GAME 4 • NORTHERN MANHATTAN NEIGHBORS APPRECIATION DAY/FINAL NON-CONFERENCE GAME
CENTRAL CONNECTICUT STATE (4-1, 1-0 NEC) at COLUMBIA (1-2, 0-1 Ivy League)
Saturday, October 12, 2019 • 1 p.m. ET • Robert K. Kraft Field at Lawrence A. Wien Stadium • New York, N.Y.
THE FACTS
Television/Streaming: ESPN+ (Lance Medow and Ted Gregory, producer: Sol Steinberg) |
Watch Live
Columbia Online Radio Network: Simulcast with TV broadcast (audio only) |
Listen Live
Live Stats: www.gocolumbialions.com |
Live Stats Link
Coaches: Columbia-
Al Bagnoli, 5th year at Columbia (20-23), 37th year (255-121). CCSU- Ryan McCarthy, 1
st year at CCSU (4-1), 1
st year overall (4-1).
Series: Columbia and CCSU meet for the third time in series history and second time in as many years. The series is tied at 1-1. Columbia defeated CCSU 41-24 in New Britain last year. CCSU registered a 22-13 win over Columbia at Robert K. Kraft Field in 2009. The visiting teams have won both previous matchups.
GAME NOTES
NEW YORK—Columbia (1-2) continues its 149th anniversary year and 129th season of college football when it hosts Central Connecticut State for its final non-conference game and Northern Manhattan Neighbors Appreciation Day on Saturday, Oct. 12 at Robert K. Kraft Field at Lawrence A. Wien Stadium. Kickoff for the game is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET.
ESPN+ will stream the game live with Lance Medow (play-by-play) and Ted Gregory (color commentary) calling action. The live feed is available on ESPN+ (subscription required). Columbia will also provide a free audio only broadcast on its website.
SATURDAY'S TOP STORYLINES
- Columbia concludes its non-conference schedule at home against Central Connecticut State on Saturday.
- Columbia enters the matchup after having won eight of its last nine non-conference games.
- Columbia has won nine of its last 15 overall games and 16 of its last 24 contests dating back to the 2016 season.
- Columbia is coming off back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 1961 and 1962. With 14 wins combining the 2017 and 2018 seasons, the Lions have set a program-record for most victories in consecutive seasons since joining the Ivy League in 1956.
- A win would give the Lions a winning record vs. non-conference competition for the third straight year.
ABOUT THE LIONS
Columbia is 1-2 on the young season after dropping a 21-10 Ivy League opening contest at No. 23/25 Princeton last Saturday. The Lions limited the Tigers to just 21 points, its second-fewest points scored in three years. Columbia played well and was in the game up until Princeton completed a 27-yard pass on third-down-and-10 late in the fourth quarter. Quarterback
Josh Bean completed 23 of 29 passes for 187 yards and a touchdown,
Ronald Smith finished with a season-high eight receptions for 87 yards and a 24-yard touchdown in the second quarter and
Ben Mathiasmeier led the defense with a career-high 10 tackles and one interceptions.
On Sept. 28, Columbia lost a 24-10 home opener to Georgetown last Saturday. The Lions turned the ball over five times (three interceptions and two fumbles lost) and gained just 30 yards rushing on the day. Even still, the Lions had a variety of chances to score in the fourth quarter and couldn't come up with the win.
Mike Roussos led the Lions with 98 all-purpose yards,
Josh Wainwright finished with four catches for 71 yards and Ivy League tackles leader
Cam Dillon (10 tackles) and
Michael Murphy (nine tackles) paced the defense.
Columbia opened its season on Sept. 21 with a convincing 31-14 win at Saint Francis, Pa.
Mike Roussos totaled 149 all-purpose yards and scored two touchdowns including a 56-yard punt return score,
Ryan Young ran for a 65-yard touchdown and the Lions took advantage of a superb special teams performance as Columbia scored 24 unanswered points to claim a 17-point season-opening win over SFU.
Columbia opened its 2019 season after registering back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 1961 and 1962. The Lions return 15 starters (eight on offense and seven on defense) and nine total All-Ivy League selections from a program that has won 14 of its 20 games over the last two seasons (8-2 in 2017 and 6-4 in 2018).
Last year, Columbia endured a season that saw it suffer injuries to over 25 of its key players. It started four different quarterbacks and won with all of them, lost its top two running backs and top two receivers to injuries and still registered a winning season.
BAGNOLI, CCSU AND EAST HAVEN, CONN. ROOTS
Columbia football coach
Al Bagnoli is a 1975 graduate of Central Connecticut State with a BA in physical education/history. He was listed as the No. 17 most-famous graduate of Central Connecticut State by Ranker.com.
A native of East Haven, Conn. and graduate of East Haven High School, Bagnoli lettered three years as a defensive back on the CCSU football team from 1972-74 and helped lead the Blue Devils to a three-year 23-5 overall record during that span.
COLUMBIA, LIONS PLAYERS AMONG 2019 NATIONAL STATISTICAL LEADERS
After three games, Columbia is ranked among the nation's top-25 FCS teams in 10 different team statistical categories in 2019. According to the NCAA statistics, Columbia ranked:
- No. 3 in fewest penalty yards (125).
- No. 3 in punt return average (23.3).
- No. 4 in first downs defense (48).
- No. 4 in fewest penalties (14).
- No. 8 in total defense per game (293.7).
- No. 8 in rushing defense per game (81.7).
- No. 12 in fewest penalties per game (4.67).
- No. 15 in fewest penalty yards per game (41.67).
- No. 16 in scoring defense (19.7).
- No. 16 in fourth-down conversion percentage (67%).
- No. 22 in time of possession (32:09).
Individually, the Lions rank among the top-25 national statistical leaders in two categories:
ABOUT CENTRAL CONNECTICUT STATE
Central Connecticut State enters its matchup against Columbia in New York City after a 28-3 road victory over Sacred Heart. The Blue Devils are 4-1 overall and 1-0 in the Northeast Conference. CCSU's lone loss came at FBS Eastern Michigan on Sept. 21 (34-29).
The Blue Devils are led by quarterback Aaron Winchester, who has completed 67.3 percent (72-107) of his passes for 965 yards with six touchdowns and two interceptions. He has also rushed for 303 yards and one touchdown on 49 carries (6.2 yards per carry average).
Keonte Lucas leads the Blue Devils in rushing with an 8.2 yards per carry average and three touchdowns and 318 yards on 39 carries. CCSU's top two receivers are Tyshaun James, who has caught 18 passes for 394 yards and five touchdowns and Enyce Walker, who has 18 catches for 115 yards. James, who also has 461 all-purpose yards, has a 21.9 average yards per catch and has scored nine touchdowns.
On defense, Central Connecticut State is led by defensive back DJ Exilhomme, who has 36 tackles, two fumble recoveries and two pass breakups. Linebacker Jalloh Foday has made 24 tackles and three tackles for loss and linebacker Michon Hunt has 21.0 tackles.
