Who'll Make it Through the Rain?

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TICKET TIME


The home opener is just hours away, so it's time, past time really, to buy your tickets NOW for the Columbia home games and BUY EXTRA! Get your friends and family to come and make it an outing.

DON'T FORGET that if you buy season tickets, you also get passes for the Athletic Director's pregame tent for ALL six home games!

AND you get a 10% discount coupon for the Lion Store which sets up shop in a great trailer right in front of the stadium each week.



*Tickets? Check! 10% Lion Store discount coupon? Check!



Columbia Lions vs. Albany Great Danes


September 24, 2011

Location: Robert K. Kraft Field at Wien Stadium

Kickoff Time: 12:30pm

Gametime Weather Forecast: Rain, 71 degrees


The Spread: Albany is favored by 2 points.

Columbia Game Notes


Albany Game Notes


TV/Radio

You can catch the game on the SideLion Pass on GoColumbiaLions.com with Jerry Recco and Sal Licata. If you're in your car, WKCR student radio is at 89.9 FM, (and you can get its feed over the internet too).


HOW TO GET TO THE GAME:


My 2011 Guide to getting to Wien Stadium

Some SPECIAL Updates on traffic and parking from a local resident


Backstories

Both teams really need a win.

At 0-2, the proud Albany program isn't exactly reeling but Head Coach Bob Ford hasn't kept his job for 40+ years by starting seasons 0-3.

This is the first game where they play an opponent everyone thinks they at least CAN beat. The opener at Colgate, (with Nate Eachus playing for the Raiders), and last week's against Maine were contests where the Great Danes were big underdogs months ago. It turned out Albany played Colgate very tough, while falling predictably by more than two scores against Maine.

Columbia needs a win to get the fans to stop asking hard questions for at least a week. Last week's loss at Fordham marked the seventh straight game, (six of them losses), where the Lions played below expectations. This club seems a long way from the team that started last season 3-1.

Other than the pressure on both sides to win, there is no "history" here. Albany and Columbia are two very different schools playing their first ever game against each other in football.


Keys to the Game



Get Brackett back on Track

This is mostly up to him of course, but QB Sean Brackett needs to be more accurate and make much better decisions than he did in last week's loss at Fordham. When he's off, the Lions really have no chance to win.


Establish the Run Game

The wet field may work against Columbia's speedy running attack, but then why not switch to the bulkier David Chao or the bigger frosh Alec Fisher? Brackett could also do some serious damage as a runner against what could be a flat-footed defense in the rain.


Contain the Albany D-Line

Led by Eddie Delaney, the Great Dane defensive line may be the team's #1 strength. They could dominate tomorrow when the game is being fought in the soggy trenches. The Columbia offensive line desperately needs to do a better job than it did last week.


Have Fun!

Football in a warm rain can be fun, sometimes comically so, but still fun.

My bet is the team that gets more comfortable will win tomorrow.







*=Columbia co-captain and starting center Bob Hauschildt is pictured on the home opener tickets. I've always considered the "picture on the ticket" honor to be quite special and it is certainly deserved in this case.