Sept. 24, 2007

EASTON, Pa. - In June, sophomore linebacker Mark Leggiero traded his football helmet for a hard hat, spending the summer working in an internship with the New York Department of State. The Engineering major served as a temporary construction inspector, helping to oversee the rebuilding of a bridge on Long Island near Jones Beach.

Leggiero reviewed plans, looked for problems and made sure construction went according to code. At the end of the day, he was responsible for recording a summary of the work done and any problems that had arisen.

"If there was a problem, you would have to figure out how to fix it," Leggiero said. "I had to learn how to improvise and make sure those improvisations were done right. If I saw a problem I would take it to somebody higher up and we would figure it out together."

The importance of Leggiero's work was thrown into a harsh light on August 1. He was completing his internship when the I-35W bridge collapsed in Minneapolis

"My boss and I talked about it one day when we were out in the field," Leggiero said. "He was talking about what he thought was wrong with the bridge and why it collapsed. He said that if that ever happened at the bridge we were working on he would be liable because he was the engineer in charge, so that's why you have to do everything right. Some things may be tedious, but it's got to be done the right way or things could happen like that."

Leggiero applies that lesson when it comes to his football training. Despite his full-time internship, he worked out four days a week and ran on weekends to stay in shape.

Knowing he wanted to spend the summers after his sophomore and junior years in Easton focusing on football motivated Leggiero to get an internship after his freshman year - a decision head coach Frank Tavani supported.

"More and more, the internships and those things can be beneficial academically," Tavani said. "Mark was wise enough to do that his freshman year. He has goals and he's reaching and climbing to achieve them."

Leggiero works just as hard on the field. As his efforts in the classroom earned him an internship, Leggiero's efforts in practice paid off on the field, and he was one of the few freshmen to see regular playing time.

"At linebacker you have to learn a lot, but most of the time it's the physical aspect," Leggiero said of why few freshmen see time on the field. "People still need to grow into their bodies and get bigger and stronger. I came here last year and I guess our depth wasn't great at linebacker because I got my chance to step up and play."

That chance came early in the season when Andy Romans was injured in the second game of the season at Bucknell. Leggiero played the majority of the game, recording five tackles for the Leopards in a 31-0 win.

As Tavani headed to the press conference after that game, he remembers being surprised to see Leggiero next to him.

"We obviously liked him and recruited him, but we looked at him as a down the road kind of guy," Tavani said. "It just goes to show you that we coaches, as smart as we think we are and as long as we've coached, don't have all the answers. You don't know what's inside a kid until he gets here, and he certainly proved that there was much more to him early on than we would have thought."

Leggiero started the next game against Penn while Romans continued to recover. Although Lafayette lost 21-11 in its home opener, Leggiero contributed five tackles to the Leopards' defensive effort. Romans returned to action the next game, but Leggiero continued to see time for the rest of the year.

He finished his freshman season having appeared in 12 games while recording 25 tackles, numbers that drew the attention of fellow linebacker Mark Plumby

"Learning the schemes and being able to go out there and run the stuff you just learned is very difficult," Plumby said. "It took me two years to get it as opposed to his one."

"He's growing up quickly and getting the amount of playing time that he did as a freshman really carries over," Tavani said. "He's probably a year ahead of schedule right now."

With former linebacker Justin Stovall's graduation in May, Leggiero now has a permanent spot in the starting lineup, where he joins Plumby and Romans.

"They are all over the place and they're just fun to watch," Tavani said of his linebackers. "Sometimes in practice you catch yourself zeroing in on the three of them and you have to love the way they play football. They love the game and they play for the competition and certainly the intensity, but also for the pure love of the game."

The youngest member of the linebacking trio has continued to produce, and in the process, earn his fellow linebackers' respect.

"He came into camp really big and strong," Plumby said. "We call him `stump' because his legs are big like tree trunks. He fits in very well with us and we're really comfortable with him in there."

Leggiero is also comfortable with his role on the field.

"I'm at the top of the huddle so I have to lead the defense throughout the play," Leggiero said. "I just go out and play, and if I see someone doing something wrong I'll yell at them. If I'm doing something wrong, I expect someone to yell at me. We all get along. Everyone is on an equal playing field."

Through three games this season, Leggiero has racked up 17 tackles, including two for loss. He made seven tackles against Penn in the Leopards' 8-7 win, a measure of redemption after the Quakers' running game had its way with Lafayette in 2006.