Football Starts Ivy Action At Columbia Saturday

Game Notes | Watch | Listen

By Craig Sachson
PrincetonTigersFootball.com

When you play only 10 games, and you missed an entire season of football only two years ago, every game matters. You could see it in the fight and energy from the 2022 Princeton Tigers over the last two weeks, both wins but neither of which was a walk in the park against two non-league foes.

Yes, those games matters. They all do.

Seven of them matter more. And the first of those seven is just around the corner.

The reigning Ivy champion Princeton Tigers will open the 2022 league season Saturday afternoon (1 pm ET) against Columbia at Wien Stadium in New York City. The two teams are four of the remaining unbeatens in the Ivy (joining Harvard and Penn), and one will stay on that list while also taking a vital first step on a potential championship journey.

Princeton opened its season with wins over both Stetson and Lehigh, though both included tight first halves. The Tigers led the two games by a combined score of 32-24 at halftime, but they took control with dominant third quarters in both.

As for Columbia, there hasn't been a need for anything special after halftime so far. The Lions led Marist and Georgetown by a combined score of 44-0 at halftime and have yet to give up double-digit points total on the season. In fact, Columbia's average lead before it allowed its first point over the first two games has been 29-0.

"Columbia is off to a great start and it's easy to see why watching the video," head coach Bob Surace said. "This is the most talented Columbia team we've faced since I've been here as head coach. They are extremely well coached, disciplined and executing at a very high level in all three phases."

Princeton leads the all-time series 73-16-1 and has won three in a row, though last year's 24-7 home victory was a lot closer than the score would indicate. It was a 10-7 entering the fourth quarter, and it took a pair of Collin Eaddy touchdown runs to put the game away. The Tigers were held to only 300 offensive yards in that game, their second-lowest total of the season.

Two teams with championship aspirations understand that Saturday will likely be another tight battle, and both will enter with the momentum of two straight wins.

Those wins were great. This one … well, it would mean more.

Week 3 Notes
Three For One • Princeton looks to start the season 3-0 for the fourth straight time this weekend when the Tigers travel to Columbia. The last time Princeton opened its season 3-0 four straight times was 1962-65, a stretch that included two Ivy League titles and the last undefeated season prior to 2018 (1964).

Catching On • Saturday's matchup will feature the two leading receivers in the Ivy League, as well as five of the Ivy's top 10 receivers. Princeton senior Andrei Iosivas leads the league in catches (13), touchdowns (three) and receiving yards (199), while Columbia's Bryson Canty is second in yards (184) and touchdowns (two), and third in catches (10).

A Classi Response • Senior Dylan Classi, who ranks third in the Ivy League in catches (10) and fifth in receiving yards (132), needs 14 catches to become the 16^th player in program history with at least 100 career receptions. Classi matched his career high with seven catches in last weekend's home win over Lehigh.

Time Is Up • Princeton and Columbia have been the two most effective offenses in the league in terms of possession time this season. The Tigers lead the Ivy League and rank sixth nationally with an average of 36:02 possession time per game. Columbia ranks second in the league and eighth nationally with 34:00 per game.

Playing The Percentages • Quarterback accuracy has been a big part of both teams' offensive efficiency this season. Both Columbia's Joe Green and Princeton's Blake Stenstrom rank in the top five nationally in completion percentage, with both just under 72%. In his first year as the Princeton starter, Stenstrom has completed 48 of 67 passes for 547 yards and three touchdowns (all to Iosivas).

The Butler Did It • Freshman running back Ryan Butler, the Ivy League Rookie of the Week after Week 1, leads Princeton in both rushing yards (96) and rushing touchdowns (three) this season. Butler had two touchdowns in the comeback win over Stetson in the opener, and added a score against Lehigh last week. The last player to rush for at least one touchdown in three straight weeks was Collin Eaddy, who started that stretch last season with a two-touchdown performance against Columbia

Three Pointer • Both Columbia and Princeton rank in the Ivy League top three in both offensive and defensive scoring. Columbia stands atop both charts, averaging 40 points scored and only 4.5 points allowed over two weeks, while Princeton is third in both offensive (34.0) and defensive (15.5) scoring.

Grounded • Princeton is allowing only 36.5 rushing yards per game this season, and it hasn't given up a touchdown on the ground yet. The Tiger defense was stout in last season's 24-7 win over Columbia, as it allowed only eight rushing yards in the win.

Sack Exchange • Senior lineman Uche Ndukwe recorded 2.5 sacks last season against Columbia, marking arguably his best performances of his injury-shortened season.

Conversion Chart • Princeton is allowing its opponents to convert on only 24% of its third downs this season, and the Tigers have yet to allow a conversion during the second half this season. While the Tigers have the best third-down conversion defense in the Ivy League, Columbia enters the weekend with the best third-down conversion offense (64.7%) in the league and the second-best in all of FCS football.

I'm Honored • Michael Ruttlen, Jr. was named a semifinalist for the 2022 William B. Campbell Trophy, the National Football Foundation announced this past week. Ruttlen Jr. is one of 156 semifinalists named to the list. The Campbell Trophy recognizes individuals as the absolute best football scholar-athlete in the nation for his combined academic success, football performance and exemplary leadership.

Poll Position • Princeton was picked to finish third in the 2022 Ivy League preseason poll, though the Tigers received four of the 16 first-place votes and finished only three points (105) behind co-leaders Harvard and Dartmouth (108). Columbia finished fifth overall with 67 points.

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Players Mentioned

Ryan Butler

Dylan Classi

Collin Eaddy

Andrei Iosivas

Uche Ndukwe

Blake Stenstrom

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