NEW YORK—This is the first in a #CUFootball150 feature series on Top-10 Historical Lists for Columbia Football. Below is a list of Columbia Football's all-time Top-10 Game Winning Fourth Quarter and Overtime plays. Criteria for these game-winning plays includes fourth quarter or overtime key offensive, defensive or special teams plays that helped Columbia secure a win. Field goals are not included in this list. We will chronicle the top-10 game-winning field goals in another story.
 
11. Oct. 16, 1971 (Columbia 15, Yale 14)
Trailing 14-13, Columbia converts a game-winning two-point conversion when John Sefcik takes a pitch and completes a pass to Mike Jones for the win. William Irish makes a one-handed touchdown catch on a Don Jackson pass to pull Columbia to within one point at 14-13 with 1:36 to play. The Lions decide to go for the win and it pays off.
 
10. Sept. 21, 1996 (Columbia 20, Harvard 13, OT)
In the 1996 season opener, quarterback Bobby Thomason hits David Ramirez for a 12-yard touchdown pass to give Columbia a victory in overtime. Columbia's Roy Hanks intercepts a Harvard pass to end the game. With the score tied 13-13 with 1:30 to play, Marcellus Wiley blocks a 23-yard Harvard field goal attempt to send the game into overtime.
 
9. Sept. 30, 2017 (Columbia 28, Princeton 24)
With 1:12 to play, Ronald Smith grabs a pass from Anders Hill and races 63 yards down the middle of the field for the game-winning score. Ben McKeighan's second interception of the day seals the win for the Lions at Princeton. Smith set a school and stadium record with 236 yards receiving on 10 receptions and two touchdowns and Hill finished the day with 400 yards passing and two touchdowns while completing 27 of 40 passes. The victory gives Columbia a 3-0 record for the first time since 1996.

 
8. Nov. 9, 2019 (Columbia 17, Harvard 10, OT)
In overtime, safety Ben Mathiasmeier seals the victory for Columbia as he picks off a Harvard pass at the goal line in walk-off, game-ending fashion. Mathiasmeier's interception occurs after Mike Roussos gives Columbia a 17-10 lead following a 1-yard touchdown run. The touchdown is set up by a 25-yard pass from quarterback Ty Lenhart to Rory Schlageter. Columbia sends the game into overtime when Alex Felkins connects on a 26-yard field goal with 1:45 left in regulation.



7. Nov. 3, 1962 (Columbia 25, Cornell 19)
Trailing 21-19, Columbia quarterback Archie Roberts completes an 84-yard scoring drive when he hits Al Butts for a leaping 24-yard touchdown catch with 19 seconds to play. In the scoring drive, Roberts completes six of eight passes, including five in a row, as the Lions rally from 14-0 and 21-6 deficits. The game is forever dubbed "The Miracle in the Mud" and is one of Robert's most impressive performances.
 
6. Nov. 19, 2011 (Columbia 35, Brown 28, 2OT)
In double overtime, Columbia's defense uses a goal line stand to stop Brown on a fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line to preserve a dramatic victory. Sean Brackett runs for a 16-yard touchdown for the game-winning score in the second overtime period before Brown began a 10-play drive that ended in the Lions' goal line stand. Columbia battles back from a 21-7 deficit with two fourth quarter touchdowns passes by Brackett to send the game into overtime. Brackett rushed for four touchdowns and threw for another. The double overtime contest stands as the longest game in school history.
 
5. Nov. 17, 2018 (Columbia 24, Cornell 21)
First-year Mike Roussos weaves through the Cornell defense while returning a squib kickoff 87 yards for a touchdown and 24-21 Columbia lead with 45 seconds to play. Roussos' heroics occurs after Cornell grabs a 21-17 lead with a touchdown with only 58 seconds to play. Earlier in the game, Roussos returned a punt 91 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter. Roussos became the first Columbia football player in school history to score on both a punt return and kickoff in the same game. The 206-yard all-purpose performance helped the 2018 Columbia Football team register back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 1961 and 1962.



4. Oct. 12, 1996 (Columbia 20, Penn 19, OT)
Columbia defeats Penn 20-19 in overtime at Franklin Field after a blocked point after attempt by Brett Bryant and a 25-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Paris Childress to Dennis Lee. Matt Linit converts the extra point to break the 19-19 tie and give Columbia the victory. With the first possession in overtime, Penn scores on a 1-yard touchdown to take a 19-13 lead, but Bryant gets a hand on the point after kick. Jason Bivens keyed Columbia with 94 rushing yards and Childress threw for 197. Current Columbia Head Coach Al Bagnoli was on the sideline as Penn's head coach, while current Lions Offensive Coordinator Mark Fabish racked up 180 all-purpose yards and caught seven passes for 75 yards for the Quakers. The win gave Columbia a 4-0 start to the season.

 
3. Oct. 4, 2003 (Columbia 33, Princeton 27)
In the largest come-from-behind victory in school history, quarterback Jeff Otis connects with tight end Wade Fletcher for a 49-yard touchdown as time expires to complete a miraculous comeback and give the Lions a 33-27 victory. Columbia trailed 20-0 in the first quarter after Princeton scored touchdowns on three straight possessions. The Lions chipped away at the lead and eventually took a 27-20 lead with 8:50 to play, but Princeton scored on a 1-yard run to tie the game at 27-27 with 26 seconds to play. A 23-yard Prosper Nwokocha kickoff return and 18-yard completion to Pete Chromiak set up the game-winning touchdown. Otis concluded the day with 326 passing yards and one touchdown while completing 22 of 38 passes. Nick Rudd kicked four field goals.
 
2. October 25, 1947 (Columbia 21, Army 20)
Bill Swiacki leaps and makes a diving catch of a Eugene Rossides pass at the 4-yard line to set up a game-winning 2-yard touchdown run by Louis Kusserow. Ventan Yablonski converts the extra point for a 21-20 lead. Six minutes and 42 seconds later after Rossides intercepted an Army pass, fans storm the field and tear down the north end goal posts. The Lions battled back from a 20-7 deficit. Columbia's upset victory snapped Army's 32-game unbeaten streak and was the first of five straight wins. Army came into the game as the nation's sixth-ranked team.


 
1. Oct. 14, 2017 (Columbia 34, Penn 31, OT)
Columbia wins on a dramatic, walk-off 24-yard touchdown pass from Anders Hill to Josh Wainwright in overtime. In overtime, Penn took a 31-28 lead after a 41-yard field on the first possession. Hill found Wainwright wide open in the middle of the field on a third-down-eight play and the Homecoming crowd of 13,081 responded by storming the field in celebration. The fans watched Columbia battle back from a 21-7 fourth quarter deficit with 21 unanswered points. Wainwright caught 10 passes for 193 yards and two touchdowns, Hill completed 21 of 33 passes for 258 yards and three touchdowns, and linebacker Michael Murphy led the Lions with 12 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss and two fumble recoveries. With the win, Columbia began a season with a 5-0 record for the first time in 21 years and snapped a 20-game losing streak to Penn.