GAME TEN, COLGATE AT LEHIGH – Just Like the Good Old Days, Lehigh and Colgate Meet With the Patriot League Title Race at Stake

BETHLEHEM, PA – It’s been a while since a Lehigh/Colgate matchup has carried this much significance in the Patriot League title race.

The Lehigh Mountain Hawks (7-2, 5-1 Patriot) are technically in the driver’s seat for the Patriot League title and FCS Playoffs autobid. Beat Colgate, beat Richmond and beat Lafayette, Lehigh will be 10-2 and headed back to the postseason as back-to-back-to-back champs.

But the Colgate Raiders’ (5-4, 4-2 Patriot) path to a title and possibly the autobid also couldn’t be clearer. Beat Lehigh, beat Lafayette and beat Bucknell, Colgate would be 8-4 and would be no worse than in a tie for the Patriot League Championship, with the FCS Playoff bid also a real possibility.

Both head coaches, Rich Nagy and Curt Fitzpatrick, are aware of the stakes in this critical playoff-like game.

“Playing a team like Lehigh on the road is a challenge for us and we’re excited for it,” Fitzpartick said. “They’re a great team. It’s going to take our best and we’ve got to be willing to give our best.”

“They play hard, they play physical,” Nagy said of Colgate’s defense this week. “They run to get to the football, and at the same point in time, our guys are excited about that challenge. They’re excited to play that defense.”

Two Teams Ending Losing Streaks

Both title contenders share something in common – they are both fresh off of multi-game losing streaks.

Colgate opened the season with four wins in its first five games, their only loss during that stretch being a 13–10 setback at FBS Central Michigan. In a thrilling 28–21 road victory over nationall-ranked Villanova, Colgate scored 14 unanswered second-half points and relied on a ferocious defensive effort down the stretch, with a crucial late sack of Villanova QB Pat McQuaide by LB Jordan Edgecomb to finish off the comeback victory.

Colgate’s defense, led by LB Trooper Price (84 tackes, 9 tackes for loss/4 sacks), smothered their opponents the beginning of the season. The Raiders are only allowing 13.89 points per game and just under 105 yards rushing per game.

Shortly after that statement win, however, Colgate dropped three straight games to Harvard, Georgetown and Richmond. The loss to top-ranked Harvard was a particularly bitter pill to swallow, as the Raiders fell on a last-play Hail mary by Harvard QB Charlie Smith. His 44 yard heave was caught at the 6 and lateraled to RB Nathan Bailey, who sprinted to the pylon for the improbable walk-off touchdown.

The defeat seemed to linger: over those three losses, including the Harvard game, Colgate scored just 40 points, including a six-point performance in a 13–6 loss at Richmond. The league losses to Richmond and Georgetown were rough, with the Hoyas coming from behind to score 27 points in their 27-17 win.

Desperately needing to get right, the Raiders responded emphatically last Saturday, erupting on offense and shutting out William & Mary, 37–0. It was Colgate’s first shutout since 2019, and the defense limited the Tribe to just 142 total yards. The Raiders, meanwhile, piled up 519 yards of offense, their highest total of the season.

QB Jake Stearney threw three touchdown passes, two to first-year WR Peyton Way, who finished with 10 catches for 141 yards. Way’s performance earned him Patriot League Rookie of the Week honors. Colgate also got a productive day on the ground, rushing for 262 yards as a team.

Lehigh’s Own Course Correction

The Mountain Hawks know something about reversing a losing streak, too.

After opening the season 6–0 and climbing to the top of the Patriot League standings, Lehigh suffered back-to-back losses to Cornell and Villanova – two of the teams Colgate beat during their four game win streak.

The 48–38 shootout loss at Cornell mirrored Colgate’s loss to Georgetown, defeated through an offensive explosion against Lehigh’s top-rated defense at the time. And Lehigh’s 24–18 defeat against the Wildcats in the much-anticipated rematch of last year’s FCS playoff game also was a frustrating loss in the final seconds – Villanova DB Garett Rogan sacked QB Derek Morgan with seven seconds left at the Wildcat 2 yard line to cement their victory.

Like Colgate, Lehigh needed to get back on track last Saturday. But unlike the Raiders’ comfortable win, the Mountain Hawks had to survive a dramatic finish against Bucknell. Lehigh held on for a 31–30 victory after the Bison attempted a two-point conversion with two seconds remaining. DB Luke Denny broke up the pass from QB Emmett Dowling, preserving the victory and keeping Lehigh’s Patriot League championship hopes firmly in its own hands.

The win also provided another milestone for RB Luke Yoder, who became Lehigh’s all-time leading rusher, passing Dom Bragalone. Yoder finished with 183 rushing yards and two touchdowns, continuing a season in which he has established himself as one of the most productive running backs in the FCS.

One of the biggest matchups fans will be watching is Yoder and the Lehigh rushing offense against Colgate’s stout rushing defense. Aside from Yoder, who already has 1,282 yards rushing on the season, the Mountain Hawks are averaging 248 yards rushing per game overall.

Getting Healthy at the Right Time?

The two teams now meet with considerably more at stake than simply getting back into the win column. Colgate needs a victory to realistically keep their title (and FCS Playoff) hopes alive, while Lehigh can keep control of their own title and playoff destiny with a win at home versus the Raiders.

Both teams have been navigating injury concerns the last few weeks.

Lehigh QB Hayden Johnson left a game in September with a leg injury and is presumed out for the season. More recently, first-year QB Patrick Coan came on in relief of banged-up QB Derek Morgan against Bucknell and connected on several key passes, including a beautiful touchdown throw to WR Matt D’Avino. After the game, head coach Rich Nagy declined to commit to either quarterback as the starter against Colgate, and Lehigh’s game notes list both as potential starters. It’s possible the Mountain Hawks could use both quarterbacks again.

Colgate has its own question mark at wide receiver. WR Matt Fogler missed last week’s 37–0 victory over William & Mary, but he’s listed as a starter in the Raiders’ game notes for Saturday. That’s an encouraging sign, although it doesn’t necessarily guarantee he’ll play. His return would be significant: Fogler has 52 receptions for 843 yards and six touchdowns this season.

Lehigh is also monitoring its defensive personnel. Injured DB Nick Peltekian remains absent from the depth chart, although DE Andrew Sharga has returned to the lineup recently, providing a boost to the defensive front. Colgate, meanwhile, has gotten QB Jake Stearney back after he missed time earlier in the season. Stearney returned against William & Mary and delivered arguably his best performance of the year, throwing three touchdown passes in the shutout victory.

The biggest questions heading into Saturday may be which Lehigh quarterback gets the start — and whether Fogler is available to give Stearney another weapon in the passing game.

The Good Old Days

For much of the Patriot League’s history, Lehigh and Colgate were two of the programs most often competing for conference supremacy. The rivalry has produced plenty of memorable games, and the two schools have combined for 24 Patriot League football championships. There was a time when a Lehigh-Colgate matchup late in the season almost routinely carried significant implications for the league title and the automatic bid to the FCS Playoffs.

In 2001, Lehigh and Colgate entered their contest undefeated in league play, and the Mountain Hawks’ trip to Hamilton depended on QB Luke Cianello, playing in his second career start. After falling behind aganist the Raiders, WR Josh Snyder took over, catching 11 passes for 209 yards and a touchdown, while RB Jermaine Pugh would score a late touchdown and the Mountain Hawks would hold on for a 25-22 victory.

There was 2003, when a 6-2 Lehigh team was 4-0 in Patriot League play and went up to Hamilton to face off against one of the best Colgate teams ever. Lehigh jumped to a 10-0 lead and gave the Raiders a scare, but QB Chris Brown rallioed with a late touchdown after a Mountain Hawk turnover and held on for the win. That season, Colgate would make it all the way to the I-AA National Championship game.

Then there was 2012, when an undefeated Lehigh team welcomed Colgate to Murray Goodman and a de facto championship game on the line. After jumping out to a 24-14 lead, the Raiders stuck to their gameplan and ground out two touchdowns behind the leadership of QB Gavin McCarney to secure a 28-24 win. The Raiders won the Patriot League, and Lehigh’s only loss that season would come in that game.

Even though this season’s “Power of 10” has featured the addition of Villanova and William & Mary to the Patriot League, it’s an old-school matchup this week that has an old-time rivalry feel of conference games past. This Saturday, both teams will be hoping the write a new chapter in their favor.

COLGATE RAIDERS (5-4, 4-2 PL) AT LEHIGH MOUNTAIN HAWKS (7-2, 5-1 PL)
Goodman Stadium/Bethlehem, PA, Noon
|LIVE STATS
BROADCAST (ESPN+): PxP – Marco Socci; Analyst – Mike Yadush
RADIO BROADCAST (Lehigh – Fox Sports Lehigh Valley): PxP – Matt Kerr; Analyst – Matt Markus; Sideline – Connor Brown
SERIES HISTORY: Colgate and Lehigh meet for the 63rd time in the series, with the Raiders holding a 32-28-2 edge.