Aug. 8, 2005
NEW HAVEN, CONN. - Penn edged defending Ivy League champion Harvard by a single point to lead the 2005 Ivy League football preseason media poll released today at the Ivy League Media Day at the Golf Course at Yale in New Haven. Both Penn and Harvard received eight first-place votes.
Columbia which finished eighth in the poll, will return 12 starters along with 35 letterwinners, led by 2004 All-Ivy selections Prosper Nwokocha and Keenan Shaw.
"Based on last season's results, I knew we'd be picked somewhere in the lower half, but I feel the chemistry of this team is strong enough that the team will use this as a motivating tool," head coach Bob Shoop said. "We'll go about our business and camp starts August 21. We'll have 29 opportunities to meet before our first kickoff and rest assured that Columbia will come ready to play every game."
The Lions kick off the 2005 season on the road against Fordham September 17 in the annual battle for the Liberty Cup. Game time is 7 p.m. The home opener is September 24 against Duquesne, the first meeting ever between the schools.
2005 Ivy League Preseason Media Poll Results
1. Penn, 120 points (eight first-place votes)
2. Harvard, 119 (eight first-place votes)
3. Brown, 91
4. Yale, 66
5. Cornell, 63
6. Princeton, 57
7. Dartmouth, 36
8. Columbia, 24
