In its first season under head coach George Sanford, the team compiled a 9–3 record and outscored opponents by a total of 224 to 91, including eight shutouts.
[1][2] The 1899 season marked Columbia's return to the sport after not participating in intercollegiate football from 1892 to 1898.
The result was described by The New York Times as "one of the most disastrous defeats Yale has ever experienced in her athletic history.
"[3] Columbia's freshman back Harold Weekes scored the game's only points on a long touchdown run in the middle of the second half.
[6] Columbia's sports teams were commonly called the "Blue and White" in this era, but had no official nickname.