| Sport | Football |
|---|---|
| First meeting | October 25, 1890 Columbia 40, Fordham 0 |
| Latest meeting | September 19, 2015 Fordham 44, Columbia 24 |
| Stadiums | Jack Coffey Field (Fordham)Wien Stadium (Columbia) |
| Trophy | Liberty Cup (September 21, 2002) |
| Statistics | |
| Meetings total | 24 |
| All-time series | Tied 12–12 |
| Trophy series | Fordham leads, 10–4 |
| Largest victory | Fordham, 52–7 (2013) |
| Longest win streak | Fordham, 6 (2010–2015) |
| Current win streak | Fordham, 6 (2010–2015) |
TheLiberty Cup is atrophy awarded to the winner of thecollege football game betweenColumbia University andFordham University, twoNational Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)Division I football programs inNew York City. The cup was awarded annually from 2002 to 2015, but the two teams have not met since then.
The trophy was dedicated a year after the Columbia-Fordham game was postponed following the attacks ofSeptember 11, 2001.[1] At least 43 Columbia alumni and 39 Fordham alumni and students[2] died at theWorld Trade Center.[3] They included two former Fordham football players, Nick Brandemarti, a member of the class of 2000, and Kevin Szocik, a 1997 graduate. Columbia ended the crosstown rivalry series after a run of losses in the 2010s.[4][5]
Columbia, based inUpper Manhattan, and Fordham, based inThe Bronx, today represent two of the three Division I football teams in New York City;Wagner College, onStaten Island, is the third. In the early days of college football, they were two of the three nationally prominent teams in New York City, withNew York University the third.
Despite their proximity and long football histories, however, the schools met only three times in the 100 years up to 1990. The first matchup took place in 1890, and another followed in 1902.[6][7] Both contests were lopsided shutout wins by Columbia. Columbia had been one of the first universities to sponsor a football team, and the Blue and White, along with other futureIvy League teams, were among the nation's leaders in the early decades of the 20th century.
The two teams did not meet again for several decades, even after Fordham joined Columbia in the NCAA's "major" level, equivalent to today's Division I, in 1928.[7] Aside from 1943–1945 hiatus due toWorld War II, Fordham remained a major program until the 1954 season. It pursued a national schedule, however, rather than meeting "Ancient Eight" teams like Columbia.[8] After a string of losing seasons both athletically and financially, Fordham folded its football program in 1954.
A renewal of the rivalry became possible only in 1970, when Fordham reintroduced varsity football, at what is now known as theDivision III level. Columbia, along with the rest of the Ivy League, still played at what is now known as theNCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level.[9] Nonetheless, the Columbia scheduled Fordham in 1972 as a replacement forBuffalo which had temporarily terminated its football program.[10] Like their previous two contests, the 1972 affair also ended in a lopsided shutout win for the Lions. Again, competing at different levels kept the schools from establishing a series.
This changed in the 1980s. Columbia, along with the rest of the Ivy League, was relegated to the new Division I-AA (now known asNCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision) after the 1981 season. Fordham moved up to I-AA prior to the 1989 season. This put the 1991 encounter between the two on a more even footing. Fordham won that fourth meeting by a 20-16 score. Columbia gained revenge in sweeping the next four contests, which were played in 1992, 1993, 1994 and 1996. After a brief hiatus, the two renewed their series in 2000, typically as Columbia's season opener and the third game on Fordham's schedule.
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The 10th meeting between Fordham and Columbia originally was scheduled for September 15, 2001. In the days following theSeptember 11, 2001 attacks,Major League Baseball, theNational Football League and many NCAA Division I teams canceled games for the following weekend. But Fordham and Columbia — the only Division I football teams in New York City at the time — debated as late as Friday, September 14, about the possibility of playing. Fordham officials wanted to send a message about American resilience in the face of the attacks, but Columbia officials argued that it was too soon to think about playing a football game. "The question was, should we not play and mourn and honor our dead, or was normalcy in the face of this disaster the best response?" said theRev. Joseph A. O'Hare, president of Fordham at that time.[3]
The schools decided against playing on Sept. 15, but later in the season agreed to meet on Thanksgiving morning, November 22. Fordham thumped Columbia 41-10 before a surprisingly ample crowd, considering the holiday and early start time. Afterward, O'Hare said it had been the right decision to reschedule. "Oh, absolutely," he said. "I think we had put sports in perspective – and we played great."[3]
Less than 10 months after that game, the underdog Lions gained their revenge, holding Fordham close for 59 minutes before winning with a 37-yard field goal with 10.5 seconds to play. This September 2002 matchup was the inaugural Liberty Cup game. The 13-11 victory was Columbia’s only win of the 2002 season; Fordham finished 10-3, gaining a share of thePatriot League title and reaching the quarterfinals of theNCAAFootball Championship Subdivision playoffs.
TheColumbia University Marching Band drew protests from Fordham andRoman Catholics generally with anoff-colordoubleentendre reference to thepriest abuse scandal during its halftime performance at the inaugural 2002 Liberty Cup game, when the Columbia band's self-proclaimed "Poet Laureate" read from a script over the stadium's public address system:[11]
"As well as theMets' season going up in smoke, Fordham tuitiongoing down like an altar boy, and the Fordham football team witha threat rating of a cute, neon pink, the band now presents an all-star gala halftime salute to more Columbia news."
In reporting the incident,The New York Times, theAssociated Press, and most of the mainstream media found the reference to be too insensitive or offensive and refused to print it.[12] Columbia PresidentLee C. Bollinger apologized for the band's remark. The author of the joke refused to apologize.[13]
The 2003 game was a thriller, with Fordham coming out on top in a wild 37-30 game.Jerry Glanville was the color broadcaster for that game for TV as a part of the now-defunct Football Network. After CBS executives saw his work on that game, he was offered a chance to call an NFL game the following week, theDetroit Lions–San Diego Chargers game.
Columbia took the 2006 meeting, 37-7, in the most lopsided result of the cup series until Fordham defeated Columbia 52-7 in 2013. The 2006 win was the Lions' second consecutive victory over Fordham, and madeNorries Wilson the first Columbia coach sinceAldo T. "Buff" Donelli to win his debut. Fordham responded by winning eight of the next nine matchups.
In 2014, after Columbia concluded a second consecutive 0–10 season, Columbia PresidentLee Bollinger commissioned formerBoston University football head coachRick Taylor to review the program. The following year, Taylor recommended Columbia improve its athletic facilities, increase salaries and discontinue the Fordham series. He based the recommendation partly on differences between theIvy League and thePatriot League: a later start to the season for Ivy teams like Columbia, and the ability to offerathletic scholarships for Patriot teams like Fordham.
"They should not play Fordham when Fordham has three games and scholarships under their belt," Taylor said. "I'd take Fordham on anytime in the middle of the season when I got games under my belt."
Columbia did not schedule Fordham after 2015.
"I would hope that some time in the next decade, Fordham comes back on the schedule," Taylor said. "Because that will prove that we were alright, and Columbia has succeeded." As of the 2023 season Columbia has yet to face Fordham again.
Columbia held an 8–2 series lead, including meetings going back to the 19th century, before the Liberty Cup was dedicated:
| Columbia victories | Fordham victories |
| No. | Date | Location | Winner | Score | Attendance and Source | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | October 25, 1890 | Polo Grounds III, aka Brotherhood Park | Columbia | 40–0 | ???[14] | |||
| 2 | October 8, 1902 | Polo Grounds II, aka Columbia Field | Columbia | 45–0 | 1,000[15][16][17] | |||
| 3 | September 30, 1972 | Baker Field | Columbia | 44–0 | 6,845[18] | |||
| 4 | October 5, 1991 | Wien Stadium | Fordham | 20–16 | 3,650[19] | |||
| 5 | September 26, 1992 | Jack Coffey Field | Columbia | 18–9 | 3,521[20] | |||
| 6 | September 25, 1993 | Wien Stadium | Columbia | 7–0 | 3,325[21] | |||
| 7 | October 8, 1994 | Jack Coffey Field | Columbia | 24–13 | 5,266[22] | |||
| 8 | September 28, 1996 | Jack Coffey Field | Columbia | 17–10 | 5,713[23] | |||
| 9 | September 16, 2000 | Wien Stadium | Columbia | 43–26 | 5,007[24] | |||
| 10 | November 22, 2001 | Jack Coffey Field | Fordham | 41–10 | 3,715[25] | |||
| Series: Columbia leads 8–2 | ||||||||
Fordham earned victories in the final six Liberty Cup contests, the longest win streak of all meetings with Columbia, giving the Rams a 10–4 Cup series lead:
| Columbia victories | Fordham victories |
| No. | Date | Location | Winner | Score | Attendance and Source | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 21, 2002 | Wien Stadium | Columbia | 13–11 | 3,865[26] | |||
| 2 | September 20, 2003 | Jack Coffey Field | Fordham | 37–30 | 6,895[27] | |||
| 3 | September 18, 2004 | Wien Stadium | Fordham | 17–14 | 2,176[28] | |||
| 4 | September 17, 2005 | Jack Coffey Field | Columbia | 23–17 | 6,912[29] | |||
| 5 | September 16, 2006 | Wien Stadium | Columbia | 37–7 | 4,454[30] | |||
| 6 | September 15, 2007 | Jack Coffey Field | Fordham | 27–10 | 3,721[31] | |||
| 7 | September 20, 2008 | Wien Stadium | Fordham | 29–22 | 2,304[32] | |||
| 8 | September 19, 2009 | Jack Coffey Field | Columbia | 40–28 | 6,449[33] | |||
| 9 | September 18, 2010 | Wien Stadium | Fordham | 16–9 | 4,454[34] | |||
| 10 | September 17, 2011 | Jack Coffey Field | Fordham | 21–14 | 6,820[35] | |||
| 11 | September 22, 2012 | Wien Stadium | Fordham | 20–13 | 4,318[36] | |||
| 12 | September 21, 2013 | Jack Coffey Field | Fordham | 52–7 | 7,026[37] | |||
| 13 | September 20, 2014 | Wien Stadium | Fordham | 49–7 | 4,805[38] | |||
| 14 | September 19, 2015 | Jack Coffey Field | Fordham | 44–24 | 8,052[39] | |||
| Series: Fordham leads 10–4 | ||||||||
Following the most recent game in 2015, the overall series is tied, with both teams at 12 wins. Combining the 24 contests, Columbia outscored Fordham 527–494.
The Cup will take place in 2015, but not 2016.
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