Yale (3-3, 1-2 Ivy) vs. Columbia (4-2, 1-2 Ivy)
Saturday, Oct. 31 – 12 p.m.
Robert K. Kraft Field at Lawrence A. Wien Stadium (New York, N.Y.)
ESPN+ | Live Stats | Yale Game Notes | Columbia Game Notes

Team 153 will head to NYC this weekend for a clash with the Columbia Lions on Saturday afternoon.

Last Game Notes

• The Bulldogs fell to Penn, 24-21 in Philadelphia last Friday. 
• Against the Quakers, Hugo Djeumeni Kemeni scored a touchdown in his fifth-straight game and rushed for over 100 yards in his fourth straight.
• Lucius Anderson's 10 receptions against Penn were the most by a Bulldog against the Quakers since JP Shohfi had 11 in 2019.

Season Notes

• Dante Reno is now No. 7 in Yale history in career touchdown passes with 36 and No. 9 in career passing yards with 3,891. 
• The Bulldogs are off to a 3-3 start for the first time since 2023. Yale finished that season on a four-game winning streak, beating Columbia 35-7, Brown 36-17, Princeton 36-28 and Harvard 23-18 to win a share of the Ivy League title with a 7-3 record.
• Djeumeni Kemeni's 127.7 rushing yards per game is good enough to put him at No. 4 in the nation. 
• Lucius Anderson has accumulated 829 all-purpose yards this season, putting him at No. 9 in the country.
• For the first time in Ivy League history (since 1956), all eight teams in the conference have a .500 record or higher after six games.

The Series

• Yale is 77-23-2 all-time against Columbia, including wins in nine of the last 12 match ups.
• The Bulldogs are 14-6 all-time against the Lions at Lawrence A. Wien Stadium since its opening in 1984 and 6-3 since it was renamed Robert K. Kraft Field at Lawrence A. Wien Stadium in 2007.
• Yale is 2-1 when playing the Lions on Halloween, featuring wins in 1903 (25-0) and 2009 (23-22) and a loss in 2015 (7-17). The Bulldogs are 14-7-1 all-time when playing on Halloween. 
• In their most recent meeting on Nov. 1, 2025, Yale defeated Columbia 24-10 at the Yale Bowl. The victory was the third in a six-game winning streak that propelled the Bulldogs to their 19th Ivy League title. Dante Reno threw touchdown passes to Nico Brown and Jaxton Santiago, and Wilhelm Daal sealed the game with an 81-yard rushing touchdown in the third quarter.
• The Yale Bowl is only 67 travel miles away from Lawrence A. Wien Stadium, the Bulldogs' shortest road trip of the year.
• The first game in Yale football history was against Columbia, a 3-0 win for the Bulldogs on Nov. 16, 1872.

Scouting Columbia

• Columbia was picked to finish last in the Ivy League in 2026 after a 2-8 season in 2025 left them at the bottom of the conference standings.
• The Lions are only a year removed from their first Ivy League title since 1961, when they finished 5-2 in conference play in 2024, clinching a share of the title due to Yale's 34-29 road victory over Harvard on the last day of the regular season.      
• The Lions enter Saturday's matchup with a 4-2 overall record, but a 1-2 record in the Ivy League after a 38-18 home loss to Dartmouth.
• The Lions and Harvard were the only two teams to go 3-0 in non-conference play.
• Columbia has the No. 4 scoring offense in the conference (25.7 ppg), but also works with the bottom-ranked scoring defense (29.8 ppg).      
• Columbia's top-ranked passing offense (283.3 ypg) is led by senior quarterback Chase Goodwin, who leads the Ivy League in passing with 1,698 yards and 13 touchdowns. Potential Ivy League Rookie of the Year candidate Bryce Coleman was on the receiving end of nine of Goodwin's touchdowns, leading the Ivy League, to go along with 529 receiving yards.
• Running back Griffin Johnson is second in the conference in rushing with 559 yards and three touchdowns.      
• Linebacker AJ George leads the Lions in tackles with 42, including 4.0 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks to go along with an interception. Defensive back MD Awe is tied for second in the conference in passes defended with 10, including nine breakups and an interception.      
• Kicker Hugo Merry is one of the few in the Ivy League still perfect on field goals this season, going 5-5, but has missed two PATs, going 17-19.

Cahill's Corner
"We're excited for the opportunity to hit the road and compete against a very talented league opponent," aid Kevin Cahill, Joel E. Smilow '54 Head Coach of Football. "Columbia is playing well in all three phases and will challenge us across the board. Our focus is on playing with greater consistency and putting together four quarters of our best football. Playing in New York City is always exciting, and we look forward to meeting that challenge with energy and confidence." 

Up Next
The Bulldogs return home on Saturday, Nov. 7 to play the Brown Bears. Kickoff is set for noon.