League Rookie of the Year and the Lions set a program-record putting 13 student-athletes on All-Ivy League teams.
 
In 2019, Columbia defeated Harvard for the first time in 16 years and topped Penn 44-6 in Columbia’s margin of victory for a Homecoming game in school history. In 2018, Columbia completed its season with a 6-4 overall and 3-4 Ivy League record despite overcoming injuries to over 25 key players. The Lions registered back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 1961 and 1962. Under Bagnoli, Columbia amassed 14 victories combining the 2017 and 2018 seasons, its highest win total in consecutive years since the institution joined the Ivy League in 1956.
 
In 2017, Bagnoli guided Columbia to its best season since 1996 as the Lions accumulated an 8-2 record and finished second in the Ivy League with a 5-2 campaign. For the first time in 21 years, Columbia was involved in the Ivy League Championship chase up until the season’s final minutes. In addition, Columbia began a season with six straight wins for the first time since 1996, put together the school’s longest win streak since 1935 (seven games) and posted one of the nation’s top-five best yearly comebacks in the FCS with a five-win improvement from 2016 to 2017. Along the way, it was the Lions’ resiliency, toughness and work ethic that captured the attention of their fans, the New York City media and national media members alike. For his efforts, Bagnoli was named a national Coach of the Year finalist by the AFCA and STATS FCS and earned the Ivy League, ECAC and AFCA Region 1 Coach of the Year honors.
 
Bagnoli brought in a pair of highly-touted recruiting classes in his first two seasons with the Lions to make an immediate impact on the program. After going winless the two seasons prior to his arrival, Columbia won five games in 2015 and 2016. Even in losses, his teams were competitive with 13 losses coming by 10 or fewer points.
 
Bagnoli was introduced as the 21st head coach at the University of Pennsylvania in January of 1992. His mission was to restore the pride of a program that, despite winning six Ivy banners in 10 seasons, had slipped with three consecutive losing campaigns. Between 2009-12, Penn won three of four Ivy League titles outright—a feat which had not been accomplished since 1977-80—but Bagnoli has accomplished two times since 2000. He is the only coach in Ivy League history to win back-to-back undefeated Ivy League titles and he has done so three separate times.
 
Bagnoli won his 100th game at Penn at the start of the 2006 season with the Quakers knocking off No. 22 Lafayette on the road in the season opener. In the final week of the 2008 campaign, the Quakers captured the 200th career win in Bagnoli’s illustrious career. There have been only five other FCS coaches in NCAA history to accomplish that feat.
 
The 2010 season did not just mark another championship year, but also another undefeated season for the Quakers under Bagnoli. For the third time in his tenure, Penn had back-to-back undefeated Ivy seasons, going unbeaten in 2009 as well. No other coach in Ivy League history has ever led a team to back-to-back perfect seasons in League play, while Bagnoli has done so three times.

Penn set an NCAA record with an even more impressive streak that carried Bagnoli and the Quakers through nearly three seasons. The program won 24 consecutive games between 1993-95, the longest win streak in FCS history, en route to winning back-to-back undefeated Ivy championships in 1993 and 1994.
 
Bagnoli's Quakers own the three longest Ivy winning streaks in league history, including a 20-game Ivy unbeaten streak from 2001-04 and more recently, a string of 18 straight Ivy wins from 2008-2011. 
 
Before his time at Penn, Bagnoli served as the head coach of Union College in Schenectady, New York, where he amassed an 87-18 overall record in 10 seasons. Bagnoli made his collegiate head coaching debut at Union College in 1982, guiding the Dutchmen to their first winning season in 12 years with an 8-1 record. The following season, Bagnoli guided the program to an NCAA Division III title-game appearance and a 10-2 record, garnering East Region Coach of the Year honors.
 
The Dutchmen were named the ECAC’s Team of the Year for the 1983 campaign. Union reached the NCAA playoffs six times and posted 10-consecutive winning seasons during Bagnoli’s tenure in Schenectady. In 1989, Bagnoli guided the Dutchmen to the program’s greatest season ever, rolling to a 10-0 regular-season record and three-straight NCAA playoff victories en route to the NCAA Division III National Championship game (Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl). Two years later, Bagnoli received the Eastman Kodak Award as the American Football Coaches Association Region I Coach of the Year. Bagnoli’s 1991 Union team had the nation’s top scoring offense, averaging 46.1 points per game, while his 1984 squad boasted the top defense, allowing a measly 4.6 points per game. Before being named head coach of the Dutchmen, Bagnoli served as Union’s defensive coordinator from 1978-82.
 
Bagnoli is a two-time recipient (1993 and 1994) of the Scotty Whitelaw Award as the NCAA Division I-AA Coach of the Year, voted upon by the Metropolitan New York Football Writers Association.
 
Bagnoli is a member of the FCS rules committee for the AFCA. In 1989, he was the selection chairman of the Albany Chapter of the National Football Foundation Hall of Fame, which he established. From 1987 to 1991, Bagnoli served as a panel member of the New York State Task Force on Athletics. In addition, Bagnoli was also the Eastern Regional Chairperson for the NCAA Division III All-America teams from 1984 to 1986.
 
His coaching career began while he was pursuing his master’s degree in educational administration from the University of Albany. He served as a graduate assistant coach for one season before becoming Albany’s defensive coordinator from 1976-77.
 
Bagnoli earned a bachelor’s degree in physical education and history from Central Connecticut State in 1975. During his undergrad years, he played three seasons of varsity football. Central Connecticut State’s record during that span was 23-5.
 
Bagnoli and his wife, Maryellen, reside in Riverdale, N.Y. Their oldest son, Jeff, graduated in 2003 from the College of Arts and Sciences at Penn, while his youngest son Greg graduated from Penn in the spring of 2005. Both lettered and served as captains for the Quakers’ sprint football team and also played on the club ice hockey team. Jeff was a member of Penn’s 2000 undefeated sprint football championship team, while both won a title on the club hockey team in 2002. Bagnoli’s daughter, Amanda, graduated from Penn in 2008 and was a member of the Quakers’ cheerleading squad. He has two in-laws Brittany and Nicole, and five grandchildren: Luca, Gavin, Mason, Riley, and Mia.
 
THE AL BAGNOLI FILE
Date announced as Columbia Head Coach: February 23, 2015
Birthdate: January 20, 1953
Hometown: East Haven, Conn.
 
Education
Bachelor of Arts, Physical Education/History, Central Connecticut State University, 1975; Master’s Degree, Educational Administration, University at Albany, 1977; East Haven High School
 
Family
Wife Maryellen; son Gregory and daughter-in-law Brittany with grandsons Gavin, Mason, and Riley; son Jeffrey and daughter in-law Nicole with grandson Luca and granddaughter Mia; and daughter Amanda
 
Coaching Career
Head Football Coach, Columbia University, 2015-current
Head Football Coach, University of Pennsylvania, 1992-2014
Head Football Coach, Union College, N.Y., 1982-91
Defensive Coordinator, Union College, N.Y., 1978-82
Defensive Coordinator, University at Albany, 1976-77
Graduate Assistant, University at Albany, 1975
 
Coaching Accomplishments
2017 National Coach of the Year finalist by two organizations: AFCA and STATS FCS … Earned AFCA Region 1, Ivy League and ECAC Coach of the Year honors following the 2017 season at Columbia … Led Columbia to its best season in 21 years in 2017 (2^nd place Ivy League finish, 8-2 record, 5-2 league record) … Columbia’s 14 wins combining the 2017 and 2018 seasons are its most wins in back-to-back seasons since 1956 … Guided Penn to nine Ivy League Championships (1993, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009, 2010, 2012) … Guided Union College, N.Y. to two NCAA Division III Championship title game appearances (Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl) in 1983 and 1989 … Led Union to six NCAA Division III Playoff appearances (1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1989 and 1991) … Scotty Whitelaw Division I-AA Coach of the Year Award, Metropolitan New York FWA (1993, 1994) ... AFCA’s Eastman Kodak Region I Coach of the Year Award, 1991 … Maxwell Club Tri-State Coach of the Year, 2002 … Inducted into the Union College Athletic Hall of Fame, 2004 … Only Ivy League coach to guide a team to back-to-back undefeated records in league play … Led Penn to 24 consecutive wins between 1993 and 1994, previously, the longest all-time win streak in FCS history.
 
Playing Career
Played three years of varsity football at Central Connecticut State (1972-74) … Helped lead the Blue Devils to a three-year 23-5 overall record during that span.
 
BAGNOLI ON THE ALL-TIME LISTS (ENTERING 2023 SEASON)

Category	Bagnoli	Rank	Leader
Coaching Wins (all divisions)	274	16th	489, John Gagliardi, Carroll, Saint John’s, Minn.
Career Wins-FCS	274	4th	408, Eddie Robinson, Grambling
^FCS Win%	68.0	14th	81.9, Mike Kelly, Dayton
Ivy League Titles	9	T-2nd	10, Carmen Cozza, Yale
Ivy League Games Coached	295	2nd	303, Carmen Cozza, Yale
Ivy League Wins	132	2nd	135, Carmen Cozza, Yale
Games Coached vs. Ivy Teams	210	2nd	224, Carmen Cozza, Yale
Coaching Wins in Ivy League	180	1st	179, Carmen Cozza, Yale
Seasons in the Ivy League	31	2nd	32, Carmen Cozza, Yale

 
BAGNOLI ON THE ACTIVE CAREER LISTS (ENTERING 2022 SEASON)

Category	Bagnoli	Rank	Leader
Coaching Wins (all divisions)	274	T2nd	269, Nick Saban, Alabama
Career Wins-FCS	274	1st	274, Al Bagnoli, Columbia
^FCS Win Pct.	68.0	6th	77.8, Brian Bohannon, Kennesaw State
^FCS Games Coached	298	1st	298, Al Bagnoli, Columbia
Ivy League Wins	132	1st	132, Al Bagnoli, Columbia

 
*recognized by NCAA, ^minimum of 10 years at the FCS level
 
YEAR-BY-YEAR WITH AL BAGNOLI

Year	School	Record	League	Notes
1982	Union	8-1	­-	-
1983	Union	10-2	-	NCAA Division III Finalist
1984	Union	9-2	-	NCAA Division III Semifinal
1985	Union	9-1	-	NCAA Division III First Round
1986	Union	9-1	-	NCAA Division III First Round
1987	Union	5-5	-	-
1988	Union	4-4	-	-
1989	Union	13-1	-	NCAA Division III Finalist
1990	Union	9-1	-	-
1991	Union	10-1	-	NCAA Division III Quarterfinal
	at Union (10)	86-19	-	6 NCAA playoff appearances/2 finals
		.819
1992	Penn	7-3	5-2	Ivy League 3rd place
1993	Penn	10-0	7-0	Ivy League Champions
1994	Penn	9-0	7-0	Ivy League Champions
1995	Penn	7-3	5-2	Ivy League tie-2nd place
1996	Penn	5-5	3-4	Ivy League 5th place
1997	Penn	*1-9	*0-7	Ivy League 8th place
1998	Penn	8-2	6-1	Ivy League Champions
1999	Penn	5-5	4-3	Ivy League 4th place
2000	Penn	7-3	6-1	Ivy League Champions
2001	Penn	8-1	6-1	Ivy League 2nd place
2002	Penn	9-1	7-0	Ivy League Champions
2003	Penn	10-0	7-0	Ivy League Champions
2004	Penn	8-2	6-1	Ivy League 2nd place
2005	Penn	5-5	3-4	Ivy League 6th place
2006	Penn	5-5	3-4	Ivy League tie-4th place
2007	Penn	4-6	3-4	Ivy League tie-4th place
2008	Penn	6-4	5-2	Ivy League 3rd place
2009	Penn	8-2	7-0	Ivy League Champions
2010	Penn	9-1	7-0	Ivy League Champions
2011	Penn	5-5	4-3	Ivy League tie-2nd place
2012	Penn	6-4	6-1	Ivy League Champions
2013	Penn	4-6	3-4	Ivy League tie-4th place
2014	Penn	2-8	2-5	Ivy League 6th place
	at Penn (23)	148-80	112-49	9 Ivy League championships
		.649	.696
2015	Columbia	2-8	1-6	Ivy League tie-7th place
2016	Columbia	3-7	2-5	Ivy League-5th place
2017	Columbia	8-2	5-2	Ivy League-2nd place
2018	Columbia	6-4	3-4	Ivy League tie-4th place
2019	Columbia	3-7	2-5	Ivy League tie-6th place
^2020	Columbia	--	--	--
2021	Columbia	7-3	4-3	Ivy League tie-4th place
2022	Columbia	6-4	3-4	Ivy League tie-5th place
	at Columbia (6)	35-35	20-29
		.500	.408
Overall Total (39)		274-133	132-78
FCS Total (29)		183-115	132-78
NCAA Division III Total		87-18

 
*Note: five wins in 1997 were forfeited due to use of a player subsequently declared ineligible. Ivy League rules only.
^season canceled by Ivy League due to COVID-19 pandemic
 
MOST IVY LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIPS

Rk.	Titles	Coach	School(s), Years
1.	10	Carmen Cozza	Yale, 1965-96
2.	9	*Al Bagnoli	Penn, 1992-2014; Columbia, 2015-current
	9	*Tim Murphy	Harvard, 1994-current
4.	7	Bob Blackman	Dartmouth, 1956-70; Cornell 1977-82
5.	5	Joe Restic	Harvard, 1971-93

 
MOST GAMES COACHED IN THE IVY LEAGUE

Rk.	Games	Coach	School(s), Years
1.	303	Carmen Cozza	Yale, 1965-96
2.	298	*Al Bagnoli	Penn 1992-2014; Columbia, 2015-current
3.	279	*Tim Murphy	Harvard, 1994-current
4.	244	Tuss McLaughry	Brown, 1926-40; Dartmouth, 1941-42, 1945-54
5.	236	Lou Little	Columbia, 1930-56

Note: total games coached as an Ivy League coach
 
MOST GAMES COACHED VS. IVY LEAGUE TEAMS

Rk.	Games	Coach	School(s), Years
1.	224	Carmen Cozza	Yale, 1965-66
2.	189	*Al Bagnoli	Penn 1992-2014; Columbia, 2015-current
3.	175	*Tim Murphy	Harvard, 1994-current
4.	161	Joe Restic	Harvard, 1971-93
5.	153	Bob Blackman	Dartmouth, 1955-70; Cornell, 1977-82

Note: total in-league games coached in the Ivy League
 
OVERALL COACHING WINS IN IVY LEAGUE

Rk.	Wins	Coach	School(s), Years
1.	192	*Tim Murphy	Harvard, 1994-current
2.	183	*Al Bagnoli	Penn, 1992-2014; Columbia, 2015-current
3.	179	Carmen Cozza	Yale, 1965-96
4.	140	Edward Robinson	Brown, 1898-1901; 1904-07; 1910-25
5.	127	Bob Blackman	Dartmouth, 1955-70; Cornell, 1977-82

COACHING WINS AGAINST IVY LEAGUE TEAMS

Rk	Win	Coach	School(s), Years
1	135	Carmen Cozza	Yale, 1965-96
2.	133	*Tim Murphy	Harvard, 1994-current
3.	132	*Al Bagnoli	Penn, 1992-2014; Columbia, 2015-current
4.	100	Bob Blackman	Dartmouth, 1955-70; Cornell, 1977-82
5.	92	Joe Restic	Harvard, 1971-93

Note: coaching wins in Ivy League play
 
MOST SEASONS COACHED-IVY LEAGUE

Rk.	No.	Coach	Schools(s), Years
1.	32	Carmen Cozza	Yale, 1965-96
2.	31	*Al Bagnoli	Penn, 1992-2014; Columbia, 2015-current
3.	29	*Tim Murphy	Harvard, 1994-current
4.	27	Tuss McLaughry	Brown, 1926-40; Dartmouth, 1941-42, 1945-54
	27	Lou Little	Columbia, 1930-56

 
WINNINGEST ACTIVE COLLEGE FOOTBALL COACHES, BY VICTORIES (ALL DIVISIONS)

Rk.	No.	Coach, School(s)	Years	W-L-T	Pct.
1.	256	Nick Saban, Alabama	27	280-69-1	.801
2.	274	Mack Brown, North Carolina	34	274-144-1	.655
	274	Al Bagnoli, Columbia	40	274-129	.680
4.	273	Brian Kelly, Notre Dame	33	273-100-2	.731
5.	259	K.C. Keeler, Sam Houston State	29	259-100-1	.721

 
WINNINGEST ACTIVE FCS COACHES, BY VICTORIES

Rk.	No.	Coach, School(s)	Years	W-L-T	Pct.
1.	274	Al Bagnoli, Columbia	40	274-129	.680
2.	259	K.C. Keeler, Sam Houston State	29	259-100-1	.721
3.	224	Tim Murphy, Harvard	35	224-132-1	.629
4.	218	Bob Nielson, South Dakota	30	218-122-1	.641
5.	178	Kevin Callahan	30	178-135	.569

 
WINNINGEST ACTIVE FCS COACHES, BY PERCENTAGE

Rk.	No.	Coach, School(s)	Years	W-L-T	Pct.
1.	.739	Brian Bohannon, Kennesaw State	8	68-24	.739
2.	.721	K.C. Keeler, Sam Houston State	29	259-100-1	.721
3.	.712	Bob Chesney, Holy Cross	13	104-42	.712
4.	.701	Willie Simmons, Florida A&M	7	54-23	.701
5.	.690	Rick Chamberlin, Dayton	14	107-48-0	.690
6.	.680	Al Bagnoli, Columbia	40	274-129	.680

 
ALL-TIME WINNINGEST FCS COACHES, BY VICTORIES

Rk.	No.	Coach, School(s)	Years	W-L-T	Pct.
1.	408	Eddie Robinson, Grambling	55	408-165-15	.707
2.	314	Roy Kidd, Eastern Kentucky	39	314-124-8	.713
3.	300	Tubby Raymond, Delaware	36	300-119-3	.714
4.	274	*Al Bagnoli, Columbia/Penn	40	274-129	.680
5.	265	Bob Ford, St. Lawrence/Albany	45	265-191-1	.581

*active coach
 
NFL PLAYERS UNDER BAGNOLI
Vince Alexander (2000-02) New York Jets, Arizona Cardinals
Brandon Copeland (2013) Baltimore Ravens
Patrick Eby (2019) Green Bay Packers
Sean Estrada (2003-06) San Francisco 49ers
Stephen Faulk (2000-02) San Francisco 49ers
*Jim Finn (1995-98) Chicago Bears, Indianapolis Colts, New York Giants
*Jeff Hatch (1999-01) New York Giants, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Gavin Hoffman (1999-01) Cincinnati Bengals
Lord Hyeamang (2018), New York Jets
Jake Lewko (2010) Tennessee Titans
Miles Macik (1993-95) Detroit Lions
*Mitch Marrow (1995-97) Carolina Panthers
Rob Milanese (1999-02) New England Patriots, New York Jets, San Diego Chargers
Luke Nawrocki (2012) San Francisco 49ers
Cameron Nizialek (2020-21) Baltimore Ravens, Atlanta Falcons, Pittsburgh Steelers
Ben Noll (2000-03) St. Louis Cardinals, Dallas Cowboys
Ryan O’Malley (2016) Oakland Raiders
Kendall Pace (2017) Pittsburgh Steelers, Washington Redskins
Michael Powers (2001-03) Cincinnati Bengals
Erik Rask (2012) Jacksonville Jaquars
Rich Romer (1986-89) Cincinnati Bengals
Kris Ryan (1998-01) Detroit Lions
Duvol Thompson (2001-04) St. Louis Cardinals, Baltimore Ravens
Greg Van Roten (2012) Green Bay Packers
Kunle Williams (1999-01) Cleveland Browns
Ben Zagorski (1997-00) Detroit Lions
*NFL Draft pick