Lehigh Football Nation

One of the more interesting aspects of covering Lehigh football for so long is the fact that you end up seeing future NFL players on their rise to the big show. In fact, two players who squared off against the Mountain Hawks in particular have an excellent chance of being drafted on Day 2 or Day 3 of the NFL draft. But those not the only Lehigh football opponents that will be hoping to get a phone call from an NFL team this Friday or Saturday. Though few Patriot League, Ivy League or even CAA players enter their football programs with the NFL as their main goal, every football player that matriculates to these schools still harbor the dream of dominating their league and as a result get an opportunity to pursue their NFL dream. And it is true that NFL scouts come to FCS football games to look for talent that might have been overlooked.  Many years ago I was in Hofstra's press box, watching the Pride take on New Hampshire, with NFL scouts from the Colts and Saints there to...

During the football season, I've gotten in the writing habit of picking a "Sunday Word", and using it to describe what happened the previous week. I've been slack in getting this going this preseason, but the only possible word that can perfectly summarize this Lehigh football offseason is " pro ". The NCAA's big ad campaign for years now has been that "most athletes go 'pro' in something other than sports".  And for the great majority of Lehigh athletes, year-in and year-out, this is still true. But this offseason we've seen an unprecedented number of Lehigh athletes trying their hand at 'pro' ball - and Lehigh fans everywhere couldn't be more thrilled or excited.  There are a lot of "pro" adventures to follow for Lehigh fans right now, and it's damned exciting stuff.

It may be 21 days until the start of Lehigh's football season, but there's plenty of football on TV for Lehigh fans to get excited about tonight. For all the information you need on catching LB Billy Boyko, OG Will Rackley and WR Ryan Spadola this weekend, just check below the flip.

There have been many football offseasons when I've covered the possibility of one, or perhaps two, Patriot League players getting signed as free agents playing at the next level. This offseason, we might see something unprecedented. Four Lehigh football players - QB Mike Colvin, TE Jamel Haggins, LB Billy Boyko , and, of course, WR Ryan Spadola - all have an excellent chance at finding themselves in NFL training camps in the next couple of months. One - Spadola - is a strong candidate for being drafted this Saturday.

(Photo Credit: Bruce Lipsky/The Times-Union) Tonight on Fox, there's going to be a national preseason NFL broadcast pitting the Atlanta Falcons and Jacksonville Jaguars. In most years, you'd think the Nielsen rating in the Lehigh Valley for such a game would be miniscule. But with OL Will Rackley expected to start for his second preseason game in the young preseason - and a real threat to start for the Jaguars on opening day - you can bet there will be a lot of TV sets in the Lehigh Valley tuned into this game, focusing on the interior of Jacksonville's "O" line. (more)

(Photo Credit: Denise Sanchez/The Morning Call) Lehigh Athletic Director Joe Sterrett admitted this week, after the NFL lockout was finally lifted after a tense 136 days, that folks around the Lehigh athletic department were "living on a string" the past few weeks. With the NFL lockout very much still on a couple of weeks ago, Sterrett made the decision to go ahead and prepare for Eagles Training Camp this summer - just as they had for the last 15 years on South Mountain. It's that preparation - and the "relationships" with folks like Eagles head coach Andy Reid - which ultimately caused the Eagles to bring Eagles Training Camp to Bethlehem for the 16th straight year, even as other NFL teams announced they were modifying or cutting back on their training camps. (more)

This Monday, the Patriot League announced their 25th anniversary team , and there were some surprises - mostly on the positive side for Lehigh, who netted six spots on the all-time team. Below the flip, see who made it from Lehigh, and see what I think were the shocking omissions from the list. (more)

Earlier this week, I made the easy picks on my hypothetical ballot for the 25th anniversary all-Patriot League team - the defense . Now, for the challenging part. Today, I weigh in on my picks for the offense - and there's bound to be some crying and gnashing of teeth. But one selection on my version of the 25th anniversary team is bound to be completely uncontroversial. That's the selection of the legendary two-sport star for Holy Cross, RB/CB Gordie Lockbaum . (more)

(Photo Credit: Bruce Winter/The Express-Times ) "If you believe sites like NFL Draft Scout, OL Will Rackley - Lehigh's massive tackle out of Riverdale, Georgia - could be picked in QB John Skelton territory in the NFL draft," I crowed back in August . Nine months and a 2010 football season later, the future has changed for the best offensive lineman in Patriot League history. It's changed, um, a whole lot. From the junior blind side tackle who played hurt most of the season to the dominant senior lineman who earned the respect of everyone he faced - including Delaware head coach K.C. Keeler - Rackley is going to be heading to Radio City Music Hall on the first round of draft day. (more)

(Photo Credit: Andrew Meier/The Brown & White ) " OL Will Rackley didn’t have any shoe boxes full of letters from Georgia or Georgia Tech," an article from Will's hometown paper, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution , said. "There was one scholarship offer and another major opportunity," referring to a general offer from Tulane and a walk-on opportunity at Georgia Tech. Ask his mother, Wanda Rackley , though, and you'll get a different viewpoint as to which schools were important or not. "I went with him on two official visits," she told me. "The first visit was to Lafayette. He didn't have a good feeling there and he thought the football field was too small. "The next visit was to the school was Lehigh. He loved it right off, and I loved it too." (more)

(Photo Credit: Bruce Winter/The Express-Times ) Lehigh held its first-ever Pro Day at Lehigh this Thursday, and the not-exactly-well-kept secret around campus had senior OL Will Rackley , senior DB Jarard Cribbs and senior DB John Kennedy work out for a wide variety of NFL scouts. A full complement of local press was there to capture the day, where the star of the show, Rackley, did an individual workout to complement the partial workout he performed at the NFL Combine in February. (more)

Every year, at the conclusion of the football season, I wrap up last year by issuing my "Hawks of the Year" blog post.  It recognizes - based on my "weekly awards" during the course of the year - those Mountain Hawks who were the top Hawks on the field. Normally, I like to get this out before Lehigh's end-of-the-year banquet celebrating the football season, but I was unable to do so this year.  Fortunately, however, this means I'm able to add something to the presentation of my "awards" - some of the plaques, courtesy of senior CB/PR Jarard "Main Man" Cribbs , used in the banquet this past weekend, to highlight the winners. It seems like every year I make some exceptions, and this year is no different.  Like the Oscars, I hold in my hand an envelope which contains this year's Hawks of the year, but I'm going to add one more special award to the "Hawks of the Year" list this year.  If you've followed my blog over ...

For the first time since 2005, Lehigh had a player in college football's longest-running all-star game. OL Will Rackley 's trip to Orlando, Florida to compete in the Florida Citrus Bowl was the first since  TE Adam Bergen 's, who is currently playing football professionally with the Las Vegas Locomotives of the UFL. While it's an honor to simply be invited to the 85th meeting between the East and West collegiate all-stars, Rackley by all published accounts made a very positive impression in the game. Whispers continue that his name will be called in April in the 2010 NFL draft. I caught up with Will and asked him about his experience. See what he had to say below the flip. (more)

So you're sitting there reveling in the fact that Lehigh wrestling just knocked off the No. 1 program in the country last night .  You see that Lehigh women's basketball got back on it's winning ways this Wednesday with a dominant win over Colgate , while Lehigh's men's team slipped to 1-3 in the Patriot League with their big slip at Colgate . It's a big weekend in the Lehigh Valley, with both hoops squads facing off against "that school in Easton".  It's always a big deal to beat the Leopards in all sports, and a sweep this weekend would be particularly gratifying - especially on the men's side. In a weekend filled with "Rivalry"-themed exploits, though, there's another national showcase for Lehigh Athletics that should not be on the TV - or DVR.  It's the East-West Shrine Game in Orlando, Florida, and - for Lehigh fans - OL Will Rackley will be the focal point of the NFL Network broadcast at 4:00 PM. (more)

(Photo Credit: Matt Breitel/The Brown & White) It still is hard to comprehend that the football season is finally, truly, over. In case you're like me, you'll want to go over the final game recaps of Lehigh's fall in the second round of the playoffs. It was a year to remember on a whole lot of fronts. Lehigh's first Ivy league sweep since 2005. The Patriot League's first win in the FCS playoffs since 2003. The Mountain Hawks' first outright Patriot League title since 2001 - and their first playoff victory since that time, too. To top it off, the three teams they lost to - Villanova, New Hampshire, and Delaware of the CAA - are all still alive in the playoffs today, implying that they are three of the top eight (or nine) FCS programs in the nation. But today is a day to recap Lehigh's season-ending loss to Delaware this past Saturday, and below the flip are the recaps of the Mountain Hawks' final game in 2010. (more)

(Photo Credit: Luke Sahagian/The Brown & White ) It's been a weekend to remember for Lehigh football. First, "The Rivalry" win over our Leopard-print neighbors, 20-13, and the energy and excitement that the game always engenders. Then, the realization that Lehigh will be travelling to one of the storied programs of FCS in Northern Iowa to compete in the UNI-Dome in the first round of the FCS playoffs this weekend. To top it all off, Lehigh, head coach Andy Coen and a host of individual Mountain Hawks got recognized with post-season awards, prestigious award nominations, and a return to the FCS Top 20 for the first time since 2005. A whole lot of happy news and information follows below the flip. (more)

(Photo Credit: Ben Caffrey) Though it is "Rivalry Week", before we get to hating on our 2-8 rivals - you know, "that school in Easton" - it's worth taking a peek back at the win that got the Mountain Hawks the outright Patriot League Championship, and a host of other weekly awards: a Patriot League Special Teams Player of the Week award to senior PK Tom "Razza-Dazza" Randazza, and   Lehigh's first appearance in the national rankings at No. 22 in the Sports Network Top 25 , Any Given Saturday and FCS Coaches' Poll . Oh yeah - there's also the Lehigh Sports Magazine , too, where the Patriot League championship trophy makes a surprise cameo visit, too. "It's back where it belongs," head coach Andy Coen said. I'm not sure anything could really top, however, the picture here, grabbed from former football player OL Ben Caffrey . Hope you don't mind, Ben. (more)

After this week's big win over Colgate, the LFN Players of the Week awards go to: Offense: Senior OL Will "Got Your Back" Rackley, senior OL R.J. McNamara, junior OL Jim Liebler, senior OL Ricky Clerge, junior OL Troy McKenna (474 yards of total offense, 0 sacks allowed) Defense: Junior LB Mike Groome (12 tackles, 1 1/2 tackles for loss) and senior LB Al Pierce (5 tackles, 1 pass breakup, a crushing hit to set up the interception return for TD) Special Teams: Junior LB Tanner Rivas (Blocked FG attempt, 10 tackles, 1 tackle for loss) Underclassman: Sophomore QB Michael Colvin (41 yards rushing, 2 TDs) Congratulations to the winners!

(Photo Credit: Kevin Mingora/The Morning Call) Lehigh's close 21-17 victory over Fordham was well attended by members of the Lehigh Valley press - even if reporters the student newspaper were not there, as they were on pacing break - though no press came, or covered the game, from the Media Capital of the World. For a game that ended in victory, the coverage was surprisingly nuanced, which was partially a reflection of head coach Andy Coen 's assessment that Lehigh's offense missed several opportunities to put the game away. But that didn't totally take away from a crushing defensive performance, which stood up Fordham when it counted, over and over again. (more)

(Photo Credit: Donna Fisher / The Morning Call) Senior OL Will Rackley didn't look too happy in this picture in the Morning Call, taken during the 35-0 loss to Villanova at home this past Saturday. The consensus was that Villanova looked like a team that were a real chance to repeat as CAA champions and national champions, too.  However, the sting was softened somewhat by the fact that the matchup between Rackley and Villanova OL Ben Ijalana attracted not a few NFL scouts to Murray Goodman this weekend.   (more)