Columbia Warns Coach About Comments

Columbia University officials yesterday admonished first-year football Coach Jim Garrett for his postgame comments following Saturday's 49-17 loss to Harvard, and warned him to tone down future remarks.

After watching his team lose a 17-0 third quarter lead by giving up seven consecutive touchdowns in just over 15 minutes, Garrett called his players "drug-addicted losers" who had been unable to deal with adversity, and blamed the loss on senior punter Peter Murphy, who the Columbia coach said would never kick for him again.

In a lengthy meeting yesterday, Norman N. Mintz, Columbia's executive vice-president for academic affairs, and Al Paul, the school's athletic director, told Garrett that "his postgame comments were inappropriate" and that they "don't expect it to happen again," Paul said.

Paul, who said he was "disappointed" by Garrett's performance, added that he believed the former NFL assistant coach understood the administration's position, but that "only time will tell" whether he will abide by its wishes.

Garrett could not be reached for comment.

The Columbia coach, who left Susquehana College in 1965 after slapping a player, was lured to Columbia last spring as part of an effort to bolster the college's slumbering football program. The Lions have not produced a winning football team since the early 1970s.

Garrett told The New York Times that he called his players drug-addicted losers "because all of our societal vices now show weakness of the will as related to drug use."

"The weakness of the will here--not wanting to go out and stay with a tremendous emotional approach against Harvard--meant that our vice was losing," he said. "So, in essence, our drug was losing, and we use adversity to go back to our old standards."

Both Paul and Mintz--who discussed the matter with Columbia President Michael I. Sovern--said they took exception with the analogy.

Both officials were more critical of Garrett's characterization of Murphy, an honorable-mention All-Ivy selection a year ago.

"I understand his desire to win and his enthusiasm for winning and the great frustration at the outcome of the game," Mintz, who oversees the athletic department, told The New York Times. "But I cannot condone the castigation of a single player or the general tenor of his comments."

Paul said that though he knew Garrett was an emotional coach when he hired him last spring, he never expected his emotions to run so far.

"At the time we were looking for a coach, everyone on the committee felt it was a time in Columbia's history to bring in an emotional coach who could motivate the players."

"Emotions, of course, are expressed in different ways."

Asked whether he thought Garrett's actions were a blow to a program that now has lost 12 straight games and that hasn't won a game since 1983, Paul said he wasn't sure.

Asked whether he thought the Columbia program was heading in the right direction, Paul said, "in the first half I thought we were."

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As far as Murphy is concerned, the word out of Columbia is that no one has seen or heard from the senior punter since he dressed and left immediately after the game.

Speculation is that the Long Island native will leave the team.

Several Lion players are reportedly upset with Garrett's comments about Murphy, and worried whether they'll be the next one singled out.

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Garrett's postgame comments stole the spotlight Saturday from a second-half Harvard performance that ranks as one of the program's all-time best.

Down 17-0 early in the third quarter, Harvard (1-0) scored on seven consecutive possessions, with six of those coming within a 15-minute span.

The 49 points set a Harvard record for most points in a half.

The 49 points were the most in one game since Harvard spanked the Lions, 57-0, in 1973, and the fifth highest point total of the last 30 years. The last two times Harvard scored more than 49 points the opponent was also Columbia.

Harvard's seven touchdown drives lasted an average of five plays per drive and an average of 2:03. The longest drive, the last, took eight plays and 4:23. The shortest, the second, lasted one play and took seven seconds.

Harvard has now won seven in a row from the Lions, one short of the series record. The Crimson has also won nine of the last 10, is 10-2 all-time in opening-day games against Columbia (0-1) and has never lost at Lawrence A. Wien Stadium at Baker Field.

Interestingly enough, Columbia has never won at Lawrence A. Wien Stadium at Baker Field.

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You'd never know it from his reaction, but Crimson Coach Joe Restic moved into a tie Saturday with John Yoviscin for first place on Harvard's all-time football coaching victory list.

The win gave Restic, whose 15-year tenure is the longest of any Harvard coach, 78 career wins.

His reaction?

"Is that what happened? All I know is that I've been here 15 years."

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Amidst all the offensive jubilation Saturday, let's not forget the Harvard defense. Though it gave up two touchdowns in the first half, it turned in an all-star performance in the second. In eight second half series, Columbia had the ball for just 29 plays. Six of those series lasted three plays, and one lasted four.

Take away the Lions' only legitimate possession of the final half-a seven-play, 78-yd. drive that resulted in a field goal--and the hosts picked up a total of 29 second-half yards.

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Harvard hosts UMass (2-1) Saturday at 1:15 p.m. in The Stadium in its 1985 home opener.

The Crimson leads the series, 10-6-1, with all 17 games having been played at The Stadium. Harvard has a 4-4-1 record in home openers against UMass.

The two teams last met in 1983, when the Minutemen were one of two teams to beat the Crimson. UMass, however, has never taken two straight from Harvard.

Since the first three games--which Harvard won by shutout--the series has been very even, with the Crimson holding a 7-6-1 edge in the last 14 meetings.

The Minutemen, fresh from a 27-3 whipping of a talented Holy Cross squad, will enter this game as clear favorites.

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From this week's Saint's file, senior running back Robert Santiago picked up 48 yards on the ground Saturday, moving him to within 657 yards of fifth place on Harvard's all-time career rushing list.

He also picked up four receptions for 78 yards, including a career-best 64-yd. touchdown reception. In case you're wondering, Santiago is 791 yards short of fifth place on Harvard's all-time career total offense list.

His 48 yards Saturday led Harvard. The first time Santiago ever led the Crimson in rushing? It was two years ago this Saturday, when the Saint picked up 78 yards on 21 carries against--guess who--UMass.

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In just one game, senior kicker Rob Steinberg leapfrogged several former Harvard kickers and moved into 11th place on the Harvard list of leading scorers by kicking.

It helped that he had a chance to kick seven extra points.

His seven points Saturday give him 51 career points, one shy of 10th place on the list.

Ever wonder what a Harvard football player majors in?

Wonder no more.

In first place--drum roll, please--is economics, which is home to more than 40 percent of the squad's members. Thirty-four of the 86 gridders are ec majors. In second place, is history, with 14 concentrators. Third is government, which boasts nine gridders, followed by engineering sciences with six, psychology with five and biology with four.

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Ten hut.

That was the theme of Ivy football last weekend, when the three Ancient Eight winners other than Harvard each scored a measley 10 points.

Penn, Princeton and Yale all came away winners, but the Yale game was easily the most exciting.

Brown missed what would have been its fourth field goal of the day as time was running out, leaving the Bulldogs 10-9 winners.

Ironically, Brown's Kieron Bigby, who last year burned the Elis twice with interception returns of 91 and 100 yards, did not fare as well in the rematch.

This time, Bigby fumbled the Elis' first--and only--punt.

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THE NOTEBOOK'S NOTEBOOK: The Crimson's first six touchdowns Saturday came in a span of 15:21...In its last three games against Columbia, Harvard has averaged 42 points...Harvard is now 95-15-2 in season openers...Columbia's non-winning streak is now at 15...Its 12 straight losses are a school record...It had been two seasons--since the Princeton game in 1983--that a Columbia team last held a two-touchdown lead over anyone...White needs 577 yards passing to become the Crimson's fifth leading passer of all time...Lamont Greer, Brian O'Neil and Rufus Jones all scored their first career touchdowns Saturday, with Greer and O'Neil scoring their first time they ever touched the ball...Senior Chuck Shirey had his best punt return yardage day ever (78) and his longest return (37). Shirey needs just six punt returns to break the school career record of 37 held by John Dailey '84.

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THE PICKS: UMass over Harvard, Lafayette over Columbia, UNH over Dartmouth, Army over Penn, UConn over Yale, Lehigh over Princeton, Colgate over Cornell and URI over Brown. Last Week: 3-1. Season to Date: 3-1, tied for first and still talking trash.

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The Football Notebook Appears Every Tuesday in The Harvard Crimson