Monday Helmet Stickers: Still Hurtin' Edition

Ike always looked ahead

They say the tough losses stick with you longer than the great wins.

I think that's true because the sting of the loss to Lafayette Saturday night seems to be staying with me more than the euphoria after the 38-0 win over Princeton did last week at this time.

I have to shake it off, but I have a feeling this Columbia team is way ahead of me with Homecoming and a perfect six-for-six of the remaining games on the schedule being all Ivy contests.

On the injury front, we await news of Alex Gross' condition after he hurt his knee on the opening kickoff. We also hope for the best for Calvin Otis, who left the game in the second half and Owen Fraser, who has been out since the early going of the Fordham game.

Still, the depth of this team is remarkable. Especially in comparison to Lions teams of the past. Sophomore Evan Miller filled in nicely for Gross at linebacker and finished with 12 tackles, 1.5 for a loss and a pass breakup. Ross Morand did a great job in place of Otis, grabbing an interception even though he was also victimized by two questionable pass interference penalties.

The Lions Homecoming opponent is Penn, a team that has been bitten much worse by the injury bug this season, but could be on the mend in time for the game.

Five Days to go!

Get your tickets now and start your visit on campus Friday with a tour of the sports teams' new digs at Chrystie Field House!

All the info you need is here.

Now to the stickers, (remember Austin Knowlin was my MVP and M.A. Olawale a close second):

-Ray Rangel had 71 yards on just 10 carries. He scored another TD and looked as good in the fourth quarter as he did in the first. He also had his most significant reception of the season, grabbing a desperation dump off from a wrapped-up M.A. Olawale and scampering for 18 yards.

He extended his lead in the Ivy rushing race to a not insignificant 115 yards! Here is the current top 5:


1) RAY RANGEL COLUMBIA 398 yards (6.2 yards per carry!)

2) Nick Schwieger Dartmouth 283 yards

3) Lyle Marsh Pennsylvania 252 yards

4) Gino Gordon Harvard 242 yards

5) Jordan Farrell Yale 219 yard

(*The Ivy League does this annoying thing where the leading rusher is not calculated by total yards, but total yards averaged per games played. I find that weird. Rangel is still #1 based on that stat, however)

-Andy Shalbrack grabbed a key interception in the end zone, where he has made both of his two picks this year, bringing Coach Wilson out on to the field to congratulate him in a dramatic moment. Shalbrack also had a sack.

-Lou Miller finally recorded his first sack of the season and he started to menace the Lafayette backfield the more the game wore on. I get the feeling we'll start seeing his stats begin to soar now.

-Marc Holloway continues to lead this defense at middle linebacker. He had 13 tackles Saturday night.

-Corey Cameron had another big game with 13 tackles of his own.

-The Columbia offensive line allowed no sacks against a Leopard team with probably the toughest front seven the Lions will face all year.

-Mike Stephens had a big 35-yard TD catch to set up the Lions 3rd TD. His average yards per catch is now 25.8!

-Adam Mehrer got his first INT of the season.