Princeton Football Opens Up Ivy Play vs. Columbia Saturday

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First in Football Podcast - Sept. 30
Splash Plays and Everything In Between

PRINCETON, N.J. – After a fast-paced start to the season, the No. 23 Princeton Tigers welcome a familiar opponent to Princeton Stadium on Saturday in the Columbia Lions.

Kick-off is set for 1 p.m. for Hometown Heroes Day.

Hometown Heroes Day! Oct. 2 vs. Columbia

Princeton employees can receive 4 free tickets with their NetID login. Get your tickets at https://t.co/UEDar7wyuC

Fans can get discounted tickets using the promo code 22HeroesFTB. Get your discounted tickets athttps://t.co/hfS2cyUAvw pic.twitter.com/IVqJqbXD9r
— Princeton Football (@PrincetonFTBL) September 30, 2021

How Did We Get Here?

1.

That's the number of rushing yards that the Princeton Tigers have allowed in their first two games of the season.

That total is one number higher than the total points they have given up.

That's right, zero.

For the first time since 1965, Princeton has shutout consecutive opponents, outscoring Lehigh and Stetson by a combined 95 points.

The Tigers allowed just 199 yards to Stetson while registering 457 yards on offense. After punting on its first possession, Princeton scored six straight possessions and took a 35-0 lead into halftime vs. the Stetson Hatters. The Tigers opened up with a touchdown to start the second half and followed with three trips to the end zone to finish off the 63-0 blowout.

Charles W. Caldwell Jr., '25 Head Coach of Football Bob Surace's unit finished 207 yards rushing in the win over Stetson.

Against Lehigh, Princeton ended its first offensive drive in 665 days like it usually does with its high-powered offense.

A Collin Eaddy touchdown.

Princeton showed a complete team effort with 454 yards of offense while only allowing 92 yards on defense in a 32-0 shutout of the Lehigh Mountain Hawks to start the 2021 campaign.

Cole Smith threw for 412 yards and three touchdowns while Jacob Birmelin and Andrei Iosivas combined for 256 yards receiving to highlight the offense. Cole Aubrey (two) and Uche Ndukwe (one) totaled three sacks to pace the defense.

Smith's 412 yards passing was only the 14th time in program history that a quarterback threw for over 400 yards in a game. He was later named Ivy Offensive Player of the Week for his performance.

Princeton's defense was excellent. The Mountain Hawks converted just one of their 13 third and fourth down attempts. The Tigers gave up -25 yards rushing, the third fewest for an opponent in a single game. Lehigh finished with 92 total yards.

Pretty Good Information You Should Know About:
23rd: Princeton climbed to No. 23 in the Athlon FCS Top 25 poll and was named the organization's Team of the Week.

13: Princeton has produced 13 splash plays (plays equaling 20 yards or more) on offense in the first two games of the season. Three of them have been over 40 yards and have all been touchdowns. The Tigers sit with the fifth highest scoring offense in the FCS (47.5) and 10th overall in total yardage (487.0) helped by their ability to hit the home run.

8: Cole Smith has recorded eight total touchdowns this season while completing 69.2 percent of his passes and throwing for 637 yards. All of this has happened while he's made his first two career starts.

3: Princeton has three players with over 100 yards receiving in Jacob Birmelin (206), Andrei Iosivas (158) and Dylan Classi (108). That trio has also accounted for all of Smith's passing touchdowns. Birmlein's 6.5 receptions per contest is ranked among top 20 in all of NCAA FCS while Birmelin's 103 yards per game sits 12th in all of NCAA. The trio has also accounted for nine of the team's splash plays.

0: The Tigers have allowed no points through two games, making the first time since 1965 that they have shutout consecutive opponents. The Tigers have allowed just one rushing yard in two games and have allowed just three over plays over 20 yards. Princeton has allowed just five third-down conversions and no fourth-down pickups and zero red-zone opportunities.

National Rankings
Princeton's defense ranks No. 1 in all of NCAA's FCS in total points allowed (obviously), red-zone defense (obviously), rushing defense (0.0), total yards allowed (145), fourth-down conversion pct. (0.0), fewest first downs allowed (18) and No. 2 in third-down conversion pct. (18.5).

Princeton's offense ranks No. 1 in turnovers lost (zero), No. 5 in scoring offense (47.5), No. 6 in passing efficiency (176.08), No. 7 in passing offense (331.5), No. 10 in total offense (487.0), and No. 11th in passing yards per completion (14.4)

Jeffrey Sexton ranks tied for No. 1 in NCAA FCS in field goal percentage (100%), No. 3 in field goals per game (2.0).

Cole Smith is No. 4 in yards per attempt (9.8), No. 5 in passing efficiency (182.0), No. 7 in completion percentage (69.2), No. 8 in passing yards per game (318.5), No. 12 in total offense (320.5) and No. 13 in yards per completion (14.2).

Andrei Iosivas leads all FCS wide receivers in yards per reception (31.6).

Jake Birmelin is No. 12 in receiving yards per game (103.0) and 18th in receptions per game (6.5).

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