Ithaca College Bombers Streak Ends

An incredible streak ended Saturday afternoon when the Alfred Saxons held on to beat the Ithaca College Bombers 21-19. The loss dropped Ithaca to 4-5 on the season, and snapped a record of 40-consecutive winning seasons.

During the 40-year winning season streak, the Bombers captured three national championships in 1974, 1988, and 1991, all under legendary head coach Jim Butterfield. Ithaca College established itself as a national power, and as the most dominant Eastern Region football program for three decades.

However the landscape of upstate New York football has radically changed in the last two decades. St. John Fisher started their program, and became an upstate powerhouse by the early 2000s. Utica College and Hartwick formed programs within a two hour drive of Ithaca. Cortland State rose to become a strong upstate competitor, recruiting just 20 minutes up the road from Ithaca. Brockport and Buffalo State both became viable teams in western New York. And very recently, Morrisville switched from JUCO to Division 3.

While none of these events alone can explain Ithaca's fall from dominance, the aggregate goes a long way to explain Ithaca's inability to recruit enough athletes to compete for national championships. There are simply too many teams, in too small an area, competing for many of the same players. The result, in my opinion, is parity among many teams across New York state.

While St. John Fisher appears to have become the dominant western New York team, it is starting to look like Cortland may be the dominant central New York program. In order for Ithaca to return to national prominence, it may need both Fisher and Cortland to stumble.

Today's loss, and the end of the 40-year streak, is hardly a death sentence for Ithaca. The Bombers are just three years removed from consecutive NCAA tournament bids (2007 and 2008). A win next week against Cortland in the annual Cortaca Jug would no doubt soften the blow quite a bit, and put the team back on course for 2012.

Congratulations to Ithaca College on a fantastic 40-year run. It was truly one of college football's greatest achievements over the last four decades.