’26 Patriot League Football Preview: Colgate

Predicted Order of Finish: 4th

On paper, it looks like Colgate could be in the middle of a ground-up rebuild.  Personally, though, I think the Raiders a lot closer to the elite tier of Patriot League football than many may realize.

Sure, losing WR Treyvhon Saunders, who was last seen running routes for the NFL’s Houston Texans this week was a big loss.  Desptie the fact he was hurt part of the year, still had an impactful year with 700 yards receiving and 6 TDs with the threat of big-play explosion on every catch.

And sure, Colgate hasn’t been particularly active in the transfer portal,.

But despite losing Sanders to the NFL, there’s a lot of continuity on offense at Colgate that should serve them well.  

Start with veteran QB Jake Stearney (career: 4,711 yards passing, 39 TDs), WR Winston Moore (376 yards, 2 TDs, returning after injury last year) and RB Danny Shaben (525 all-purpose yards, 5 TDs).  That seems to indicate Colgate’s offense, who averaged 404 yards per game and 28.33 points per game, could very well take another step forward – a scary prospect, as the Raiders offense was formidable last year when everyone was healthy.  WR Matt Fogler (413 yards, 7 TDs) also emerged as a critical piece last year, and he will continue to develop and be one of Stearney’s important weapons.

And even though the portal wasn’t hit hard, the players that did come to Hamilton were strategic and have an excellent chance to become starters. 6’4, 305 lb OL Thomas Gearity (Central Florida) looks like he could slot right into the starting offensive line for the Raiders.

As impressive as Colgate’s offense was in 2025, the struggles came on defense, a  unit which gave up 31 points per game and 251 passing yards per game..  Having said that, LB Christian Magliacano (82 tackles, 9 TFL), LB Trooper Price (77 tackles, 4 ½ TFL), DL Adam DeSantis (30 tackles, 4 TFL) and DB Tymir Winn (51 tackles, 6 pass break-ups, 3 INTs) all return and would seem to be a great building point for an improving unit – assuming they stay healthy.

“I don’t care who we line up against, we prepare to win,” Trooper said at Patriot League Media Day.  “I don’t care if I’m lining up against the Jacksonville Jaguars.  I have the utmost confidence in my team, and being input focused, it’s not about the other team, it’s always about us.” 

PK Luke Voegler was near-automatic under 40 yards, though he missed 3 extra points last season.  P Tyler Fontenot averaged 39.36 yards per punt, while Colgate’s return game was a weak spot last year (giving up 2 punt return TDs and giving up nearly twice as much return yards as they gained).

There are a lot of key pieces returning, and others poised to take a big step forward. The key for this team and head coach Curt Fitzpatrick will be whether they can continue making strides with most of the same athletes.

Fearless Prediction: Colgate is no stranger to tough scheduling, but they have a tricky maneuver to start the year hosting Holy Cross in Week 2, travelling to FBS Central Michigan in Week 3, hosting Rival Cornell in Week 4, then playing FCS playoff teams on the road back-to-back (at Villanova, at Harvard).  If they can go to Mount Pleasant, Michigan with a 2-0 record (i.e. a 2-0 Conference record, that game at Villanova could loom as one of the best of the early Patriot League schedule.