Patriot Punt
Andrew Kennedy’s remarkable contribution to the Lions in 2010 has paid off with a slot on the 2010 Walter Camp All-America team.
Kennedy was the only Ivy Leaguer to make the team.
No Decision
If you were waiting for a big decision from the Patriot League on athletic scholarships for football… keep waiting.
The Patriot presidents decided to simply table the great debate over this issue today.
I assume this means the folks at scholarship-issuing Fordham will have to accelerate their search for a new conference to join, as it makes little sense for the Rams to remain in league that bars them from winning the championship.
Such a conference move might put Columbia’s annual Liberty Cup game against Fordham in jeopardy.
But either way, make no mistake that this “tabled vote” is nothing less than an actual “no” vote against scholarships.
Keeping the status quo is a move against scholarships, period.
Not Interested?
This photo was taken on campus last week, (I think at the Lerner building). It shows what so many students leave behind from their otherwise free copies of the New York Times.
The question is: Are there very few sports fans at Columbia, or are sports fans so sophisticated at Columbia that they know that reading the Times sports section is a true waste of time?
posted by Jake @ 7:50:00 AM
11 comments
11 Comments:
Congrats to Andrew!!!
We shouldn't bail on the Fordham game, they are no powerhouse. We can and will beat them consistently in the future.
I had a discussion with a Fordham trustee recently. The new Fordham president has visions of grandeur. He thinks that his competition for the leading Catholic university in the country is very limited (ND and Georgetown). He dismisses Georgetown as no longer Catholic. He thinks that one sure fire way to enhance Fordham's reputation is by upgrading its football program. I am skeptical, since I think it has about the worst stadium of all of our opponents and no plans to improve upon it of which I am aware. Should we continue to play Fordham? I think that's a very good question, and if Fordham is going scholarship I frankly don't see why we would want to do so.
If deferring decision is essenitally a vote against scholarships, why didn't they just say "no scholarships?" What's the point of deferral? Hoping the economy turns around in 2012? Good luck with that...
Because the Patriot League allows scholarships in other sports, having none in football is not exactly the principled opposition of the Ivy League. It appears to be one based mostly on cost -- football is the beast that can eat an athletic department's budget. Not sure what that means for the future. If the PL were to consider going need-based on all sports, that would be a real statement, unlikely though it is. As for Fordham, if it wants to compete with ND athletically, the end of the rivalry is inevitable. If it wants to stay in the FBC, I'd say wait and see how competitive the series is before making a decision. Note that CU doesn't play Fordham in basketball any more. Is that a policy decision, or just the normal cycle of schools going on and off schedule -- Army and Sacre3d Heart, for instance?
Come on Jake, were suppose to be positive. You shouldn't be picking on the poor NY Times. They can't help be what they are.
I'm floored by the "alleged" comments from the Fordham President and trustee. He's definitely in a "new york state of mind".
There is a Catholic college about 4 hours north of Fordham that dwarfs it in every possible way. I have no affiliation, but Boston College plays very competitively in the outstanding ACC. They have won about 10 football Bowl games in successive years. They are traditionally a top 25 football team. Recently graduated possible NFL MVP candidate Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons. They have been great Eight and Sweet Sixteen finalists in basketball. Their endowment dwarfs Fordham. Their admissions selectivity is just a notch below the Ivy League. Their number of academic applicants is stunning. They've got a guy directing their endowment by the name of Peter Lynch, you may have heard of him.
Secondly, there is a school about 2 hours south of New York that also dwarfs Fordham in standing among Catholic schools. Villanova is about to embark on a Big East step up in football. They were 1AA champions last year and a perennial power. Fordham will eat their crumbs in moving to Villanova's vacated football spot. As for basketball....forget it.
Fordham might not even be in the top ten as far as rankings for Catholic colleges in regards to endowment, athletics and academic prestige. Give me a break!
Who reads newspapers? The Times is a mouthpiece of the Democratic Party. They do not enlighten their readers. Save the environment and read unbiased news online.
The sport doesn't make the school. The folks from Fordham need to wake up and smell the roses if they really think they will ever achieve the stature and prestige of ND. If it is true and the Fordham President really thinks sport competition is the way to make his school standout then they need a new President quickly.
The President of Fordham dismisses Georgetown as "no longer Catholic"? What the h--l does that even mean? Who is he to decide what qualifies as Catholic?
Whether or not he thinks Georgetown is still Catholic, if he regards himself in a battle for prestige and hearts and minds against other Jesuit/Catholic schools, it doesn't matter whether *HE* thinks Georgetown is Catholic. It matters whether the *REST* of Catholic America does.
I had to laugh at the comments of Anonymous 12/17 11:00 AM when he asserted that "the sport does not make the school," football cannot help Fordham achieve "the stature and prestige of Notre Dame."
How do you think NOTRE DAME achieved the stature and prestige of Notre Dame? A century ago, ND was one of two hundred roughly interchangeable Catholic schools scattered around the country. ND had no more standing than any of them.
But ND brilliantly saw that football was the key to its ascent to becoming a national university. The Irish quietly and quickly became a Midwestern power before they finally came East to shock the powers that be, first Princeton and then Army. That seismic disruption in the football landscape is what put ND on the map as academic university.
The sport can make a school.
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