Football: The football team kicks off its 2009 season with the Light Blue looking to exact revenge against Fordham, in what has become the traditional season opener for both teams. The Lions defense will hope to do a better job of containing Rams running back Xavier Martin (155 yards last year against Columbia) and quarterback John Skelton (285 yards in the air). Lions quarterback Millicent Olawale will be counted on to continue to produce the way he did at the end of last season, eventually garnering the team’s Most Valuable Offensive Player award. Kickoff is at 6 p.m. at Fordham, with play-by-play on both WKCR and the Columbia athletics website.

Men’s Soccer: After its first win of the season, over LIU, Columbia men’s soccer plays the first two games of a six-game homestand this weekend: tonight against St. Peter’s at 7, and Sunday at 2 against Boston University. The game against BU will be a particularly valuable test for the Lions, as they take on yet another ranked opponent (BU is ranked 14th in the country) in the run-up to playing a conference schedule that includes 4 teams either ranked or receiving votes in the top 25 poll.

Women’s Soccer: After comfortable wins over Manhattan and Iona, the women’s soccer team travels to Hofstra tonight and faces St. John’s at home on Sunday night. Like the men’s team, the St. John’s match will be a valuable test for the Lions, with the Red Storm one of the top teams in the region. The team also plays Central Connecticut State next Tuesday before beginning its Ivy League schedule on the 25th against Cornell.

Cross Country: While neither team will race this weekend, both the men’s and women’s teams are ranked higher than any other Ivy league school in the latest regional polls, and the men’s team also received votes in the national rankings.

Volleyball: Winning three of its five matches last week gives the volleyball team some momentum going into yet another tournament, where this time it faces Lehigh, Fairleigh Dickinson, and Bryant, tonight and tomorrow in the Levien Gym. The team begins its Ivy League schedule next weekend at Cornell. Also, first-year Meghan Gaughn won both Ivy League rookie and player of the week awards.

Field Hockey: A 3-2 victory over Quinnipiac on Sunday gave the field hockey team its first win of the season, and the team starts Ivy League play this weekend, 2 p.m. at home to Brown.

Golf: The men’s golf team starts its fall season at the Michigan State Spartan Classic in Michigan, while the women’s team plays its second tournament of the year (after finishing 3rd of 11 at Bucknell’s tournament) in the Ron Moore Intercollegiate Women’s Tournament in Colorado.

Tennis: The men’s tennis team plays this weekend in the Princeton Invitational in (you guessed it) Princeton, New Jersey.