Lehigh Football Nation

Every year, I love following the I-AA playoffs. I pick the games, and follow the teams until the champion is crowned on December 16th at Finley stadium in Chattanooga, TN. The 16 team playoff system is a good one, no doubt about it. 8 autobids, and 8 at-large bids makes for a perfect 4-game playoff and national champion. But the playoffs could be made even better. Here, in my not-so-humble estimation, are five ways to make the playoffs even better. 1). Get the Ivy and SWAC in there . I don't care what it takes - find a way to move mountains, cajole, and politic the SWAC and Ivy to participate in the playoffs. The Ivy and SWAC teams not only are some of the most important conferences in I-AA, they represent some of the largest, and biggest potential moneymaking, football teams in all of I-AA. Right now huge teams like Southern, Grambling St., Yale, and Harvard are considered I-AA, but aren't considered part of the I-AA playoffs. That has to change. When most people thi...

The Patriot League's football season is officially over in the I-AA playoffs this weekend. Lafayette and Colgate fell to a pair of great I-AA football teams in New Hampshire and Appalachian State. I had the honor of watching most of both of these games on TV this weekend. The Colgate game, unfortunately, was over reasonably early. When I saw New Hampshire KR David Boyle return a punt for a TD, I thought that Colgate may be in for a long day, but that obscured a pretty good defensive effort in the first quarter, stuffing the Wildcats on three out of four possessions. Unfortunately, despite freshman RB Jordan Scott's eye-popping 205 yard 3 TD performance, it wasn't enough. Colgate just didn't have the high-powered offense to stay with the hyper-charged offenses of Top 25 I-AA teams, and it showed. With Scott, Colgate has lots to look forward to next year, and Lehigh will have a tough time stopping them. For the second year in a row, Lafayette almost pulled off the u...