April 17, 2003
EASTON, Pa. (www.lafayette.edu) - Seven home contests and two trips to the New England area highlight the 2003 Lafayette football schedule. The Leopards open their 122nd season by hosting three of their first four games, starting with Marist on Sept. 6 in a non-league contest at legendary Fisher Field.
Season ticket packages, which include the seven home contests and the Lafayette-Lehigh game at Goodman Stadium, are on sale now for just $65 for adults and $45 for seniors and youth ages 13 and under. Tickets can be ordered by email (tickets@lafayette.edu), through the College's full-service online ticket operation, by calling the ticket office at (610) 330-5471 or by visiting the ticket office in Kirby Sports Center.
"Everyone involved with our program is excited to be playing seven home contests," said Frank Tavani, who enters his fourth season as Lafayette's head football coach. "We're also proud to continue our tradition of playing Ivy League opponents. Facing Princeton, Harvard and Columbia this season - three institutions which have academic qualities and admissions standards similar to Lafayette - is important to us."
This is Lafayette's first schedule to include seven home contests since 1915. The Leopards went 8-3 that season under coach Wilmer Crowell, including four shutout victories and a 35-6 win over Lehigh.
The Leopards' Sept. 6 opener features Marist of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. The Red Foxes were 7-4 in 2002, finishing second in the MAAC at 5-3. After facing Marist in the season opener, the Leopards open Patriot League play by traveling to Towson for the first of just four regular-season road contests.
Following a bye week, Lafayette returns home to Fisher Field to host three straight contests starting with Princeton on Sept. 27. Georgetown visits Easton on Oct. 4 for RCN Youth Day and the Leopards conclude the three-game home stand with Columbia on Oct. 11 for Family Weekend.
The Leopards make their first journey to Massachusetts for an Oct. 18 contest at Harvard, which finished 7-3 overall and in second place at 6-1 in the Ivy League last season.
Another three-game home stand follows the Harvard game as defending Patriot League co-champion and NCAA Playoff participant Fordham visits Lafayette for Homecoming on Oct. 25. Colgate, the other 2002 Patriot League co-champion, comes to Fisher Field on Nov. 1, and Bucknell concludes the Leopards' 2003 home slate on Nov. 8.
The Leopards hit the road for the final two weeks of the regular season, making their second trip to New England on Nov. 15 to face Holy Cross and then traveling to Bethlehem for the 139th meeting of the Lafayette-Lehigh rivalry.
Lafayette recorded the second-best turnaround among NCAA Division I-AA programs this past season. After finishing with a 2-8 overall record in 2001 and being picked seventh in the Patriot League's preseason poll, the Leopards improved by five victories to go 7-5 overall and 5-2 in the Patriot League for a third-place finish. Lafayette's only two league losses were to co-champions Colgate and Fordham, each by a margin of just one touchdown.
For the third straight year, Lafayette led the Patriot League in Verizon District II Academic All-Americans with five honorees. That raises the program's total to 31 Academic All-Americans in the past seven seasons and 16 in three seasons under coach Tavani.
