1996 Columbia Lions football team

1996 Columbia Lions football
Conference	Ivy League
Record	8–2 (5–2 Ivy)
Head coach	Ray Tellier (8th season)
Defensive coordinator	Mike Donnelly (5th season)
Captains	Ryan Gabriele Randy Murff Marcellus Wiley Rory Wilfork
Home stadium	Wien Stadium
Seasons ←  1995 1997  →

1996 Ivy League football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 17 Dartmouth $		7	–	0					10	–	0
Columbia		5	–	2					8	–	2
Brown		4	–	3					5	–	5
Cornell		4	–	3					4	–	6
Penn		3	–	4					5	–	5
Harvard		2	–	5					4	–	6
Princeton		2	–	5					3	–	7
Yale		1	–	6					2	–	8
$ – Conference champion Rankings from The Sports Network poll

The 1996 Columbia Lions football team was an American football team that represented Columbia University during the 1996 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Columbia finished second in the Ivy League.

In their eighth season under head coach Ray Tellier, the Lions compiled a 8–2 record and outscored opponents 181 to 159. Ryan Gabriele, Randy Murff, Marcellus Wiley and Rory Wilfork were the team captains. ^[1]

Despite a 5–2 conference record that placed second in the Ivy League standings, Columbia was outscored 133 to 119 by Ivy opponents. ^[2]

Columbia played its homes games at Lawrence A. Wien Stadium in Upper Manhattan, in New York City.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 21	Harvard	Wien Stadium New York, NY	W 20–13 OT	5,760	[3]
September 28	at Fordham *	Coffey Field Bronx, NY (rivalry)	W 17–10	5,713	[4]
October 5	at Holy Cross *	Fitton Field Worcester, MA	W 42–16	9,349	[5]
October 12	at Penn	Franklin Field Philadelphia, PA	W 20–19 OT	6,435	[6]
October 19	Lafayette *	Wien Stadium New York, NY	W 3–0	1,170	[7]
October 26	at Yale	Yale Bowl New Haven, CT	W 13–10	24,715	[8]
November 2	Princeton	Wien Stadium New York, NY	L 11–14	9,100	[9]
November 9	at No. 25 Dartmouth	Memorial Field Hanover, NH	L 0–40	5,119	[10]
November 16	Cornell	Wien Stadium New York, NY (rivalry)	W 24–10	7,055	[11]
November 23	Brown	Wien Stadium New York, NY	W 31–27	5,175	[12]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from The Sports Network Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1996 Columbia Lions football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class TE 83 Billy Campbell Fr WR 3 Dennis Lee Sr FB 28 Paul Thomas Jr QB 19 Bobby Thomason Jr WR 88 Chris Wachter Sr	Defense Pos. # Name Class DE 92 Charlie Bettinelli Sr DE 81 Greg Bowman Fr DT 63 Brett Bryant Sr ROV 11 Anthony Caffiero Jr DE 96 Tom Nelson Fr FS 22 Jessie Nunn Sr DE 85 Juan Tabio Fr DE 5 Marcellus Wiley Sr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K, P 9 Matt Linit So	Head coach Ray Tellier Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster

References

1. "Columbia Football 2019 Record Book". New York, N.Y.: Columbia University. August 19, 2019. p. 218. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
2. "Year-by-Year History". Ivy League Football Media Guide (PDF). Princeton, N.J.: Ivy League. 2017. pp. 36–37. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
3. Lessels, Allen (September 22, 1996). "Sour Finish for Harvard". Boston Sunday Globe . Boston, Mass. p. C15 – via Newspapers.com.
4. Cavanaugh, Jack (September 29, 1996). "Mistakes Abound, but Columbia Finds Itself at 2-0". The New York Times . New York, N.Y. p. S4.
5. El-Bashir, Tarik (October 6, 1996). "Lions Remain Perfect by Trouncing Crusaders". The New York Times . New York, N.Y. pp. S4, S6.
6. Juliano, Joe (October 13, 1996). "Kick Fails in OT as Columbia Tops Penn". The Philadelphia Inquirer . Philadelphia, Pa. p. C18 – via Newspapers.com.
7. Meixell, Ted (October 20, 1996). "Columbia Zips Lafayette in Impossible Conditions". The Morning Call . Allentown, Pa. p. C4 – via Newspapers.com. Attendance figure in "Ivy League Summaries". Boston Sunday Globe . Boston, Mass. October 20, 1996. p. D19.
8. Berlet, Bruce (October 27, 1996). "Columbia Defeats Yale on Late FG". The Hartford Courant . Hartford, Conn. pp. D12, D14 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Princeton Edges Past Columbia". The Home News & Tribune . New Brunswick, N.J. Associated Press. November 3, 1996. p. C5 – via Newspapers.com.
10. Concannon, Joe (November 10, 1996). "Big Win for the Big Green". Boston Sunday Globe . Boston, Mass. p. C15 – via Newspapers.com.
11. McShea, Keith (November 18, 1996). "A Heartbreaker: Injury Stops Levitt Short of Goal; CU Falls". The Ithaca Journal . Ithaca, N.Y. p. 3B – via Newspapers.com.
12. Cavanaugh, Jack (November 24, 1996). "Lions Eke Out Victory in Closing Minutes". The New York Times . New York, N.Y. p. S3.