GAME SIX, YALE AT LEHIGH – Cahill’s Former Team Travels to Bethlehem in Mirror Match of FCS Unbeatens

BETHLEHEM, PA – There is one game in all of FCS this week that features two undefeated teams, and it is taking place this Saturday at noon at Murray Goodman Stadium.

The fact that both the Lehigh Mountain Hawks (5-0, 2-0 Patriot) and Yale Bulldogs (2-0, 1-0 Ivy) are undefeated makes this weekend’s game one to watch, for sure, but it’s not the only narrative worth watching.

In fact, maybe the most important takeaway is that both teams might take a look at each others’ game films, and see themselves.

With five wins this season, Lehigh has established somewhat of an identity as a team with a powerful, skilled, physical rushing offense. The offensive identity mirrors that which Cahill himself helped build at Yale, where he coached under then (and current) head coach Tony Reno.

Under Cahill, Yale routinely turned out some of the best offenses in the Ivy League, and through five games, Lehigh is No, 4 nationally in rushing offense and 20th nationally in scoring offense, leading the Patriot League in both categories.

And it’s not really in doubt that Cahill still shares a good relationship with the Yale coaches, their staffs, their players, even calling head coach Tony Reno a “mentor”.

Yale’s starting quarterback is QB Dante Reno, son of head coach Tony. “I’ve known Dante since I was five,” Cahill said multiple times this week, showing how deep the ties run in this game.

Yale Reloads In Time For An FCS Playoff Future

In December, Yale and the rest of the Ivy League formalized what many FCS football fans, Ivy League players, coaches and fans have wanted for decades – they allowed their members to compete in the FCS playoffs. No more would an “abstain” be present on their Wikipedia pages – if invited, they will play. The winner of the Ivy League will play in this year’s FCS Playoffs.

Dante, who had just taken his redshirt freshman year at South Carolina and was sitting behind a Heisman candidate in QB LaNorris Sellers, had a decision to make as the transfer portal was about to close in June.

“Reno, who has four years of eligibility remaining, said that other than the obvious — reuniting with his father — the opportunity to compete in the FCS playoffs played a large role in his decision,” it was revealed in The New York Times. We can go win our league and then go play somewhere else and win somewhere else against, I don’t know, North Dakota State or Montana, those types of schools,” he told them.

There were a lot of other big selling points, too.

There was the fact that Yale was looking to replace 46 players lost to graduation or turnover last season. There’s never really an issue of finding football athletes that want to come to Yale, transfer or otherwise, but QB Grant Jordan‘s graduation and QB Brendan Fleharty’s transfer meant the position was wide open.

As the son of Yale’s head coach, he attended high school at Cheshire Academy. His family, obviously, is there in New Haven, and can watch him play every week. And there’s the little matter of playing for his father, who has already won four Ivy League Championships at Yale, and the second-most winningest coach in Yale football history.

“He kind of just asked me, ‘Are you sure?’ I was like, ‘Yeah, let’s do it,’” Dante said. “He’s like, ‘All right, let’s get it rolling and make it happen.’ He was happy.

Dante came to Yale in June, a rare Ivy League transfer with four years of eligibility remaining, having missed spring practice. The 6’2, 205 lb sophomore hasn’t taken over a game yet statistically (305 yards passing, 2 TDs, 1 INT), but it seems like only a matter of time that he does.

Last season, Lehigh beat Holy Cross in Worcester 13-10 in a thrilling, defensive struggle. While the 2024 Crusaders are not the same as the 2025 Crusaders, Yale opened with Holy Cross in the Yale Bowl, and throttled them from the opening drive, winning a dominating 28-10 win, only allowing a meaningless Holy Cross touchdown at the end to make it seem closer that it was.

In the first half, Reno found WR Nico Brown for a 37 yard strike to set up RB Josh Pitsenberger’s first touchdown on the day, and they never looked back, eventually shutting down Holy Cross’ offense nearly completely and pulling away to a 28-3 lead.

“I had Pitsenberger as a freshman,” Cahill said this week. “I don’t have the benefit of having him as a senior.”

Mirror Games Last Week

Adding to the idea of the “mirror match” could simply be looking more closely at Lehigh last week, who beat Penn 44-30, and Yale, who beat Cornell 41-24.

Their games that unfolded with an eerie similarity.

They were both close games throughout, and were virtual ties at halftime. Cornell and Yale were tied at 14 at half, Lehigh held a slender 16-14 lead versus Penn.

A big special teams play that contributed to the win? Check on both counts. Lehigh WR Geoffrey Jamiel took a fake field goal in for a score to take a second half lead, while DB Abu Kamara blocked a field goal at the end of the first half that would have given Cornell the lead, and instead given the Bulldogs great momentum.

Timely turnovers forced by the defense? Check. Lehigh DB Mekhai Smith came down with a critical interception that was turned into a touchdown for RB Luke Yoder, extending Lehigh’s lead to two scores, Meanwhile at Cornell, Kamara’s second interception and third forced turnover of the game – you read right, that’s not a typo – Yale was able to convert that to a pass from Reno to WR Jaxton Santiago, giving Yale a 27-14 lead.

Dominating the line of scrimmage, getting a big running day? Check, again. Yoder and RB Jaden Green would combine for 279 of Lehigh’s 539 total yards of offense on the day, Yoder himself ending up with 175 rushing yards. For Yale, Pitsenberger would roll up 142 yards against the Big Red and convert three touchdowns.

Probably most critical of all, both games were not determined until the fourth quarter, despite the double-digit win. Yoder’s 22 yard run with two minutes to play iced the deal for Lehigh; Kamara’s 65 yard pick six did the same for Yale, converting single digit victories into conclusive double-digit wins.

Critical Game That Could Shape The Top 25

In the past, Lehigh/Ivy games had more of the feel of exhibitions. Many national members of FCS Nation didn’t want to make the effort to watch or scout the Ivy League since there were no playoff implications. That’s no longer true, and as a result this game of unbeatens instantly is elevated.

A win by Yale isn’t just a nice-to-have anymore for the Bulldogs – it is a critical potential FCS Playoff resume-builder against the No. 10 team in the country. It could loom very large in November when the FCS Playoff committee is handing out at-large playoff berths.

A win by Lehigh isn’t just a win against an Ivy League team for Patriot League pride – it’s a win against a possible FCS Playoff team down the road, against an undefeated team, narrowing the number of unbeaten teams in all of FCS.

More than that, this game will undoubtedly be somewhat of a family affair. Though the competition will be fierce – and it’s an important game for both sides – there is a sort of brotherly vibe to the contest due to Cahill’s Yale roots and the similarities of both teams.

All eyes should be fixed on Bethlehem this Saturday.

YALE BULLDOGS (2-0, 1-0 Ivy) AT LEHIGH MOUNTAIN HAWKS (5-0. 2-0 Patriot)
WHERE: Murray Goodman Stadium/Bethlehem, PA, Saturday, October 4th, Noon
STREAMING: ESPN+
TV CREW: PxP – Marco Socci; Analyst – Mike Yadush
RADIO: BROADCAST (Fox Sports Lehigh Valley 94.7 FM/1230 AM; LVFoxSports.com):
RADIO CREW: PxP – Matt Kerr; Analysts – Tom Fallon, Connor Brown