Lehigh Football Nation

Game of tears. It really hasn't totally sunk in yet, but I can't think of a Lehigh loss that has devastated me more. Seriously. I don't think we were outplayed or outcoached. I think we lost because our team gave away 7 points on a messed-up punt attempt, and because senior QB Pat Davis on Lafayette managed to barely get the ball away and junior RB Jonathan Hurt somehow got open on a completely busted play. Contrary to what the legions of nay-sayers will be spouting in the off-season, no amount of coaching would have changed anything on those plays. There is no gameplan that could have fixed them. Before that play, I thought the story of the game was how Lehigh's defense did such a great job shutting Lafayette down, especially in the passing game. Senior CB Drew Nelson and junior CB Brannan Thomas were batting away ball after ball, forcing tons of third and fourth downs. It is with great pain that I say that I feel like Lehigh's season was lost on two broken plays, ...

If you're not going to the game, here's where you can score the broadcasts of "The Game": WFMZ-TV Channel 69 live (Lehigh Valley Area) Fox Sports Net Pittsburgh live (select markets) Fox College Sports Atlantic live DirecTV channel 657 live DISH Network channel 448 live Lehighsports.com streaming video live Oh yeah, I forgot. There are other games being played today. Let me go ahead and pick them, shall I? Patriot League: Albany at Fordham. I think the Rams will play better than last week, and will be eager to put this season behind them on a winning note. Fordham 27, Albany 3. Holy Cross at Bucknell. Senior RB Steve Silva's final game? He's going to make it one Crusader fans will never forget. HC 49, Bucknell 10. Georgetown at Colgate. If Georgetown's ends can get to Saraceno, it could be a really interesting day, but with a possible I-AA playoff berth, I think Colgate wins handily. Colgate 21, Gerogetown 0. I-AA Top 25: Maine at #1 New Hampshire...

One more picture from the Morning Call's collection, this one from my first Lehigh/Lafayette game in 1988 . Even though we lost, this game will always have a special place in my heart since it was my first. (By the way, I very much prefer today's players' uniforms to these from yesteryear.) I want to give a big shout out to eveyone who is linking to me here from the official Lehigh Alumni website . I wanted to tell you all who are floating over here that this blog is not an official part of the University website system and is not endorsed by Lehigh Athletics (as you'll no doubt figure out from all the grammatical and spelling errors), but it is the labor of love from a passionate (some might say rabid, others might say crazy) Lehigh football fan. I've been blogging about our beloved Mountain Hawk football squad since the 2003 season, and it's an honor to be recognized by the official Alumni website as the source for everything about "The Game". G...

ESPN.com is ranking the best college football rivalries on its website. Listed in their 21 rivalries is Lehigh/Lafayette (as it should be). The DOPES over at ESPN.com, however, not only have said that "The Game" started in 1897 (it didn't; it started in 1884), but they also have put in a picture of Louisiana-Lafayette representing "The Game". Rather than put in senior RB Eric Rath, or senior LB Maurice Bennett, they took some moronic stock footage from one of La-Laf's dopey meaningless I-A games and put it in the graphic representing "The Game", the most-played, the best rivalry in all of sports! I mean, how much Google time would it take to fact-check THAT? Five, maybe ten, seconds? Your two action items on the night: 1) Click here to Vote and make sure Lehigh/Lafayette is not LAST (where it currently resides). Suggested voting: 1) Lehigh/Lafayette; 2) Harvard/Yale; 3) Amherst/Williams; 4) Army/Navy; 5) the Egg Bowl. 2) Write these dopes at ESP...

God, I love this pic from the Morning Call from the classic days of the Lehigh/Lafayette rivalry. Fisher Field features in this picture, which dates the picture to the late 1920s or early 1930s. The Morning Call has a great photo gallery of Lehigh/Lafayette through the years - I'd strongly suggest you go check it out. (Incidentally, the outcome of the game in the picture was almost certainly a Lehigh loss - Lehigh's first win at Fisher Field didn't come until 1934.) I'm going to round up as much as the press that I can scrounge up for Lehigh/Lafayette this week, in anticipation of the onslaught of stories that we're bound to get tomorrow. Not sure if I'll get a press mash-up together tomorrow, but I'll try. Allentown Morning Call: The Name of the Father - But Little Else - For Sedale Threatt Easton Express-Times: Lehigh's Rath Has Personal Agenda Lehighsports.com: Gerran Walker: A Fast Learner

Remember when? November 20th, 2004? The 140th meeting? Were you huddled in Fisher Field's stands, watching this guy, Lafayette's junior QB Brad Maurer, create 232 yards of offense for the Leopards? Did you see LB Maurice Bennett punish Lehigh's offense with 11 tackles? Did you see LB Justin Stovall force two key fumbles, leading to Lafayette's 24-10 win? Did you stick around to see him collect his Lehigh/Lafayette MVP trophy? Did you stick around to see Lafayette carry their Patriot League championship trophy around Fisher field? Did you see Lafayette fans storm the field to celebrate? Did you have that sick feeling after the game that Lehigh's wonderful season was now laying in tatters? Did you have a restless night wondering if Lehigh will be selected to the I-AA playoffs as an at-large team? I did. And I bet everyone involved in the Lehigh program did as well. Well, it's nearly been a year since this game. The rest of the regular season has been played, an...

The picture above is of a Lehigh/Lafayette game at around the turn of the 19th century. The source year is not given (courtesy of Yale Digital Images, Walter Camp collection), but my guess would sometime between 1907 and 1911, a stretch where Lafayette won four of five games, including two shutouts. It's easy to focus on the modern rivalry, with Patriot League titles on the line and I-AA playoff berths, but it's worthwhile to go over the great history of the rivalry on the run-up to Saturday. Lehigh/Lafayette Through the Years In 1884, football coaches Theodore L. Welles of Lafayette and Richard Harding Davis of Lehigh organized the first-ever match between the two teams. Lehigh and Lafayette, both being young colleges playing the newfangled "sport" of American football, seemed a natural to play each other since their campuses were a mere 21 miles apart. Football back then scarcely resembled the game of today. Back then, it was more of a mixture of rugby and soccer, a...

I can't seem to get senior RB Eric "TNT" Rath out of these photos (this photo courtesy of the Morning Call)! The game balls were difficult to pass out this week, which is probably a good thing - it indicates that it was a very good team effort. Dear reader, I did however manage to honor those that are most deserving this week. On offense, I'm going to honor the entire "O" Line once again: sophomore T Jimmy Kehs, senior T Tom Toth, junior G Jim Petrucelli, sophomore G Mike Dodson, and junior C John Reese. With only 1 meaningless sack allowed, and 517 yards of total offense on a great offensive team effort, it's clear that the foundation of that is great "O" line play - and without one of their regulars to boot. Sophomore QB Sedale Threatt made some great progress from last week and is also getting a game ball for his 349 yards of total offense and 4 TDs. He hasn't earned the nickname yet, though he did earn this must-read ariticle about hi...

Every year, my personal tagline for this game is, "Harvard/Yale is that OTHER game; Lehigh/Lafayette is THE Game". It's not too early to start talking about the 141st meeting between Lehigh and Lafayette the most-played college football rivalry. Yeah, I know, it's not time to forget the great play of the Lehigh defensive line from last Saturday - 8 sacks, helping force 3 turnovers. But Lehigh/Lafayette week starts now, and there's an army of students, alumni, and fans that are solidifying their tailgating plans right now. To the uninformed, the dull, and the most of the national college football media circuit, many folks think that Harvard/Yale is to be considered "The Game". Ha! Lehigh/Lafayette has more on the line (especially this year), is more historic, and has a longer and richer history than that "other" game. Witness the statistics: Number of meetings: Harvard/Yale: 121 (through 2004) Lehigh/Lafayette: 140 (through 2004) Streak of conse...