Al Bagnoli quits as Columbia football coach 6 weeks before opener, citing health

NEW YORK (AP) — Columbia football coach Al Bagnoli quit Friday night because of health, six weeks before the Lions' opener at Lafayette.

The 70-year-old was replaced by offensive coordinator Mark Fabish, who was promoted to interim head coach for the 2023 season.

Bagnoli said he had an aortic dissection in February

“In consultation with my family, doctors and coaching staff, I have decided this is the right time for me to retire from coaching,” Bagnoli said in a statement. ” had every intention to get through this season, but after going through the recovery process, I realized the grind of the Ivy League season would be a lot to go through at this stage of my life."

Columbia is without an Ivy League title since its only one in 1961,

Bagnoli won nine Ivy League championships in 23 seasons at Penn, then retired after the 2014 season and was hired a few months later by Columbia.

The Lions went 2-8 and 3-7 in his first two seasons, then began 2017 with their first 7-0 start since 1935 and ensured just their sixth winning record since 1951. Columbia finished 8-2 and tied for second place in the Ivy League. That started a stretch of four winning seasons in five years around the pandemic-canceled 2020 schedule.

Bagnoli went 35-35 at Columbia, leaving him 274-133 at Union, New York, Penn and Columbia. He will transition into a fundraising and coach mentoring role with the Lions.

Fabish joined Bagnoli's Columbia staff in 2015 and has been offensive coordinator for seven seasons.

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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football