NEW YORK – Columbia plays its final home game of the 2023 season Saturday afternoon when the Lions welcome Brown to the Big Apple. Kickoff is set for 12:30 p.m. at Robert K. Kraft Field at Lawrence A. Wien Stadium. The game will be broadcast live on SNY and ESPN+.
COLUMBIA'S STATUS
• The Lions dropped their fourth straight game after falling to No. 19 Harvard, 38-24, last Saturday.
• The Crimson used an 83-yard touchdown pass and blocked punt to take an early 14-0 lead and held off Columbia after a pair of fourth quarter scores by the Lions.
BROWN'S STATUS
The Bears are coming off a 36-17 defeat against Yale last week. Brown led, 10-6, after the first quarter and intercepted three passes and had four takeaways, however, the Bulldogs scored 17 unanswered points to put the game away.
Brown is the top passing offense in the Ivy League and ranks fourth in the country, racking up 310 yards per game through the air. Jake Wilcox is completing 63.1 percent of his passes and has 16 touchdowns. Wes Rockett is Wilcox's main target, racking up 82.9 receiving yards per game.
Defensively, the Bears have been opportunistic in takeaways, posting three interceptions in back-to-back games, but has been prone to give up the big play, allowing 17 touchdowns of 30 or more yards this season.
SERIES HISTORY
• The Lions and Bears will meet for the 87th time Saturday.
• Columbia has won five of the last six meetings, including a 31-24 overtime victory in Providence last season.
• Brown's last win at Wien Stadium came in 2019, a 48-24 triumph.
• Brown leads the series overall, 53-31-2 and is 24-20-1 in games played in New York.
NOTES TO KNOW
• On special teams, the Lions lead the nation in kickoff return defense, allowing just 12.5 yards per return.
• Columbia also leads the Ivy League in red zone defense (67 percent).
• Carter McFadden is No. 9 in the country in punt returns, averaging 13.0 yards per return. McFadden is also No. 27 in the nation in kickoff return yards with an average of 23.9 yards.
• The Columbia offense has struck fast this season with eight of 19 scoring drives lasting less than three minutes.
• Seven players have earned takeaways this season for the defense. Aaron Brebnor and Rocco Milia lead the way with two each.
A LOOK BACK...
• Marcus Libman's four-yard touchdown grab in overtime gave Columbia a 31-24 road victory at Brown last season. |
• The Lions scored 21 points in a span of 5:19 in the second quarter to build a big lead, but the Bears used a strong rushing attack (229 yards and three touchdowns) to get back into the game. In the second half, Brown outscored Columbia 17-0 to force overtime.
• Joey Giorgi posted a career-high 167 rushing yards with a score. Libman finished with five catches for 118 yards, and Caden Bell was 18-of-33 with three touchdown passes.
TICKETS
Tickets start at just $13.
Click here to purchase game tickets or call 888-LIONS-11
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