Carlton Koonce and Fordham are running back to Rose Hill with the Liberty Cup in tow.
Fordham won its third straight Liberty Cup game 20-13 against Columbia at Robert K. Kraft Field yesterday afternoon.
“There’s no better feeling,” Koonce said. “It just feels great for the guys to come out [and win] because the senior leadership is great and [the win] is definitely a good thing.”
The Rams (3-1) were led for the second week in a row by Koonce, the senior running back who rushed for 250 yards on 35 carries just days after was named the Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week for gaining 176 yards on 31 carries against Cornell.
“It feels outstanding,” Koonce said. “I thought we [established the line of scrimmage].
Glory to those guys, the offensive line met the challenge, answered the bell and I’m just happy all around.”
Koonce gave Fordham a 14-3 lead after scoring on back-to-back possessions, including a Patriot League record-tying, 92-yard touchdown run, the Rams’ longest play from scrimmage this season.
Though Koonce was the game’s offensive star, Mike Martin was the defense standout for the Rams.
Martin, a senior linebacker, forced two fumbles, including one that stopped Columbia (1-1) in the fourth quarter after the Lions had driven to the Rams’ 14-yard line.
“We needed a stop, they were driving,” Martin said. “The pressure’s on, I saw the ball, pulled it out. It was a good play.”
Most of the fireworks took place in the game’s first 15 minutes, with 24 of the game’s 33 points being scored and a total of three turnovers committed.
“It was certainly sloppy with turnovers and penalties, some miscues there,” Fordham head coach Joe Moorhead said.
“We’re going to get it rectified, but, at the end of the day, good football teams find ways to win games.”
Columbia was able to capitalize on a Ryan Higgins interception in the first quarter to score its only touchdown of the game on Sean Brackett’s 60-yard pass to Louis DiNovo. That cut Fordham’s lead to 14-10.
Fordham’s Patrick Murray added a pair of field goals in the second half, including a 51-yarder, to give the Rams a 20-13 lead.
Columbia’s last chance to tie the game ended when backup quarterback Andrew Weiss threw an illegal forward pass on fourth down in Rams territory with 1:17 to play.
The turnover on downs allowed the Rams to run out the clock and secure the win, but not before a play that was similar to the controversial one at the end of last week’s Giants-Buccaneers game.
“It’s something that you have to be cognizant of,” Moorhead said. “We were on the sideline, in victory formation we said to be careful of them swiping at the ball, or to knock you back to cause a fumble. It’s not over until the last second ticks off.”