Nov. 11, 2003

By Scott Rex
Athletic Communications Graduate Intern

In the fall of 2000, the Lafayette football program was led by a rookie head coach who was fielding a team that struggled to compete in the Patriot League. The Leopards finished Frank Tavani's first season as head coach 2-9. To nearly everyone outside the program, the situation seemed hopeless. When the 2001 campaign rolled around, it was second verse, same as the first - the Leopards limped to a 2-8 record.

Then an amazing thing happened.

A group of seniors that were sick of losing declared they would lose no more. A talented group of underclassmen, Tavani's first three recruiting classes, followed suit. The Leopards were one of the biggest success stories in America in 2002, posting a 7-5 record, the school's first winning season in 10 years.

The torch was passed to the current crop of Lafayette seniors, Tavani's initial recruiting class and arguably the most talented group to pass through the college in years. Expectations were high, and while not all those expectations were met, this year's senior class will be remembered as the class that firmly replanted Lafayette on the football map.

Today, 21 Leopards will be playing their final game at Fisher Field. Each has left his mark on the program in his own way and can leave Lafayette knowing that he has helped lay the foundation for a new era in Lafayette football.

"Their legacy is that they helped set the foundation and be the building blocks to help set this program back in the right direction," Tavani said. "This group set the tone for what needs to be done in the offseason and the perseverance and determination that is required inseason."

"We took over a waning program and went through two losing seasons and then turned that into a great winning season," said placekicker Mike Beatrice. "There are other rewards that we play for besides just wins and losses. We've gelled and played well together as a team and I think the way we are as a team both on and off the field is what this group is going to be remembered for."

If perseverance is a quality of the senior class, Beatrice is the poster child. One of the top-rated kickers in New Jersey as a high school senior, Beatrice suffered a devastating knee injury courtesy of a cheap shot in a high school all-star game the summer before arriving on College Hill. Beatrice spent an entire year rehabbing, then stood on the sidelines as Martin Brecht kept a stranglehood on the kicking position. Beatrice finally got his shot midway through this season, and the rest is history. He has converted 16-of-18 point-after attempts and 5-of-8 field goals, including a career-long 36-yarder in his first attempt on a muddy track against Georgetown.

"It brings a whole new meaning to practice and all the work that you put in in the offseason and during the summer finally seems like it has a purpose," Beatrice said of finally being able to contribute. "Instead of having a feeling of emptiness inside at the end of the season you have a great feeling of accomplishment."

Regardless of how the final three games of their careers play out, each of the seniors has every right to share Beatrice's feeling of accomplishment. To transform Lafayette from a cellar-dwelling program to a competitive one was an unenviable task that this group undertook without hesitation. An extraordinary accomplishment in itself, it is still not enough for the class as a whole.

"We talked about the fact that we were going to have one or two seasons that were going to be pretty tough so we knew what we were getting into," said quarterback Marko Glavic. "After the year we had last year there was not one guy who thought that we wouldn't win the league championship. Obviously that didn't work out and that's been disappointing."

"When I came here one of the things I thought we could do was turn the program around," said defensive tackle Pat Brown. "I knew we had a lot of good recruits coming in and I thought we could do it. We definitely have the talent to win a championship, unfortunately this year it just didn't work out that way."

Even as freshmen, this class knew big things were in its future.

"Not to take anything away from the classes ahead of us, but looking around as a freshman I knew the talent level in our class was higher, so I knew we definitely would do better," said defensive back and special teams ace Joe Goodwill. "I think it was a combination of a big recruiting effort by the coaching staff and just being opportunistic and a little lucky. They brought in a lot of guys that year and a lot of them were very talented."

That talent has translated into an impressive legacy for this year's seniors.

"I think people are going to remember that we came in and turned the program around," Brown said. "We went 2-8, 2-9 my first two years, but then 7-5 a year ago. This season has been a little disappointing, but I think we've gotten the program back on its feet."

"Our class was just a bunch of guys who loved to play the game," Glavic said. "We're a close-knit group and we love to play with each other. Everyone who stuck with it always played hard and worked their butts off for four years."

Just as this year's seniors accepted the challenge of rebuilding the Lafayette football program, the onus now falls on the current underclassmen to continue what has been established the last two seasons. The seniors believe they are leaving the program in good hands.

"Our class has a lot of good players in a lot of key positions, but this team has a lot of depth," Glavic said. "I'm sure other guys will step up next season. I have a lot of faith that they'll be able to get the job done and I wish them all the best."

"I definitely feel better about the program now than I did when I came in," Goodwill added. "I think Lafayette football is seen now as a competitive program that can potentially win every single game on the schedule, which you couldn't have said a couple of years ago."