Fordham Football Top NYC Program

Bronx, N.Y. - Singer-songwriter Ben Folds opens one of his tunes with the following lyrics: "If there's a God, He's laughing at us and our football team." No one is sure what team he may be referring to but it definitely isn't the Fordham Rams over the past three years.
 

No New York area football team has won more games over the past three seasons than Fordham, who has amassed 29 victories over that stretch. The closest competitor is Rutgers, who has 23 wins since the 2012 season while the NFL's Giants (who play more games in a season that the Rams) have 22 and the Jets 18.
 
While correlation doesn't necessary imply causation, it's pretty clear as to the reason behind the Rams' recent success as 2012 just happened to be head coach Joe Moorhead's first season on the sidelines for his alma mater.
 
The Rams went 6-5 in Moorhead's rookie season in 2012, a vast improvement from the 1-10 record in 2011, the second best turnaround of any NCAA FCS team that fall.
 
Fordham built on that success in 2013 as the Rams went 12-2 overall and made an appearance in the NCAA FCS Championship, advancing to the second round of the championship for just the second time in school history. Fordham won the first ten games of the year for the first time in school history and was ranked as high as fifth in the NCAA FCS polls, Fordham's highest-ever ranking on the FCS level. The Rams set a school record for most wins in a season in the modern era (since 1920) and accomplished a plethora of firsts, including the first win over an NCAA FBS team (Temple), the first win over a top-ten ranked NCAA FCS team on Jack Coffey Field (Villanova) and the school's first ever home NCAA FCS championship win on Jack Coffey Field (Sacred Heart).
 
Last year, the Rams went undefeated in league play and won the school's third Patriot League title, the first since 2007, advancing to the NCAA FCS Championship and winning a first round game for the second consecutive year.
 
A former Fordham quarterback, Moorhead has taken the Rams' offense to new heights, setting numerous single season and career records while statistically ranking at the top of the Patriot League and NCAA FCS in multiple stat categories.
 
The 2014 Fordham offense set school marks for rushing yards with 2,353, shattering the former mark of 2,162 set in 2013, and scoring with 569 points, surpassing the 2013 record of 526. Included in the scoring total was a school-record 31 rushing touchdowns. For the second successive year, the Fordham roster featured three 1,000-yard receivers and a 1,000-yard running back.

Individually, running back Chase Edmonds was named the 2014 Jerry Rice Award winner as the top NCAA FCS Rookie. The 2014 Fordham offense also featured seven All-Americans and nine All-Patriot League selections, including quarterback Mike Nebrich, who was named the Offensive Player of the Year for the second straight year, and Edmonds, the 2014 Patriot League Rookie of the Year. In all, the Rams set a Patriot League record with 18 All-League selections, including a record 15 First Team picks.
  
The Rams led the Patriot League in passing offense, total offense and scoring offense last fall while on the national level the Rams ranked fourth in passing offense (326.1 yards/game) in the NCAA FCS and ranked among the top ten in scoring offense (40.6 points/game – fifth), team passing efficiency (156.23 – fourth), total offense (494.1 yards/game – seventh) and first downs (331 - seventh).
 
In 2013, the Rams' offense led the NCAA FCS in pass completion percentage, was third in passing offense and first downs and seventh in total offense. Fordham also became the first team in NCAA history to have a 4,000-yard passer, three 1,000-yard receivers and a 1,000-yard rusher.
 
The Rams showed tremendous improvement on the offensive side of the ball under Moorhead's tutelage in 2012, averaging 435.7 yards/game, second best in the Patriot League and 20th best in the NCAA FCS, while the Rams scored 31.2 ppg, second in the league and 31st in the NCAA FCS. On the ground in 2012, Fordham was led by Carlton Koonce who broke the school's single season rushing record with 1,596 yards, leading the Patriot League and ranking fourth in the NCAA FCS in rushing yards/game. Through the air, the Rams had the second-ranked passing offense in the Patriot League, averaging 279.6 yards/game, 18th best in the NCAA FCS.