The Columbia Lions pulled out all the stops in Friday night's Ivy League college football showdown against the Yale Bulldogs.
After Yale quarterback Grant Jordan hit running back Nathan Denney for a 24-yard touchdown in the second quarter, the visiting Bulldogs lined up for an extra point at Lawrence A. Wien Stadium in New York.
But before the ball was snapped, an image of the viral Dwyane Wade statue appeared on the jumbotron positioned directly behind the goal post in an attempt to throw off Yale kicker Nick Conforti.
Columbia trying to distract the Yale kicker with the Dwayne Wade statue pic.twitter.com/F2BFqqNgPf
— Ben Volin (@BenVolin) November 2, 2024
Get top local stories in Philly delivered to you every morning. Sign up for NBC Philadelphia's News Headlines newsletter.
The tactic wasn't successful, though, as Conforti converted the extra point with ease to give the Bulldogs a 7-3 advantage.
Columbia used Dwyane Wade's statue to try and distract Yale's kicker 😂pic.twitter.com/7VhB3MMt0u
— The Sporting News (@sportingnews) November 2, 2024
Columbia did, however, go on to win the conference matchup 13-10.
NCAAF
Earlier this week, the Miami Heat honored Wade with a bronze statue outside of Kaseya Arena. But the statue viral for all the wrong reasons, with many criticizing the face's lack of resemblance to Wade.
Oscar Leon, one of the sculpture's artists, spoke out amid the criticism in an interview with NBC South Florida.
“To the critics, there’s a lot that needs to be understood,” Leon said. “We have to seal everything to keep the integrity of the sculpture. However, that does create a funny little side effect of being glossy in areas that we are not used to seeing when we look at somebody in the flesh."
“The sealer definitely creates a little bit of a misunderstanding to the eye," he added. "So, I would definitely encourage everyone to come to Miami and view it in person."
