Columbia University
6-4 , 3-4
Cornell
5-5 , 2-5
Football Powers Past Cornell, 45-22, in Season Finale
11/19/2022 5:45:00 PM | Football
The Lions earn senior day victory to retain Empire State Bowl
Joey Giorgi racked up 91 rushing yards on 17 carries with a touchdown. Senior Ryan Young found the endzone twice and finished with 104 all-purpose yards in his final game with Columbia.
The Lions took the lead midway through the first quarter and never looked back. Caden Bell found Marcus Libman over the middle to convert on third down to put Columbia in the red zone. Giorgi got the next three carries and capped the 78-yard scoring drive with a two-yard touchdown.
A fourth down stop by the Columbia defense kept momentum on its side as they continued to pound the ball on the ground. The Lions handed it off 12 times on a 13-play, 62-yard drive punctuated by Ty'son Edwards' one-yard dive into the end zone to make it 14-0 with 8:38 left in the half.
Cornell answered with a long scoring drive, taking 7:19 off the clock to cut the deficit in half after Jameson Wang lofted one to Thomas Glover, who jumped over a defender for a 14-yard TD grab just before the intermission.
The Lions' first drive in the second half nearly mirrored its first of the game, using a 31-yard pickup from Bryson Canty to set up another score. This time it was Young who punched it in from two yards out to put Columbia back up by two scores with 11:46 remaining in the third.
With a big hit on the ensuing kickoff, Edwards set the tone as the defense came up with a stop to force a punt. Columbia was the beneficiary of a pair of pass interference calls to move the chains and Young's second TD of the game made it 28-7.
JJ Jenkins' opened a scoring frenzy in the fourth quarter, going over the top for a 31-yard touchdown catch to effectively put the game out of reach, despite Cornell (5-5, 2-5) posting a pair of scoring drives.
Fittingly, it was a senior who iced the game with under two minutes on the clock. Libman scooped up an onside kick try 48 yards for a touchdown to send his classmates off with a win.
Bell finished 11-for-17 for 231 yards in the air. Anthony Roussos led the defense with nine tackles.
Columbia's win also secured a winning record for the fourth time in the past five seasons.
For the latest on the Columbia football team, follow @CULionsFB on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and on the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.
POSTGAME NOTES
- Senior Alex Felkins set program records for most career PATs made and points by a placekicker in his Columbia finale. He finished 75 extra points and 183 points.
- Ryan Young also moved up Columbia's career list for rushing yards. He concludes his Columbia career with 1,749 yards, good for third all-time.
- The 45 points were the most the Lions have scored in an Ivy League game since 2000 (49 vs. Dartmouth)
Team Stats
COR 0, COL 7
COL - Giorgi,Joey 2 yd run (Felkins,Alex kick), 7 plays, 78 yards, TOP 03:30
COR 0, COL 14
COL - Edwards,Ty'son 1 yd run (Felkins,Alex kick), 13 plays, 62 yards, TOP 05:42
COR 7, COL 14
COR - Glover,Thomas 14 yd pass from Wang,Jameson (Kennedy,Jackson kick) 13 plays, 78 yards, TOP 07:19
COR 7, COL 21
COL - Young,Ryan 2 yd run (Felkins,Alex kick), 8 plays, 75 yards, TOP 03:14
COR 7, COL 28
COL - Young,Ryan 3 yd run (Felkins,Alex kick), 9 plays, 71 yards, TOP 03:46
COR 7, COL 35
COL - Jenkins,JJ 31 yd pass from Bell,Caden (Felkins,Alex kick) 5 plays, 50 yards, TOP 02:14
COR 14, COL 35
COR - Robbert,Matt 5 yd pass from Wang,Jameson (Kennedy,Jackson kick) 12 plays, 75 yards, TOP 03:14
COR 14, COL 38
COL - Felkins,Alex 28 yd field goal 12 plays, 72 yards, TOP 06:24
COR 22, COL 38
COR - Glover,Thomas 16 yd pass from Wang,Jameson (Holmes,AJ pass) 8 plays, 75 yards, TOP 01:54
COR 22, COL 45
COL - Libman,Marcus 48 yd kickoff return (Felkins,Alex kick)
