Final Day of Freedom

They're waiting for you boys


What would you do on your last day before reporting to training camp? Would you take it easy, squeeze in one last workout, or just take care of moving back on campus?

Those are some of the options facing the 99 young men about to show up tomorrow for the true start of the 2007 season. Much of what Columbia accomplishes on the field this year will be earned in the next few weeks as the coaches assess the returning talent, teach and re-teach the schemes, and the players show what they're made of.

I will continue with my team-by-team predictions for the Ivy League on Monday with my look at my choice for seventh place: Dartmouth.

Not only did last night's B.C. Lions-Calgary Stampeders game end in a thrilling 45-45 tie, but B.C.'s Tad Crawford '07 and Calgary's Anthony Gargiulo (Dartmouth '05), both ended up tied with one tackle apiece.

It's clear more and more Ivies are focusing on Ohio and Michigan as football recruiting hotbeds. Here's one story about a standout running back who suffered a broken leg in training camp just days after getting a letter from Harvard's Tim Murphy. And this is another piece about another top running back getting attention from the Ivies, Northwestern and MAC schools like Miami of Ohio, etc.