Lehigh Football Nation

(Photo Credit: Express-Times) For their end-of-the-season awards, the Patriot League released their postseason all-Patriot League teams for both academics and athletics , and unsurprisingly, Lehigh athletes put plenty of athletes on both lists. Seven Lehigh athletes made the first team offense and defense: senior WR Ryan Spadola, senior OL Mike Vuono made it on offense, and senior DT Sajjad Chagani, senior DE Tom Bianchi, senior LB Billy Boyko, senior CB Gabe Johnson and senior FS Billy O'Brien cracked the first team. Senior QB Mike Colvin, senior LB Sam Loughery, junior LB Nigel Muhammad and sophomore OL Ned Daryoush all made the Patriot League second team, while Spadola and senior RB Zach Barket made the more important list: the Patriot League All-Academic team. More academic awards and athletic awards await, but congratulations on these awesome Lehigh athletes for what they've accomplished.

(Photo Credit: Ed Koskey, Jr./ Special to the Morning Call ) When you study "The Rivalry" as long as I have, the overall trends of Lehigh students, Lafayette students, the football players, and the citizens of Bethlehem and Easton break apart, and the individual stories from each specific instance come to the fore.  Specific "game to end all games", detailed game riots,  freezing games, or unusually hot games get broken out, sometimes breaking from the normal expectations of The Rivalry in general.  The Rivalry endures, and there are similar stories of seasons being made, or broken, or riots, or order, but occasionally games do have variation.  Not every Rivalry game is the same.. The story of the 148th meeting of the most-played rivalry in all of college football is probably more different than anyone might have ever imagined before the season. For Lafayette, the story is one of unmet expectations, unbelievable tragedy, and, ultimately, they hope, redempt...

(Photo Credit: Kevin Mingora/The Morning Call) I love the picture of this sack by senior DE Anthony Verderame on Bucknell QB Brandon Wesley - a huge sack during the game. It's a part of the Morning Call's pictorial of the Bucknell game this past weekend by photographer Kevin Mingora , who covers all of Lehigh's home games. It may seem hard to believe, but there was a time once when finding photos of games online was an arduous task.  Now, between Mr. Mingora's gallery, the Brown & White gallery , and the Facebook gallery from Lehigh Athletics , there are tons to choose from every week. It's a pretty good time to be a Lehigh Blogger.  (Oh yeah, and 8-0 is pretty nice, too.)

During Lehigh's media day, the starting defensive line was eager to show off their offseason weight work - to show how different they were, even from last year. That is a goal that senior NG Sajjad Chagani , told me at Patriot League media day this year. "My goal this year is to be different," he said.  "When you're on the field, you want to be different than everybody else.  I can't really explain it." I quickly told him that he perhaps shouldn't want to be too different - after all, the Mountain Hawks were ranked 19th in total defense in 2011, and sitting just behind Bucknell in total defense in the Patriot League. In 2012, the Mountain Hawks will be reliant on their defense to keep the center together while senior QB Michael Colvin gets his sea legs as Lehigh's opening-day starter. Keeping that defense together starts with the "different" guys up front.

(Photo Credit: Lehigh Athletics) Preseason practice is full underway for the 2012 version of the Lehigh Mountain Hawks. It's the time when players show off all the good work they did in the offseason. But most importantly, it's when good teams become better teams - and that requires a grueling football schedule of two-a-days, film study, and weight training. Lehigh Media Day provided a break from all of that - a positive time for the players to cut loose and get a well-deserved break.

(Photo Credit: Kevin Mingora/The Morning Call ) Head coach Andy Coen said after the Brown/White game had you called him up last night, he would have wanted a result like the 43-43 score that he (and Lehigh Nation) got on this picture-perfect morning for spring football at Murray Goodman stadium. After the defense dominated the proceedings early, the offense, led by team captain senior QB Mike Colvin , rebounded from three early picks to connect for a touchdown to set up the tie, and coach Coen saw the White offense finally take from the Brown defense, sending all the Lehigh folks home fairly happy but with an eye on all of the work that still needs to be done.