Tigers make plays in end to stop Columbia, 35-32
By: Justin Feil
NEW YORK CITY — Princeton University’s football team fumbled three times, lost two of them, had a pass intercepted three yards from the red zone, were sacked five times, was stopped once on fourth down, had a punt blocked for a safety and a punt successfully faked against them, yet found a way to beat Columbia, 35-32, Saturday. The Tigers didn’t wrap it entirely up until Brendan Dillon successfully fielded the Lions’ onsides kick with 37 seconds left.
"I give credit to Ray Tellier and his staff and the Columbia players," said Princeton head coach Roger Hughes, whose squad improved to 2-1 overall, 1-0 in the Ivy League. "They fought their tails off. We knew coming into the game this is a tough place to win, especially when it’s Homecoming. I thought they played as hard as they could. I thought they did a great job schematically against us.
"If you had told us that we’d have five turnovers and a blocked punt for a safety and play the way we did, I thought we’d have gotten beat by 30 points. I’m very proud of our team, and how they found a way to win the game. When the game was on the line, they put together a couple nice drives and found a way to put the game away."
The Tigers took control in the fourth quarter when they answered Columbia’s first lead of the second half. After the Lions moved ahead, 24-21, Princeton used the big play from two of its littlest guys. First, 5-foot-7 running back Cameron Atkinson burst 25 yards to move the Tigers to the Columbia 26, but was shaken up on the play. Two plays later, Jon Veach, Atkinson’s backup listed at 5-foot-10, scored his second touchdown of the game on a 17-yard run. Derek Javarone’s extra point gave Princeton a 28-24 cushion with 12:31 left in regulation.
"Luckily," Hughes said, "we have players like Jon Veach who can come in when Cam Atkinson goes down. We have players like Pat Schottel, who came in when Chisom Opara went down (with an minor elbow injury). The nice thing is we have depth at those positions, and when the game was on the line, they came up with big plays to help us win. You can’t compensate for those kids. Both Chisom and Cam are great players. The nice thing is the kids we relied on when the game was on the line came through for us."
The Tigers put the game out of reach with 4:30 left with a misdirection pass for 18 yards and a touchdown from David Splithoff to Randy Bly to cap a 50-yard drive. The tight end’s first career touchdown gave Princeton a 35-24 lead, enough of an edge to absorb a late acrobatic four-yard touchdown catch by Columbia’s Steve Cargile on a pass from Steve Hunsberger and a two-point conversion by Derek Smith on a pass tipped by the Lions’ Zach Van Zant. Dillon then fell on the ensuing onsides kick.
"Brendan Dillon, a back-up receiver, came up with a big recovery on the onsides kick," Hughes said. "That’s as big a play as any."
Particularly when many of the plays at Baker Field were not highlight material. As rough a day as the Tigers had, the Lions had enough problems of their own to end up on the short end of the score. Columbia fumbled five times, and lost two of them. They also saw the Tiger offense run rampant, amassing 421 yards of net offense.
Columbia’s highly touted defensive line lived up to its billing with five sacks, but the Tigers were able to run away and around it in rushing for 218 yards. Atkinson led the ground attack with 16 rushes for 103 yards and a touchdown. Veach rushed just 11 times, but for 78 yards, a gaudy 7.1 yards per carry average. In the passing attack, Splithoff was a quiet 14-for-19 for 203 yards and two scores. The first of those passes helped turn the tide for the Tigers.
Columbia felt the game move its way as it used some trickery take a 14-7 lead late in the second quarter. After three plays had netted only three yards, Lions punter Nick Rudd gained 29 yards on fourth down to keep alive the drive. A pass interference called against the Tigers on third down and goal gave the Lions the second break they needed on the drive and on the next play, Derek Smith scored on a two-yard run up the middle with just 38 seconds left in the half. But that was enough time for Princeton to tie it up.
Splithoff showed the toughness that earned him a Astroturf strawberry the size of a large cantaloupe on his upper arm. On the Tigers’ second play after the Columbia touchdown, he eluded what looked like a sure tackle to step out of bounds at midfield with five seconds left It was all he needed for the final play of the half. Splithoff landed on his back after he absorbed a vicious hit, but his pass landed in the arms of Pat Schottel 50 yards away for a touchdown to help the Tigers tie Columbia, 14-14, at halftime.
"We have the athletes out there," Splithoff said. "My job’s just to throw the ball as far as I can and give them a chance. I rolled out to my left and got a great block by the fullback (Joel) Mancl. He cut the kid down. I rolled out and gave them a second to get down there. And I just threw it. I was on the turf and I look up and we had scored a touchdown. It was great."
"It was huge," Hughes added. "It was a huge momentum swing. We practice that twice a week, every week. They had all the momentum going in, and I thought we totally deflated them at that time emotionally. It certainly gave us a chance to come in (to the locker room) and say, ‘We couldn’t be playing any worse than we are right now and we’re still tied like it’s 0-0. Fellas, we have to find a way to win the second half.’ So it was huge. And again, a big play by Pat Schottel."
Princeton rode the momentum out of the locker room to get on the board first in the second half, but it wasn’t a smooth start. Jay McCareins put Princeton’s third fumble of the game on the floor on the kickoff, but the Tigers did recover it. They turned the ball over on downs when the Columbia defense held on fourth-and-1 at their own 42. But Princeton regained possession when Paul Simbi stripped Travis Chmelka after a reception.
The Tigers then put together their most impressive drive of the game, moving 66 yards in nine plays with Veach carrying the final five plays to cover 33 yards. He scored on a 1-yard leap with 5:55 left in the third quarter.
"We have three good tailbacks and all three of us could step in at any time," said Veach, whose two touchdowns were a new career high. "We’re all aware of that. You never know what will happen on any given Saturday, so you have to be prepared for when you get called on. We’re all ready for when the time comes."
The Tigers gave back two points when Joe Nardello’s punt was blocked through the back of the end zone by Chuck Britton barely two minutes later. The Tigers still held a 21-16 lead, but it was short-lived as the Lions took the ensuing free kick and marched 53 yards with Derek Smith scoring his second touchdown of the game on a 1-yard run in which he was initially stopped, but broke free on his second effort. Quarterback Steve Hunsberger’s draw gave Columbia a two-point conversion and a 24-21 lead just 1:09 into the fourth quarter.
But that’s when the Tigers broke what had become a pattern in recent seasons of losing games in the fourth quarter. It marked the second time in as many games that Princeton pulled away from an opponent, and perhaps a turning point and confidence builder for the program.
"I hope we’ve exorcised all those demons," Hughes said. "I think certainly the attitude on the sidelines was that we were never out of the game. Really, this is the first time we’ve been behind this season. We’ve only been behind for 13 seconds the whole season, and that was to Lehigh in the last 13. Our kids never felt panic. It was just a matter of, ‘We have to get things going.’ Frankly, I thought we had a chance to take momentum of the game but we shot ourselves in the foot with turnovers. Our kids never got down, never doubted, kept pushing away."
Princeton looked like it had a the chance to do some damage early, but it could not take advantage of Columbia’s first turnover, a fumble recovered by Blake Perry on the Lions’ first possession. Derek Javarone’s 47-yard field goal attempt was wide left.
The Lions didn’t let Princeton off the hook when Tigers’ return man Andy Bryant misplayed a punt on his first chance. The Lions moved 32 yards in seven plays with Steve Cargile weaving through the Tiger defense on a wide receiver screen for an 8-yard score and a 7-0 lead that stood up through the first quarter.
The Tigers took advantage of a Columbia miscue for their first touchdown. Bryant was hit just as he received a short punt, and the interference penalty gave Princeton the ball 15 yards closer at the Lions’ 34. The Tigers utilized the option to move down within scoring range before Atkinson swept around the right side for an 8-yard touchdown on the first play of the second quarter. Javarone’s extra point tied the game, 7-7.
And in the end, the Tigers came up with just enough big plays to pull out a second straight victory. Princeton hosts the Patriot League’s Colgate 1 p.m. next Saturday.