Carlton Koonce and Fordham are running back to Rose Hill with the Liberty Cup in tow.
Fordham won its third straight Libery Cup game 20-13 against Columbia at Robert K. Kraft Field on Saturday 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 senior running back Koonce, who rushed for 250 yards on 35 carries just days after he ran for 176 yards on 31 carries against Cornell and was named the Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week.
“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’s monster game fell just shy of former Rams running back Daryl Whiting’s previous record of 256 yards.
“I had no clue, I didn’t even know the record,” Koonce said. “I’m just thinking the game is still on the line, we were only up by seven. We called a run play and to protect the ball. I’m just thinking we have to secure this thing.”
Koonce, easily the star of the game, gave Fordham a 14-3 lead after scoring on back-to-back Rams possessions, including the 92-yard touchdown run, the Rams’ longest play from scrimmage this season.
While 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 down 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 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.”
Fordham got off to a sloppy start when Jared Crayton fumbled the opening kickoff for the Rams, handing Columbia the ball on their own 10-yard line. The Rams defense bailed Crayton out, holding the Lions to just a field goal.
“When we walk out there on defense, we don’t care if it’s on the 1-yard line, 50-yard line,” Martin said. “As a team we said ‘Redzone — let’s win this, let’s stop them, keep them out of the endzone.’ And that’s what we did as a team.”
Columbia was able to capitalize on a Ryan Higgins interception in the first quarter to score its only touchdown of the game on a Sean Brackett 60-yard pass to Louis DiNovo to cut Fordham’s lead to 14-10.
Fordham kicked 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.
“You see the flag behind the line of scrimmage, so you know it’s on offense,” Martin said. “I was feeling alright and they made it interesting but the important thing was that he was across the line and that it was illegal.”
The turnover on downs allowed the Rams to run out the clock and secure the win, but not before a play that was eerily similar to the 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.”
asulla-heffinger@nypost.com