Opponent Spotlight: Columbia's Jason Divens is running on a mission

The Lions' star runningThe Lions' star runningback is determined to makeThe Lions' star runningback is determined to makethe team a winner Like a lot of incoming Ivy League freshmen, Jason Bivens did not respect Ancient Eight football as a serious entity when he got to Columbia a year ago. This would not have mattered much except for one tiny detail -- Bivens was going to play football for the Lions. "Coming into my freshman year, I didn't take Ivy League football very seriously," Bivens said. "I didn't think it would be too serious a challenge." What a difference a year makes. Compare Bivens' attitude then with his attitude toward the Ivies now, as he goes for his third consecutive 100-yard rushing game this weekend against Penn. "The thing that separates winners from losers is the team that works the hardest in the off-season and prepares the best," Bivens said. "Most of the players are at the same level." And more than his attitude has been changed between his freshman and sophomore year. A lot of things had to happen for Bivens to become one of the best running backs in the league. Bivens, a native of Richmond, Calif., ran the option as quarterback and played defensive back at St. Mary's College High School in Berkeley. Some smaller Division I-AA schools in California expressed interest in him, but a recruiting trip to New York convinced Bivens to go to school on the other side of the country. "I decided to see the East Coast," Bivens said. "When I got out here, I thought it was a nice place to be. I liked the city, the atmosphere, the coaching staff and the few players that I met." Bivens said he also like the challenge of turning the perennially pathetic Columbia program around. "We didn't lose too many games in high school," Bivens said. "At first, I thought that I didn't want to go anywhere I was going to lose a lot. Then, after I thought it through, I thought I'd rather go someplace which was a loser when I came and a winner when I left." So Bivens became a Lion, still expecting to play defensive back. But at the beginning of fall practice in his freshman year, the Columbia coaches decided to make Bivens a tailback. "Playing offense has worked out for the best," Bivens said. "I just got used to it, and everything started clicking. They made a good decision." They did, but it wasn't apparent right away. Bivens started a few games for the Lions toward the end of last season, but he was hardly a force. His final stats for the year were 174 yards and one touchdown on 44 carries. Some of his problems were a result of Columbia's offense, which let quarterback Mike Cavanaugh and fullback John Harper do most of the running. And some came from Bivens' own inexperience. "I hadn't played tailback much," Bivens said. "I had to get acclimated, I had to get used to the plays. I had a couple injuries. The whole year was just a long, drawn own process." Bivens hadn't come to New York fully prepared to play football, either. With his low regard for Ivy football, he decided he could go easy on the summer workout program the Lions' coaches had given him. "They gave it to me before my freshman year," Bivens said. "I was out of high school, just hanging out, not giving it too much attention." After growing up on the West Coast and watching Pac-10 football, Bivens had the idea that players in the Ivy League weren't very impressive athletes. But on one of his first days of practice at Columbia, Bivens had that notion knocked out of his head by Rory Wilfork, the Lions' all-Ivy linebacker. "The first time we put on the pads and suited up, he gave me a nice little pop," Bivens said. "He's not the average Ivy League athlete, but he's one of many in the league. I could picture myself becoming like that -- one of the best." So after his disappointing freshman season, Bivens began his quest. He followed the coaching staff's workout program a bit more closely in the off-season, and it paid off. "Pound for pound, Jason Bivens is one of the tougher people on this football team," Columbia coach Ray Tellier said. "He's fast and has very good vision. He's made remarkable improvement from last year." Bivens is not very big, listed at only 5-feet-7, 180 pounds. But he gained strength in the off-season while maintaining his speed. So, with Cavanaugh and Harper graduated, Tellier shifted the offensive load to Bivens. And he has responded. After gaining just 41 yards against Harvard, Bivens exploded for 159 yards on 37 carries in the Lions' second game against Fordham. He followed that up with 109 yards and two touchdowns last week against Holy Cross. Penn coach Al Bagnoli thinks Bivens is similar to the Quakers' star back, Jasen Scott. "He's on the smaller side, like Jay is, but a very, very hard inside runner," Bagnoli said. "He has good speed, real good balance. He's physically a tough kid, so he can carry the ball 25, 30, 35 times if he has to." Bivens' 103.0 yards per game -- good for fifth in the Ivy League -- is a big reason for Columbia's 3-0 record coming into Saturday's game with Penn. But Bivens doesn't take much credit for his success. "The offensive line has opened up some nice holes," Bivens says. "Aside from that, I'm just running where they want me to run."