Yes, there is a good reason why today's Water Cooler is not only late, but without its usual water-cooler graphic. That's because today I'm announcing my new LFN Store.What is the purpose of the LFN Store? It's to show your support for this blog and show that you are a fan of Lehigh football. It supplies to you, the hardcore Lehigh football fan, products that you can buy to show the world that you're a fan. There are a bunch of items there: all sorts of shirts (many two-sided), mugs, and other great stuff.
It's not only for that: a (very big) portion of the proceeds from all the sales of items from this store will benefit Lehigh athletics through a donation made by myself. At the end of the year, I will make a donation to Lehigh athletics based on the proceeds from this store (even if it's only pennies) and I will publicly post the information here.
I'm not in this to get rich. I'm in this to support Lehigh athletics and make some cool stuff for folks to buy. I hope you enjoy the stuff, and please drop me a line if you like the stuff, don't like the stuff, or if there's something you want that is missing.
Last Minute Lehigh/Bucknell Information
It still should be a great day for tomorrow's 1PM start, so by all means don't forget those Bison burgers. It's Alumni weekend, so it should be a fantastic turnout. I will be looking forward to seeing the highlights on the internet video broadcast, since I will be covering the Harvard/Princeton game for I-AA.org this weekend. I've got quite a bit of football to watch: Harvard/Princeton, Holy Cross/Lafayette on tape, and Bucknell/Lehigh on the replay! (I may even try to catch the last quarter on ESPN Radio 1230/1320 if I'm lucky.)
For those who can't make it, it will be televised in the Lehigh Valley on Service Electric 2 and replayed on Fox College Sports Atlantic this Tuesday at 8PM.
Of course, Saturday night I'll be adding my thoughts on the game, but I'll (obviously) not be blogging live.
Friday Water Cooler Picks: Patriot League, Week 8
Holy Cross over Lafayette. I ask you: Why pick Lafayette? They have struggled on offense and defense, and have lost four straight. Most people think somehow the Leopards will right the ship this week. I think that is disrespecting Holy Cross, who at 5-2 should have earned our respect by now. I think Holy Cross makes a statement here. Inquisition 35, Roadkill 27.
Colgate over Fordham. If Fordham can keep this close in the first half, I think the Rams could make a game of this. But if Colgate goes up by a couple of scores, I don't have faith that Fordham can play catch-up. I think Colgate gets the win here, and moves on. Gatekeepers 21, Also-Rams 7.
Friday Water Cooler Picks: I-AA Top 25, Week 8
Georgia Southern over #1 Appalachian State. Yep, I'm going to pick the upset here. I just get this funny feeling that the Eagles with their newly-discovered passing attack are going to do some damage against hated Appalachian State's defense this week. I think I'm mainly going with it since the Eagles have to win to have folks start talking about playoffs and SoCon championships, while the Mountaineers could afford a loss here on the road. The team that wants and needs it more wins. GSU 24, ASU 19.
#2 Montana over Weber State. Montana rolls. Griz 39, Kitties 13.
#3 Illinois State over Western Illinois. I love these Leathernecks, but these Redbirds should have enough to put them away as well. ISU 38, WIU 28.
#13 Northern Iowa over #4 Youngstown State. This one is simple; The Panthers have won five straight over the Penguins, and I think coach Farley will have the Panthers ready to roll over their hated rivals this week - and steady themselves for another run at the I-AA playoffs. Panthers must-win, and do. Cats 22, Icemen 20.
South Dakota State over #5 Cal Poly. Playing another hunch. The Jacks have really come on after losing some early, tough games, and this should be a defensive struggle where the kicking game comes into play. Advantage: K Parker Douglass and South Dakota State. Bugs 12, Mr. Ed 10.
I-A Minnesota over #6 North Dakota State. Bison, I'm proud of ya, and if you somehow can knock off Minnesota I'll vote you #1 next week. However, I ain't picking you this week. Golden Gophers 41, Blue Bison 10.
#7 UMass over Rhode Island. For Heaven's sake, take the points. This is a league game, right? ZooMass 30, Rhody 18.
#8 New Hampshire over Northeastern. Unlike ZooMass, the Wildcats are itching to make a statement, and they will - emphatically - versus the poor Huskies. UNH 56, N'Eastern 0.
#9 James Madison over William & Mary. The perfect game for the Dukes following their huge win over New Hampshire. A "letdown" game against a struggling team that will test them, but not THAT much. Hairy Dukes 35, Featherless Tribe 18.
#10 Richmond over Delaware. The Spiders just seem to be too much for a Blue Hen team that has more questions they need to answer week to week. Spidey 38, Super-Cluck 10.
#11 Furman over Chattanooga. You'd think Furman would right the ship here, or they are in some serious trouble. Paladins 24, Mocs 16.
#12 Hampton over South Carolina State. The Bulldogs, once again, endure yet another loss to Hampton cementing their exclusion from the playoffs. Every year, plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose. French-Speaking MEAC Champs 44, Southern-Fried Bulldogs 21.
#14 Southern Illinois over Western Kentucky. This one feels like another "statement game" for the Salukis after a tough loss to the Redbirds last week. Hard to picture them losing here. Sa-Luckies 38, Hill-Floppers 10.
#19 Princeton over #15 Harvard. The game I'll be going to pits the two best teams in the Ivy this year in what could be considered the game of the year. It will be fascinating to figure out if Princeton's smothering defense can stop the Harvard offensive machine. My bet? At home, Princeton guts out a tough, Ivy title winning, game here that goes to the wire. Princeton 23, Harvard 20.
#16 Eastern Illinois over Murray State. This one is easy; the Racers won't be in the same ballpark. I'm picking the team who didn't lose to Samford 33-7. Panthers 49, Horsies 6.
#17 Tennessee-Martin over Samford. Speaking of Samford.... Carrier Pigeons 38, Bulldogs 10.
#18 UC-Davis over Southern Utah. A harder game to pick than you might realize, but I think the Aggies take this simply because they're playing at home. Aggies 20, Chunderbirds 17.
#20 Maine over Hofstra. The Black Bears are on quite a roll; the only question is can they keep it going. Finally able to spend a week at home with back-to-back home games, I think they do resoundingly. Man-Eating Killing Machines 28, Wounded Pride 7.
#21 Portland State over Eastern Washington. A no-brainer. PSU 29, EWU 7.
Drake over #22 San Diego. A win here by Drake would do wonders in maintaing my faith in the Big Guy Up Above. Seriously, isn't all of I-AA Nation hoping to see coach Harbaugh and the legions of San Diego fans shut up for good? Iowa Dogs 27, Beach Bums 21.
Arkansas-Pine Bluff over Alabama A&M. I hope everybody realizes that if AAMU and Jackson State keep winning, there's a decent chance that one of those two teams may be gunning for a spot in the I-AA playoffs - and have a better-than-decent shot at it. AAMU, though, will have their hands full on the road against a resurgent Golden Lion team, and end some of that talk right here. Golden Lions 34, Not-So-Golden Puppies 14.
Press Roundup
Allentown Morning Call:
Threatt, Lehigh Try To Regain Form
Upshot: Bucknell coach Tim Landis remembered how impressive Threatt was against his team last year, but said, "Everybody knows about him now. He's not going to fly under the radar. People will try to stop him, knowing he's the focal point of that offense."
Easton Express-Times:
New-Look Hawks May Use Old Tricks
Upshot: "I feel real good about our team," Petruccelli said. "We've got a ton of talent on both sides of the ball. We have the coaches and the players to get the wins. We just need to be more consistent. We're making some mistakes in key situations that have really hurt us."
Brown & White:
Big Win On the Line Against 4-3 Bison
Upshot: “Success is always a by-product of how you prepare and play,” Coen said. “We had had success against Bucknell because our players have done a good job of executing their assignments. This execution will be ever more important playing against an option offense. Our defense must be extremely disciplined.” “If we remain well-disciplined, we should be successful,” [senior LB Matt] Mohler said.
Daily Item
Bison Get Defensive
Upshot: "The defense was spectacular today [against Georgetown]," said coach Tim Landis. "They really carried the way and kept Georgetown pinned back all day. Phil Azarik had another great day punting, and we had the field position edge the whole way. [QB] Marcello [Trigg] had two or three terrific third-down passes," said Landis. "It's fun to watch him get better. We've had our share of injuries, no question, but our depth is better and young guys like Marcello are really stepping up."
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