Stopped and Dropped

Dartmouth 17 Columbia 6

The Columbia offense stalled just about all day, ruining a good defensive performance and leaving the Lions 2-4 and 0-3 in Ivy League play.

I have to lay this one at the feet of the still very young offensive line. Again, the running lanes were not open for our backs, but they also didn't do as good a job pass blocking as they have in the past and they gave up a lot of sacks. The toughest play was a 4th and 1 late in the 4th quarter, where running back Jordan Davis was easily taken down in the backfield. At the time, CU was down just 10-6 and the ball was at midfield. A first down there would have been huge.

Another problem was losing the momentum. Columbia made it 7-6 with a FG to end the first half. Then they got the ball first in the second half... and didn't move it. Dartmouth stepped in and outscored the Lions 3-0 in the 3rd quarter.

Also, the Big Green tacked on a cosmetic TD with less than a minute left. You'd like to call it bad sportsmanship, but it was 10-6 at the time and you never know. Plus, the CU guys just didn't tackle on the TD run.

The good news was the defense was mostly solid, albeit against a questionable Big Green offensive unit. They gave up too many big gains on the ground, but not too many after the first Dartmouth touchdown drive. The secondary was excellent, with two big interceptions, one by Dan Daylamani and another one in the end zone by Prosper Nwokocha.

Craig Hormann had a decent day in his first game taking all the snaps at QB. His one interception was not his fault as WR Pete Chromiak bobbled a perfect toss and it ended up getting picked off. Craig's biggest problem was avoiding the sack. He needs to learn to scramble more and also throw the ball out of bounds once in a while.

John Rocholl was again the real star for CU. He hit two 39-yard field goals without any misses to bring his totals for the year to 10-12 field goals. I think only two of his 10 FG's have been for less than 38 yards.

Columbia needs to keep working on the running game and the overall offensive line play. Next week's game versus Yale presents some good-looking matchups for the Lions. Yale is really a passing team, and our secondary is very strong. Also, Yale's defensive line is banged up, and Hormann may have more time to work.