Football: Culbreath likely done for season, Hughes says

In the bowels of Princeton Stadium after the football team’s pummeling on Saturday at the hands of Columbia, head coach Roger Hughes was appropriately subdued. Nearly as soon as the Tigers’ worst-ever loss to the Lions was complete, the rain began to pour violently, reflecting the sentiment surrounding the downtrodden start to Princeton’s season.

As if the 38-point loss his team had just suffered wasn’t discouraging enough, Hughes’ announcement about senior All-Ivy running back Jordan Culbreath dimmed the season’s prospects even more.

“Jordan is in the hospital, at Robert Wood Johnson,” Hughes said. “He has been diagnosed with anemia. We’re trying to figure out what the issue is. He’s undergoing tests right now, but it appears at this point that he will not be available for the rest of the season.”

And with that declaration, the team’s long, unhappy day was essentially over. Before Saturday, the Tigers (1-2 overall, 0-1 Ivy League) had lost only once to Columbia (2-1, 1-0) at Princeton Stadium since its 1998 opening. At the stadium, the Tigers had been averaging 40 points per game against the Lions. Their last loss to Columbia was six years ago, and though the teams have been playing since 1874, the Lions’ victory on Saturday was only their 14th over Princeton. Columbia’s previous largest margin of victory was posted in a 25-point win in 1945.

But on Saturday, the Tigers struggled. They snuck past Lehigh last weekend even after losing Culbreath in the first half, but they failed to generate any offensive momentum against Columbia. Princeton employed three different primary rushers, using freshman Akil Sharp and juniors Kenny Gunter and Meko McCray at running back, but sophomore quarterback Tommy Wornham still led the team in rushing yards, with 99.

On the passing front, the Tigers often looked lost. The receivers dropped multiple passes, and Wornham’s longest completion, a 32-yard strike to junior wide receiver Trey Peacock, came as time expired in the first half. Peacock, who recorded five receptions, was the only receiver with more than one, as Wornham and his receivers seemed out of sync. Though Wornham did muster 135 passing yards, he and his offense failed to post a drive longer than three-and-a-half minutes.

Wornham was picked off only once, but it was returned 51 yards for a Columbia touchdown to make the score 17-0 in the third quarter. The Princeton offense also lost two fumbles and failed to convert on four fourth-down attempts, handing the ball over to the Lions seven times in the game. And on top of their penchant for giving up possession during the course of play, the Tigers were penalized eight times for 66 yards.

“The penalties stinkin’ killed us,” Hughes said.

But the defense was also to blame for the loss. It allowed 384 yards and once again looked ineffective against the run in the early going. Though senior linebacker and co-captain Scott Britton recorded 17 tackles and junior linebacker Steve Cody picked up 16 of his own, the defensive unit often appeared unsure of what to do with Columbia’s large and fast quarterback, M.A. Olawale.

After the game, Columbia head coach Norries Wilson acknowledged that his team went into the game expecting to run and that Princeton’s defense eventually got better at defending it.

The defensive line tightened up against the run as the game progressed, but that came at the expense of pass defense in the fourth quarter, as Columbia scored on two long strikes, a 50-yard pass and a 27-yard pass almost five minutes later.

To start the game, though, the Tigers did not look completely overwhelmed. Columbia’s opening drive consisted solely of runs, and the Lions got all the way to the Princeton eight-yard line before curiously opting to throw the ball twice, turning it over on downs after those passes fell incomplete.

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With just more than eight minutes left to play in the quarter, though, Wornham and McCray botched a handoff at their own 19-yard line. Columbia took over after the Wornham fumble and subsequently scored its first touchdown of the game, making the score 6-0 after a missed extra point.

The second half started promisingly for the Tigers, as senior defensive back and co-captain Wilson Cates helped destroy Columbia’s first drive before it could get going. In three penalty-marred plays, Cates broke up two passes and made a tackle, forcing the Lions to punt.

Just when Princeton threatened to come back, though, Wornham’s pass was picked off and returned for a touchdown by Columbia cornerback Jared Morine. The subsequent two-point conversion made the score 17-0, and Princeton’s chances at a comeback were dashed.

After the game, Hughes took the blame for the team’s historic loss, saying that he needs to re-evaluate his future game plans and explaining that the team would have to find a way to bounce back against Colgate on Thursday night. But even though he urged his team to look forward, the scoreboard at the waterlogged field still read “38-0.”

“Basically the score indicates how the game went,” Hughes said. “They kicked our backside.”