Lehigh Football Nation

(Photo Credit: Kevin Mingora /Morning Call) "You didn't cry or anything when Lehigh lost this weekend, did you?" That was the greeting I got when I came back into the office (from another Lehigh football fan, interestingly) this Monday, as if he knew that I would be taking the loss this weekend especially hard. I did not cry.  But I did hurt.  And I know not a few men that I respect that I know cried on Saturday. This is probably not a revelation to most people who know me through this writing vehicle or in person, but yes, I took the loss hard. Believe me, if you saw my wife and son recently, they'd probably tell you that I was not a pleasant person to be in the car with on Saturday.  Or Sunday.  Or Monday. The truth is, I take every loss hard, and losses to what is the biggest rival in football, Lafayette, hurt especially hard.  It is an occupational hazard of caring too much about a sports team. To me, losses to Lafayette are supposed to suck....

(Photo Credit: Bob Cornell /Colgate Sports Information via the Morning Call ) There will be an entire week to get ready for the 149th meeting between Lehigh and a certain school from Easton. But it's worth taking a tiny peek back at this weekend's game - just a tiny one - to see how far this team has come. This Lehigh team has gone through a multitude of challenges this season, on the field and off. And it's a true "achievement", no matter what happens this Saturday, that this team is in a position to win the Patriot League the final weekend of the year.

"At least we have him returning." That's what Lehigh fans have been able to say to themselves each offseason for the last five years. Some first-team all-Patriot League offensive weapon.  Some top Patriot League defensive leader.  Something... measurable.  " We lose a lot, but at least we have him." When Lehigh saw record-breaking  QB Chris Lum lost to graduation, the Nation turned to QB Michael Colvin and  WR Ryan Spadola to keep the offensive machine humming. During the past three season, Mountain Hawk fans have grown accustomed to head coach Andy Coen and offensive coordinator Dave Cecchini' s abilities to mold new players and plug them in, not missing a beat. But they've never had to replace this much.  Last season's top rushers are gone.  The receiver who's noe made the 53 man roster of the Jets.  The linchpin of the offense - the quarterback - gone. As we finally enter the 2013 Mountain Hawk football season, the biggest qu...

66 days.  Really? Unbelievably, we cross the threshold to 66 days until the beginning of the 2013 football season. At no. 66, we find  senior OL Matt Lippincott  as our highlighted Lehigh football athlete in today's countdown.

Winning doesn't change everything.  But it changes a lot. That's something you don't have to say too loudly to any Georgetown Hoya fan over the last few years. While nobody will be confusing Georgetown for Maryland, Navy, Duke or even Delaware anytime soon, the Hoyas, finally have made headway in carving their niche in Washington, DC. Ten years ago, or even five years ago, people might have laughed if you told them to "watch out for Georgetown".  That speaks more to their tough overall history in the Patriot League than anything else. But this year, building off two years of winning records and near-misses for the Patriot League championship, there is no more laughter.  They've simply won too many games to not be wary of the Hoyas.

(Photo Credit: Lehigh Valley Live) Junior OL Matt Lippincott took some time out from his busy schedule this week to share with me his thoughts on the end of camp and the 2012 season. His simple statement of "Sorry I didn't get back to you sooner, I was getting my classes set up," somehow, speaks volumes about FCS football at this level, and where the priorites lie, as they should.

(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: Dave Wallis/The Forum) Let's say you're a Lehigh player right now. Today, you learned that your star receiver, junior WR Ryan Spadola , was suspended by the NCAA by making an offensive tweet. To call it a distraction would be the understatement of the year . No Lehigh team has ever gone through this.  Heck, no team has ever gone through this.  No player has been suspended by the NCAA for tweeting something. So the question is to you: how do you respond?