Does Lehigh have enuf to win PL this year??/

Forum Forum Lehigh Sports Lehigh Football Does Lehigh have enuf to win PL this year??/

This topic contains 27 replies, has 1 voice, and was last updated by  lfnadmin 15 years, 7 months ago.

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  • #387
    RichH
    RichH
    Participant

    National mags picking us for middlle of the pack. Gate and Holy Cross favorites with LC and FU coming next.

    Are we better than last year? If so, is it enuf to getus back to the playoffs?

    Lets have some opinions ,other than mine and LFN’s. Its a long timeuntil camp opens.

    #390

    808Lehigh
    Participant

    i think it will come down to game day execution. I belive our libnemen can make up for the hole at RB…provided the passing game keeps the opposition from packing the box. Definse will keep us in games…I belive Gate lost alot on the line which for any RB makes yards difficult. It may tkae thhem lonegr to jell opening up some early season upset senarios. HC will be tough so a creative game plan will be crucial to keep them off the field. LC will struggle more than everyone thinks. Not sure the team is responding to Tavani as well as in past years. Bucknell will sneak up on a few people…GT no so much.

    #391

    carney2
    Participant

    Better than last year? Yes.

    Good enough to win the Patriot League? Why not?! The major factor is that the League is full of holes. Q&D team by team:

    BUCKNELL: A threat to improve, but they have oh so far to go.

    COLGATE: Always a threat. OL losses will be key. Defense needs to improve.

    FORDHAM: Virtually the same cast that won it all in 2007. What the hell happened last year?!! Lots of questions.

    GEORGETOWN: Can they even win one League game?

    HOLY CROSS: The favorite because of Randolph. Each passing year however, gets them closer to the empty cupboard that is their future.

    LAFAYETTE: A contender. The OL is getting threadbare – a no-no for a Tavani team. As 808 points out, there is a real question as to how well this group is now responding to Tavani after last year’s year-end flame out which was almost 100% his fault.

    The Playoffs? You almost better hope not. Any Patriot League team – let me repeat, ANY Patriot League team – is going to embarrass itself and the League in a Playoff game. Things are that bad.

    #392
    RichH
    RichH
    Participant

    Unfortunately, I think u are correct about playoffs at least for the next season. As every yr I will root for whoever wins, this yr I hope for us. The gap has widened quite a bit these last 2yrs.

    #394
    ngineer
    ngineer
    Participant

    Lehigh can definitely win the PL this year. So can three other schools. It will come down to mental focus (assuming good conditioning of all teams) which results in less mistakes. Mountain Hawks should be a better team than last year’s. Realistically, I would pick us second behind HC, and only because of Randolph. We come up with a scheme to contain him, then we can certainly do it. Colgate away is always tough, and of course the ‘pards, even at home, is always a close call. Most of these games can turn on a turnover. Focus. Cut the mistakes. Win.

    #396

    Lehigh74
    Participant

    Lehigh has as much talent as anyone in the league. In my opinion, the key to the season is the coaching. Coen is a great guy and is well liked by his players. However, during his tenure, Lehigh has lost many close games that they could have easily won. When you consistently lose close game after close game the blame has to be placed on the coaching staff. Only time will tell if Coen and his staff can figure out how to consistently win those close games.

    #397

    808Lehigh
    Participant

    LC – #73 Mike Butler, predicted RG starter, no longer on roster.

    This certainly puts a dent in the LC armor….something is going on…and it’s not good for LC fans.

    #399
    LUHawker
    LUHawker
    Participant

    I think Lehigh is the "show-me" team of the PL. The talent is there, the size is now there on the O-line and the offense seems to have come together based upon how the team finished last year and how it looked in the spring. The big question mark is: Can Lehigh win the close games. My prediction last year of a 7-4 record was predicated on Lehigh winning a couple more of the very tight games than in 2007. I was wrong. Lehigh experienced the same thing in 2008. That being said, the team appeared to "mature" and "find a way" to win against Lafayette. This "finding a way" was something that Lehigh teams in the late 90’s and early 00’s had, but not in more recent years. It is an intangible but a big one and I think this team may have found its mojo again after a long hiatus.

    That being said, until Lehigh demonstrates with W’s that it knows how to win, it’s difficult to be too confident. The press outlets all seem to think that this is Holy Cross’s year with Randolph returning, but I think Lehigh can find a way to defeat them this year at home. Colgate away is a concern. Still, Lehigh matched up much better to Villanova than did Colgate last year and that was JB Clark’s first real game. With more size on the line, I think we’ll be more competitive with Nova and I think even have a chance at an upset if they are looking past LU. Lehigh has a tough schedule this year, but with a favorable 7 home games, it could really be in the hunt for a PL title or an at-large bid.

    Early prediction: 8-3

    CCSU – W
    Villanova – L
    Princeton – W
    Harvard – L
    Yale – W
    Fordham – W
    Holy Cross – L
    Colgate – W
    GTown- W
    Bucknell – W
    Lafayette – W

    Best case scenario – 10-1
    Likely scenario – 8-3 or 7-4
    Worst case scenario – 5-6

    Playing well and defeating CCSU in the opener will be critical for setting the tone of the season. Looking for JB to make some statements early on.

    #400

    carney2
    Participant

    "LUHawker" wrote: I think Lehigh is the "show-me" team of the PL. The talent is there, the size is now there on the O-line and the offense seems to have come together based upon how the team finished last year and how it looked in the spring. The big question mark is: Can Lehigh win the close games. My prediction last year of a 7-4 record was predicated on Lehigh winning a couple more of the very tight games than in 2007. I was wrong. Lehigh experienced the same thing in 2008. That being said, the team appeared to "mature" and "find a way" to win against Lafayette. This "finding a way" was something that Lehigh teams in the late 90’s and early 00’s had, but not in more recent years. It is an intangible but a big one and I think this team may have found its mojo again after a long hiatus.

    That being said, until Lehigh demonstrates with W’s that it knows how to win, it’s difficult to be too confident. The press outlets all seem to think that this is Holy Cross’s year with Randolph returning, but I think Lehigh can find a way to defeat them this year at home. Colgate away is a concern. Still, Lehigh matched up much better to Villanova than did Colgate last year and that was JB Clark’s first real game. With more size on the line, I think we’ll be more competitive with Nova and I think even have a chance at an upset if they are looking past LU. Lehigh has a tough schedule this year, but with a favorable 7 home games, it could really be in the hunt for a PL title or an at-large bid.

    Early prediction: 8-3

    CCSU – W
    Villanova – L
    Princeton – W
    Harvard – L
    Yale – W
    Fordham – W
    Holy Cross – L
    Colgate – W
    GTown- W
    Bucknell – W
    Lafayette – W

    Best case scenario – 10-1
    Likely scenario – 8-3 or 7-4
    Worst case scenario – 5-6

    Playing well and defeating CCSU in the opener will be critical for setting the tone of the season. Looking for JB to make some statements early on.

    I don’t see the Squawks beating both Colgate and Lafayette, but then I also don’t see Holy Cross as an unclimbable mountain either.

    #401
    RichH
    RichH
    Participant

    Ok, I guess we’ll settle for beating you again :D

    Anyway, we can all hope. As of today we are all undefeated. The story this year is PL OOC record. Perhaps not more imortant than winning conference but I’m afraid ver relevant to PL survival

    #402

    carney2
    Participant

    "RichH" wrote: The story this year is PL OOC record. Perhaps not more important than winning conference but I’m afraid very relevant to PL survival

    I’m not sure that I understand. The Patriot League has not done particularly well over the years vs. OOC – with my alma mater really dragging anchor with its abysmal record vs. the Ivies. Still, the League struggles on. Why do you see survival on the line with this – and why now?

    #403
    LUHawker
    LUHawker
    Participant

    "carney2" wrote: [quote="LUHawker"]I think Lehigh is the "show-me" team of the PL. The talent is there, the size is now there on the O-line and the offense seems to have come together based upon how the team finished last year and how it looked in the spring. The big question mark is: Can Lehigh win the close games. My prediction last year of a 7-4 record was predicated on Lehigh winning a couple more of the very tight games than in 2007. I was wrong. Lehigh experienced the same thing in 2008. That being said, the team appeared to "mature" and "find a way" to win against Lafayette. This "finding a way" was something that Lehigh teams in the late 90’s and early 00’s had, but not in more recent years. It is an intangible but a big one and I think this team may have found its mojo again after a long hiatus.

    That being said, until Lehigh demonstrates with W’s that it knows how to win, it’s difficult to be too confident. The press outlets all seem to think that this is Holy Cross’s year with Randolph returning, but I think Lehigh can find a way to defeat them this year at home. Colgate away is a concern. Still, Lehigh matched up much better to Villanova than did Colgate last year and that was JB Clark’s first real game. With more size on the line, I think we’ll be more competitive with Nova and I think even have a chance at an upset if they are looking past LU. Lehigh has a tough schedule this year, but with a favorable 7 home games, it could really be in the hunt for a PL title or an at-large bid.

    Early prediction: 8-3

    CCSU – W
    Villanova – L
    Princeton – W
    Harvard – L
    Yale – W
    Fordham – W
    Holy Cross – L
    Colgate – W
    GTown- W
    Bucknell – W
    Lafayette – W

    Best case scenario – 10-1
    Likely scenario – 8-3 or 7-4
    Worst case scenario – 5-6

    Playing well and defeating CCSU in the opener will be critical for setting the tone of the season. Looking for JB to make some statements early on.

    I don’t see the Squawks beating both Colgate and Lafayette, but then I also don’t see Holy Cross as an unclimbable mountain either.[/quote]

    Lehigh lost by a single point to Colgate last year and I think Colgate won’t be as good this year as last due to significant losses on the O-line and Lehigh looks to be sharper on offense this year. As for Lafayette, who knows where LC will be come the 145th, but the view from South Mountain looks a bit unsettled still. Weaker defense than last year, serviceable, but not stellar QB situation and apparent issues on the O-line (plus did I mention the loss of Adair) suggests more trouble on College Hill than the Pard faithful is willing to see (at least at this point).

    Also, beating Colgate and Lafayette are mutually exclusive events, so I’m not sure why the suggestion of defeating both isn’t possible.

    As I mentioned, Lehigh is clearly a "show-me" story, so I’m by no means claiming PL dominance, but I do think my 8-3 or 7-4 likelihoods are very reasonable.

    #405
    RichH
    RichH
    Participant

    More relevant now IMHO because of expansion of scholarship leagues in Northeast, Ivy aid on top of Ivy reputation is further squeezing our pool of recruits. Economy will play some role but what I really dont know what, too many variables. A drastic drop has not been evident but I do see an eroding of our competitiveness OOC which may or may not accelerate in futureyrs. I would rather take a more pessimistic outlook and try our best thru whatever tools we have to avoid that. We cannot rely on other conferences deemphasizing their programs because of lack of $$$, to levelthe playing field. May happen but might not. I feel we must as a conference take necessary steps now not in 2011 to forestall any decline and improve our PL.

    Carney, lond winded way of saying NOW not later

    #406

    carney2
    Participant

    "RichH" wrote: Carney, long winded way of saying NOW not later

    "Now" would be great, but do you really see it happening near term? Consider:

    The Fordham challenge in 2009 was a real opportunity. The League and all of its members passed.

    I don’t see anyone feeling all that much better about themselves economically in 2010. My crystal ball says that the League slides right on by its "end of 2010" self imposed deadline, grants Fordham another year in limbo (while allowing them to play for the 2010 championship), and pushes this into 2011. Luckily for all, it can’t drag much beyond that.

    Do you see any way this doesn’t ultimately become a replay of the basketball scenario with each school allowed to go on its own merry way with scholarships, and only a few hazy AI type standards lighting the way? We then hold our collective breath while Georgetown and Holy Cross stumble around like drunks – as likely to wander out the door as to stay – and we listen to rumor after rumor of potential new League members.

    On that last point, I heard Carolyn Femovich interviewed on ESPN radio a week or so ago. She should be a politician. She was on for 20 minutes and added very little to what we already know. The only thing she said that I found interesting had to do with potential new members:

    There have been discussions with some schools (yes, that’s plural).
    Everything so far has been "exploratory" and has been handled at the presidential level.
    Everyone has pulled back at this time, citing the economy as the primary reason.

    Another source that I consider extremely trustworthy has stated that IF the League approves scholarships and when the economy breaks, look for Villanova to be the first potential new member. That runs agains logic and all I’ve heard in the past, but there it is for what it’s worth.

    #407

    Bill
    Participant

    Regarding Villanova –
    I’m not one to dispute reliable sources, but I can’t fathom why the PL would continue to encourage/allow even more affiliate members.
    Obviously, there’s no way that a school like Villanova would be joining the PL in any sports other than football….

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