Origin of the Species

Break Out the Push Pins

Every school gives you the state-by-state breakdown of its football roster, but that's really only half the story. For example, saying one kid from The Bronx and another from Ithaca are both from New York is technically true, but putting them in the same column of a geographical list seems a little silly.

So let's take a look at the current Lion roster by general metropolitan area/local region and see where the expected and unexpected geographic gold mines really are.

First, a short note on methodology. I'm considering everything from Maine down to Central Virginia to be the Northeast. Since I used to live in just about every state in that huge region, I feel like I can make that call, but I'm willing to hear arguments against that. Pennsylvania is basically half the Northeast and half the Midwest. I consider the Pittsburgh/State College/Altoona area to be the Midwest, while Allentown, Bethlehem, Scranton is still the Northeast.

Second, let me say that I have some biases. I think the best players in the Ivies tend to come from Midwest, often also from Catholic schools in that region. There is something in the hard water there that may have irritated my skin, but seems to grow good football players.

New York/New Jersey/Connecticut Metro Area

1) Evan Alvarez NG Fr. The Bronx, NY Riverdale Country Day School

2) Matt Bashaw DE Soph. Cranford, NJ Delbarton School

3) Dan Cohen OL Fr. New York, NY Horace Mann H.S.

4) Ralph DeBernardo OL Jr. Washington Township, NJ Westwood H.S.

5) Pat DeFazio OL Jr. Morristown, NJ Delbarton School

6) Brian England TE Fr. Hazlet, NJ Raritan H.S.

7) Nico Gutierez WR Fr. New Canaan, CT New Canaan H.S.

8) Vaughn Hodges OLB Soph. Stamford, CT Brunswick School

9) Gene Kaskiw OL Jr. Little Silver, NJ Red Bank Regional H.S.

10)Shane Kelly QB Soph. Basking Ridge, NJ The Hill School

11)Andrew Kennedy TE Fr. Westport, CT Staples High School

12)Matt Moretto RB Fr. Cornwall, NY Cornwall Central H.S.

13)Mike Murphy RB Fr. Staten Island, NY Saint Joseph-by-the-Sea H.S.

14)Clifton Pope TE Fr. New Rochelle, NY Iona Prep

15)Prentis Robinson OL Fr. East Orange, NJ Middlesex H.S.

16)Michael Siebold K Jr. Haworth, NJ Northern Valley Region H.S.


Greater Baltimore/Washington, D.C./Northen Virginia Area

1) Brandon Cole DB Fr. Glendale, MD Sidwell Friends H.S.

2) Javier Garza NT Jr. Brinklow, MD Sherwood H.S.

3) Will Lipovsky OL Soph. Oakton, VA Thomas Jefferson H.S.

4) Ian Quirk OL Fr. Fredrick, MD Tuscarora H.S.

5) Conor Russomanno WR Fr. Falls Church, VA Thomas Jefferson H.S.

6) Matt Stotler DE Fr. Arlington, VA Yorktown H.S.


Greater Pittsburgh Area

1) Mike Egley TE Fr. Kittanning, PA Ford City H.S.

2) Bruce Fleming DL Fr. Aliquippa, PA Hopewell H.S.

3) Derek Jancisin WR Soph. Pittsburgh, PA Mount Lebanon H.S.

4) Mack Loughrey OL Soph. Glenshaw, PA Central Catholic H.S.

5) Justin Masorti LB Soph. State College, PA State College H.S.

6) Jason Pyles QB Soph. Shadyside, OH** Linsly School


Greater Boston Area

1) Nate Anschuetz WR Soph. West Newton, MA Milton Academy

2) Conor Joyce DE Jr. Foxboro, MA Saint Sebastians Catholic Day School

3) Brian Kipp OL Fr. Norfolk, MA Xaverian Brothers H.S.

4) Troy McHenry DE Jr. Peabody, MA St. John's Prep School

5) Kirk Weller FS Soph. Hingham, MA Hingham H.S.


Greater Cincinnati/Dayton Area

1) Alex Gross RB Fr. Ketterind, OH Fairmont H.S.

2) Derek Lipscomb LB Fr. Cincinnati, OH North College Hill H.S.

3) Lou Miller LB Soph. Cincinnati, OH St. Xavier H.S.

4) Drew Quinn LB Jr. Maineville, OH St. Xavier H.S.

5) JoJo Smith CB Sr. Dayton, OH Chaminade-Julienne H.S.


Greater Los Angeles Area

1) Drew Abeyta CB Soph. Woodland Hills, CA Notre Dame H.S.

2) Jordan Callaway DE Fr. Simi Valley, CA Royal H.S.

3) Taylor Joseph WR Soph. Torrance, CA Loyola H.S.

4) Ray Rangel RB Soph. Anaheim, CA Servite H.S.


California Bay Area

1) Bayo Aregbe LB Sr. Oakland, CA Skyline H.S.

2) Leon Ivery RB Fr. Mountain View, CA Menlo School

3) M.A. Olawale QB Soph. San Francisco, CA Long Beach Polytechnic H.S.

4) Josh A. Williams WR Soph. Santa Rosa, CA St. Ignatius College Prep/Loomis Chaffee School


San Diego Area

1) Corey Cameron DE Jr. Encinitas, CA LaCosta Canyon H.S.

2) Ryan Mettee S Sr. Encinitas, CA LaCosta Canyon H.S.

3) Tim Paulin WR Sr. Encinitas, CA LaCosta Canyon H.S.

4) Augie Williams RB Fr. La Mesa, CA Grossmont H.S.


Greater Minneapolis/St. Paul Area

1) Troy Evangelist TE Jr. Mahtomedi, MN Mahtomedi H.S.

2) Evan Sanford OL Soph. Eagan, MN Eastview H.S.

3) Joe Stormount K Fr. Stillwater, MN Stillwater H.S.

4) Nathan Walcker Ol Jr. Prior Lake, MN St. Thomas Academy


Philadelphia Area

1) Marc Holloway FB Fr. Philadelphia, PA West Philadelphia Catholic School

2) Mike Partain OL Sr. Hatfield, PA North Penn H.S.

3) Andy Shalbrack DB Soph. Doylestown, PA St. Joseph's Prep School

4) Pete Stoll FB Soph. Lansdale, PA North Penn H.S.


Northeastern Indiana/Nortwestern Ohio/Fort Wayne Area

1) Michael Brune OL Jr. Fort Wayne, Indiana Concordia Lutheran H.S.

2) Jon Rocholl K/P Jr. Fort Wayne, Indiana R. Nelson Snider H.S.

3) Eli Waltz NT Jr. Venedocia, OH Spencerville, HS


Greater Columbus, Ohio Area

1) Rick Ingold DE Jr. Newark, OH Newark H.S.

2) Clark Koury OLB Jr. Dublin, OH Dublin H.S.

3) Thomas Weldon FB Sr. New Albany, OH New Albany H.S.


Houston Area

1) David Brekke OLB Soph. Houston, TX Cypress Falls H.S.

2) Grant Jefferson RB Soph. Houston, TX Strake Jesuit College


Atlanta Area

1) Ben Britzius OL Fr. Marietta, GA Wheeler H.S.

2) John Seiler OL Soph. Atlanta, GA Westminster School


South Florida/Greater Miami Area

1) Corey Clare QB Fr. Davie, FL South Plantation H.S.

2) Greg Fontela SS Fr. Miami, FL Belen Jesuit Prep School


North Carolina/Research Triangle

1) Jordan Davis RB Jr. Durham, NC Hillside H.S.

2) Tony Knox WR Soph. Raleigh, NC Ravenscroft School


Greater Southwest Florida/Tampa Area

1) Nathan Lenz FB Fr. Largo, FL Clearwater Central Catholic H.S.

2) Colin McNamara OLB Fr. Alva, FL Bishop Verot H.S.


Richmond-Central Virginia Area

1) Adam Mehrer WR Fr. Midlothian, VA Clover Hill H.S.

2) Daniel Myers DB Fr. Blackstone, VA Nottoway H.S.


Greater Scranton Area

1) Gary Mesko FB Jr. Honesdale, PA Honesdale H.S.

2) Cody Steele TE Jr. Nicholson, PA Lackawanna Trail H.S.


Great Phoenix/Tucson Area

1) Moose Veldman OL Soph. Mesa, AZ Brophy College Prep School

2) Josh D. Williams LB Soph. Tucson, AZ Salpointe Catholic School


Rural Washington State

1) Ben Gaston OL Fr. Richlans, WA Hanford H.S.


Detroit Area

1) Craig Hamilton DB Fr. Detroit, MI University of Detroit Jesuit School


Greater Indianapolis Area

1) Craig Hormann QB Sr. Indianapolis, IN Lawrence Central H.S.


Non-Boston Area Massachusetts

1) Zachary Kourouma RB Fr. Wilbraham, MA Minnechaug Regional H.S.


Hartford/Non-NY Metro Area Connecticut

1) Austin Knowlin WR Soph. Newington, CT Newington H.S.


San Antonio Area

1) Chase McCaleb WR Soph. San Antonio, TX Alamo Heights H.S.


Dallas Area

1) Mike Stephens WR Fr. Flower Mound, TX Flower Mound H.S.


Austin, TX Area

1) Tyler Duffy OLB Jr. Austin, TX St. Michael's Academy


Knoxville Area

1) Phil Mitchell DE Jr. Knoxville, TN The Webb School


Greater Albany Area

1) Jared Morine CB Soph. Averill Park, NY Averill Park H.S.


Orlando Area

1) Calvin Otis* CB Fr. Windermere, FL Lawrenceville School


Louisiana

1) Jamal Russell TE Sr. Baton Rouge, LA Southern University Lab School


Greater Cleveland/Akron Area

1) Tim Skalank OL Fr. Massillon, Ohio Central Catholic High School


Buffalo Area

1) Ed Thomas CB Soph. Cheektowaga, NY Cleveland Hill H.S.


St. Louis Area

1) Austin Stevenson FB Sr. St. Louis, MO St. Louis Country Day School


Kansas City Area

1) Brandon Buckley LB Sr. Kansas City, MO Pembroke School


Arkansas

1) Eugene Edwards CB Sr. West Memphis, AK West Memphis H.S.


Las Vegas Area

1) Josh Webster LS/OLB Sr. Las Vegas, Nevada Desert Pines H.S.


Canada-Quebec

1) Paul Havas QB Fr. Hampstead, Quebec St. Paul's School (NH)


Overseas

1) Stefan Savic OL Sr. Belgrade, Serbia



*= spent senior year only at Lawrenceville, NJ

**= Shadyside, OH is just over the river from Pittsburgh



By General Region

Northeast (Including Greater D.C., Northern VA, Quebec): 36

Midwest: 28

Deep South/Florida: 14

Pacific Coast: 13

Southwest: 8

Overseas/Other: 2


By Type of High School:


57 players went to public schools

23 went to Catholic high schools

21 went to non-Catholic or secular private high schools

You might think it's no surprise that the New York metro area is the top geographical area by far. But this is actually a change for the last decade or two, when Columbia's own region started getting underrepresented on the football team. Of course, there are still some major gaps locally, most notably Long Island. No Long Islanders grace the Lion roster right now, and in the late 70's/early 80's, it was the predominant hometown for Columbia footballers. Some of this may be because many Long Island football programs have dropped off a bit since then, but this is still a prime location for incoming freshmen going to top schools like Virginia and Maryland, so it may be time to try harder in the area.

If you want to pick the micro-region of the country with the best percentage of impact players on the team right now, you'd have to go with the Cincinnati-Dayton area with three top players in Smith, Quinn, and Miller.

As far as major regions go, the Midwest is a strong second with 28 players represented. But it's also overrepresented when you consider who the impact players are on the team. All three of this coming year's captains are Midwesterners.

I have to think we can grab more recruits from Florida and the deep South in the coming years. Lou Ferrari's connections to the South Florida high school scene should help and with resources like the Internet, places that once seemed too remote to recruit are not that far way anymore.

Of course, the biggest hurdle is getting that first player in a town or high school we've never recruited from to agree to go to Columbia. That usually sets the wheels in motion if everybody plays their cards right.


Here's how the other Ivy football squads are made up by region:

Brown Bears (102 total players)

Northeast (Including Greater D.C., Northern VA): 50

Midwest: 21

Deep South/Florida: 13

Pacific Coast: 9

Southwest: 9


Jake's Take: enoromously weighted roster in favor of the Northeast could spell some trouble.


Cornell Big Red (108 total players)

Northeast (Including Greater D.C., Northern VA): 49

Midwest: 29

Pacific Coast: 15

Southwest: 7

Deep South/Florida: 6

Western Mountain States: 2


Jake's Take: Decent number of Midwesterners, but also very heavily-weighted in favor of Northeast.


Dartmouth Big Green (118 total players)

Northeast (Including Greater D.C., Northern VA): 41

Deep South/Florida: 22

Midwest: 18

Pacific Coast: 18

Southwest: 12

Western Mountain States: 7

Jake's Take: Huge roster for such a small college. Great overall geographic diversity, but I'd be wary of any team with fewer than 20 guys from the Midwest.



Harvard Crimson (98 total players)

Northeast (Including Greater D.C., Northern VA): 29

Deep South/Florida: 25

Pacific Coast: 20

Southwest: 12

Midwest: 10

Western Mountain States: 2


Jake's Take: Expect some serious walk-on additions by training camp as I don't think Harvard will go into the season with fewer than 110 players. Incredibly diverse roster, but scary to see just 10 Midwesterners. I would be concerned if I were in Cambridge.


Penn Quakers (120 total players)

Northeast (Including Greater D.C., Northern VA): 57

Deep South/Florida: 22

Midwest: 17

Pacific Coast: 15

Southwest: 7

Western Mountain States: 2

Jake's Take: Penn is basically a greater Philly area team and has always been that way. Putting almost all his eggs in that basket has worked out nicely for Bagnoli. But with two straight losing seasons in the Ivies, one has to wonder if the Quakers should be thinking about casting their net a little wider.


Princeton Tigers (112 total players)

Midwest: 33

Northeast (Including Greater D.C., Northern VA): 28

Deep South/Florida: 19

Pacific Coast: 17

Southwest: 13

Western Mountain States: 2


Jake's Take: Let's see, the best h.s. football in this country is played in the Midwest and the Southwest, and Princeton was the best team in the Ivies last season while carrying the most players from those two regions. Coincidence? I don't think so. The Tigers are the only Ivy team that doesn't have a predominance of Northeastern players. This is smart recruiting.


Yale Bulldogs (114 total players)

Northeast (Including Greater D.C., Northern VA): 43

Midwest: 30

Pacific Coast: 16

Deep South/Florida: 12

Southwest: 11

Western Mountain States: 2


Jake's Take: Yale has the second-most players from the Midwest and double-digit representation from every region except the Mountain states. This is a well-mixed squad.


LEAGUE-WIDE NUMBERS

Total Players: 873

Northeast (Including Greater D.C., Northern VA): 333 (38.1%)

Midwest: 186 (21.3%)

Deep South/Florida: 133 (15.2%)

Pacific Coast: 123 (14%)

Southwest: 79 (9%)

Western Mountain States: 17 (1.9%)

Overseas: 2 (0.2%)