Sept. 8, 2010
Complete Game Notes in PDF Format 
MATCH-UP: Week two of college football brings the first game of the season in Leopard Land as Lafayette takes a swing at the blue, grey and white of part-time Patriot League member Georgetown. Kick-off is set for 6 p.m. in the Leopards' only home night game of the 2010 season. Lafayette is coming off an 8-3 campaign in 2009 and finished in second place in the Patriot League standings with a 4-2 mark. The Hoyas went 0-11 in 2009, but started the 2010 season on a positive note, winning 20-10 at Davidson.
WINNING NUMBERS: Lafayette football has been a consistent Patriot League contender in recent seasons. The Leopards are 33-17 since 2002 which was a breakthrough year for head coach Frank Tavani's Leopards after he took over the program in 2000 (7-5, 5-2). Since 2000, Lafayette has been at least two games above .500 in six of eight seasons.
OPEN UP AND SAY "HOYAAAAHHH": For the second straight season, Lafayette opens its campaign with Georgetown. In 2009, Lafayette won a 20-7 decision in the first-ever night game played at GU's Multi-Sport Field. Lafayette has won eight straight season openers, beating Marist five times in that span along with wins over Monmouth (2002) and Sacred Heart (2006). The last season-opening loss came in 2001 at Towson in overtime when the Tigers were part of the Patriot League.
PATRIOT LEAGUE OPENERS: Lafayette is 13-7 in Patriot League openers with Patriot League play first beginning in 1990. The Leopards have won their last six Patriot League openers (Georgetown in 2004, 2007, 2008 and 2009, Fordham in 2005 and Bucknell in 2006), last losing to Towson in 2003, the Tigers' final year in the conference.
PROUD OF THE PROGRAM: Since 2004, Lafayette is 44-25 and 26-10 in Patriot League play. Lafayette stands as the only Patriot League program to record a winning record in each of the last six regular seasons while also holding a Top 25 national ranking each year.
OBLIGATORY HOME OPENER NOTE: Lafayette is 86-38-3 all-time in home openers. The Leopards have won two of their last three home openers and six of their last eight. 129th SEASON: Since fielding its first college football team in the fall of 1882 (the same year Robert Ford shot Jesse James and that Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture debuted), Lafayette has had a proud, colorful gridiron tradition on the way to a total of 656 victories (656-545-39). Lafayette ranked 31st among all college football teams in all-time wins entering the 2010 season, posting its first win in 1883 (25-0 vs. Rutgers). Lafayette accumulated 100 victories by 1900, 200 by 1915 and 300 by 1934.
HEAD COACHES: Frank Tavani (Lebanon Valley '75) is in his 11th season as Lafayette head coach and 24th on the Lafayette coaching staff. In his time as the head man, he has transformed Lafayette into a consistent championship contender. Lafayette has spent time in the Top 25 each of the last six seasons and is the only Patriot League program to boast a winning record in every regular season during that span. The Leopards are coming off a 2009 season in which they were 8-3 (two losses to Top 25 opponents), including a 4-0 record vs. Ivy League opponents. Tavani, who became Lafayette's 27th head coach on Dec. 11, 1999 and is under contract through 2014, has led his program to a 26-10 Patriot League record over the last six years. In that span, Lafayette won three consecutive Patriot League championships from 2004 to 2006 and finished a game out of the title hunt in 2009. During that '04-'06 championship run, the Leopards made the first three postseason appearances in school history, laying claim to the Patriot League's automatic NCAA bid in 2004 and 2006, while earning the program's first at-large berth in 2005. In addition to Patriot League championships and NCAA Playoff appearances, Lafayette has taken care of business close to home, beating its cross-valley rival Lehigh four of the last six times in College Football's Most Played Rivalry. The win in 2007 at Lehigh allowed the Class of 2008 to leave College Hill without ever having lost to its archrival, a feat not achieved since the Class of 1950. Tavani has been a part of six Patriot League titles, helping guide the Leopards to crowns as an assistant coach in 1988, 1992 and 1994, to go with the last three championships as head coach. In his playing days, Tavani became the first player in Lebanon Valley College history to rush for 1,000 yards in a season. In that senior campaign, he also garnered All-America honors and has since been named to four athletic halls of fame. Tavani signed as a free agent with the Philadelphia Eagles out of college in 1976 before jumping into coaching at Franklin and Marshall. His son, Daniel, carried on the college football tradition as an all-conference selection at Wofford. Of his other three children, Liam and Meghan both graduated from Lafayette and his youngest, Bridget, is a sophomore on the women's soccer team. Tavani's career record stands at 60-53. Kevin Kelly (Springfield '82) is in his fifth season as the head coach at Georgetown and holds a 6-38 mark with the Hoyas. He came to Georgetown after four years as the special teams coordinator/linebackers coach at Navy, where he helped lead the Midshipmen to three bowl games.
THE GEORGETOWN SERIES: Lafayette holds a 10-3 overall series record versus Georgetown and is 8-1 in Patriot League play since the Hoyas joined the conference in football in 2001. Lafayette is 4-1 in Easton during Patriot League play, the lone blemish a 17-10 setback on Oct. 4, 2003. The teams first met Oct. 25, 1902, a 23-0 Lafayette victory in Washington, D.C. and played in 1922, 1927 and 1937 before meeting every year since 2001.
• The Hoyas were 0-11 overall and 0-6 in the Patriot League in 2009 and have been picked for last in the Patriot League preseason poll. • Georgetown returns seven starters on a defense led by senior linebacker Nick Parrish, who had a Patriot League-best 110 tackles in 2009. • Offensively, six starters return for the Hoyas on offense. Junior Scott Darby was the Hoyas' starting quarterback in their opener. He accounted for three touchdowns, rushing (17 carries for 58 yards) for two scores and throwing (14-23-0 for 130 yards) for another. • Senior Keerome Lawrence, a converted quarterback, is a threat for the Hoyas in the slot. Lawrence had 33 catches for 344 yards and a touchdown in 2009.
WORRYING ABOUT WHAT OTHER PEOPLE THINK: Lafayette has been picked second in the Patriot League Preseason Poll of conference head coaches and sports information directors. The Leopards (36 points) received two first-place votes. This season, Colgate (46 points and six first-place votes) was selected in the top spot followed by Lafayette, Lehigh (35 points and three first-place votes), Holy Cross, Bucknell and Georgetown. In 2009, Lafayette was selected to finish third and ended in a tie for second.
THE MAN IN THE MIDDLE: A constant in John Loose's defenses is stellar linebacker play. Maurice Bennett '06, current NFL player Blake Constanzo '06, Andy Romans '09 and Mark Leggiero '10 have passed the mantle (or shoulder pads in this case) to senior Mike Schmidlein. The senior co-captain led the team and ranked 23rd in the nation in tackles (100) in 2009. The Economics & Business major recorded two sacks, had an interception and also forced a fumble in 2009. When you ask the coaching staff who is next in the long line of stud linebackers, Ben Eaton's name pops up. The 6-0, 220-pound Eaton is a physical specimen, bench pressing 425 pounds while featuring four percent body fat.
ALL-PATRIOT LEAGUE RETURNERS: Lafayette placed 15 players on the All-Patriot League first and second teams in 2009, and five of them return in 2010: first-teamer junior WR Mark Layton, senior LB Mike Schmidlein, senior WR Mitch Bennett, senior P Tom Kondash and junior DB Brandon Ellis.
3-4 or 4-3...WAIT AND SEE: The only constant in life is change and that has always been the case for John Loose's defenses. Loose perennially has adjusted formations to match up with opponents' formations and schemes. That is never more obvious than when Loose installs a new defense to combat the spread option. This season, the Leopards may spend more time in a 3-4 configuration than in previous seasons which have primarily featured a 4-3. Statistically in 2009, Lafayette was 11th in the nation in rushing defense, allowing just 99.6 yards per game. The Leopards were 45th in total defense (331.8) and just 76th in passing defense (127.6).
ABOUT THE KICKER: Senior Davis Rodriguez enters his fourth and final season as the Leopards' starting placekicker. He has played in 33 games during his career and is 29-of-44 (66%) in field goals and 100-of-106 (94.3%) in PATs. This season, as he did for part of 2007, Rodriguez will handle kickoff duties. The St. Petersburg, Fla. native was named All-Patriot League Second Team in 2008 while collecting Sports Network All-America Honorable Mention status.
THE PUNTER: For the third straight year, the punting work will be done by Tom Kondash. In 2009, the senior punted 40 times for 1439 yards and 36.0 yards per kick. He landed 11 kicks inside the opponents' 20-yard line. His career best is a 79-yard punt vs. Holy Cross (2008).
CATCHING UP WITH MITCH BENNETT: Senior wide receiver Mitch Bennett is putting his fingers to the keyboard in his Catching Up blog on GoLeopards.com. Bennett has already posted two entries during the opening week of school.
PATRIOT LEAGUE TITLES: Lafayette won three titles in 2004, 2005 and 2006. The Leopards begrudgingly shared the title with Lehigh in 2004 and 2006, and with Colgate in 2005. The championships also led to three straight NCAA Playoff appearances, making Lafayette one of six teams in the country to appear in the 16-team field in three straight years. The Leopards have won six PL championships in the 24-year history of the league (1988, 1992, 1994, 2004, 2005, 2006).
UNDER CENTER: As the season opens, junior Ryan O'Neil will be the Leopards' starting quarterback. O'Neil edged out senior Marc Quilling for the starting spot. O'Neil provides a dual threat, able to move the chains with his legs in addition to his strong arm. Quilling saw significant playing time in 2008, sharing the position with Rob Curley. Sophomore Andrew Shoop is currently third on the depth chart.
THROW ME THE BALL: Lafayette features one of the top receiving corps at the FCS level and one that Frank Tavani calls the best during his head-coaching tenure. The group is lead by seniors Mark Layton and co-captain Mitch Bennett. Layton caught 65 passes, the second most in Lafayette single-season history, for 838 yards (seventh in single-season history). He also pulled down 11 touchdowns, tying him for the second-best Lafayette single-season effort. Bennett reeled in 40 passes as a sophomore, catching touchdown passes in four games. He finished with 596 receiving yards. Fellow senior Nathan Padia, along with juniors Greg Stripe and Kyle Hayes will also be significant contributors.
RUNNING THE BALL: In 2009, it was tailback by committee, but all but one member of that committee graduated. Junior Jerome Rudolph, who made the switch from No. 32 to No. 27 for 2010, is the lone holdover and is at the top of the depth chart entering 2010. Rudolph has battled a leg bruise throughout the preseason, but is a full go for the Leopards. He was the team's third-leading rusher in 2009, racking up 215 yards on the ground with an average of 5.1 yards per carry. On his heels is sophomore Vaughn Hebron who has forced his way into the discussion during spring ball and in the preseason. A bigger, stronger back, Hebron is the son of the former NFL player of the same name who played for Philadelphia and Denver.
WITH A NAME LIKE "JET"...: Jethro "Jet" Kollie's name certainly stands out and the Lafayette coaching staff is hoping that the diminutive Kollie's (5-6, 160) play will speak for itself during his career. Kollie will be placed in the slot where the Leopards will look to utilize his breakaway speed.
STANDING OUT IN THE CLASSROOM: Under head coach Frank Tavani, Lafayette football players have excelled as student-athletes. Twenty-three have earned CoSIDA Academic All-District selections and 39 have earned the distinction since 1995, including Doug Gerowski in 2009. Lafayette had 20 student-athletes qualify for the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll in 2009 for which they must achieve a minimum of a 3.2 GPA. Lafayette has also laid claim to four Patriot League Scholar Athletes of the Year.
H-BACK/TE/FB: Some new combinations of letters have found their way onto the Lafayette roster. Without an experienced fullback, the Leopards may employ h-backs (not to be confused with the old school half back) to supplement the running game. Junior HB/TE Kevin Doty could fill that role and Erin Murray, who made the move from the defensive line, will add more depth. The Leopards will not abandon any one of the positional groupings, instead utilizing each of them in different offensive situations. Currently, freshman Pat Creahan and Greg Kessel are vying for time at fullback.
100+ in 2009: With the Leopards' offense focused on the passing game in 2009, Lafayette had just two 100-plus rushing yard games. Maurice White '10 was responsible for both with 21 carries for 131 yards at Yale and 24 carries for 107 yards vs. Fordham.
200+ RUSHING GAMES: Since 1990, there have been nine 200-yard rushing performances for the Leopards, six of which were the work of Maroon Club Hall of Fame honoree Erik Marsh '95.
DATE RUSHER OPPONENT CARRIES-YARDS W/L 09/09/08 Maurice White at Marist 29-212 W 11/16/02 Joe McCourt Holy Cross 38-203 W 11/19/94 Erik Marsh Lehigh 34-214 W 11/20/93 Erik Marsh at Lehigh 25-249 L 11/06/93 Erik Marsh at Holy Cross 36-221 W 11/21/92 Erik Marsh Lehigh 46-251 W 10/31/92 Erik Marsh at Colgate 41-225 W 11/16/91 Erik Marsh Colgate 20-200 W 10/19/91 John Kahn Columbia 41-224 W
IN THE NFL RANKS: Blake Costanzo '06 is in his fourth season in the NFL. The Ramapo, N.J. native is in his second season with the Cleveland Browns. He had three defensive/special teams fumble recoveries in 2009, tying him for first in the AFC and third in the NFL. He led the team with 14 special teams tackles and was later selected as the special teamer on SI.com's All-Pro team. Costanzo, who wears No. 54 for the Browns, has played in 32 games over the past two seasons. He played his first two seasons with the Buffalo Bills.
IVY ITINERARY: In 2009, for the first time in program history, Lafayette went 4-0 against Ivy League opponents. The previous best record against Ancient Eight foes was 3-0, accomplished most recently in 1982. In 2009, Lafayette beat Yale, Penn, Columbia and Harvard. All four victories extended or snapped significant streaks. The Leopards have won three and eight straight over Penn and Columbia, respectively. Meanwhile, the victory over Yale was the first in program history in eight tries, and the win at Harvard marked the first Lafayette triumph since 1996, snapping an eight-game skid. This season, Lafayette faces a similar Ivy slate with Princeton replacing Yale on the schedule. The Leopards play four in a row against the Ancient Eight, beginning with Penn on Sept. 18 at Franklin Field.
AND WE GO TO...OVERTIME: Lafayette has played seven overtime games all-time and is 2-5 in those contests. The Leopards were 1-1 in 2009 overtime games, the first extra session games since 2001.
DATE OPPONENT RESULT 11/11/95 Fordham 24-21 W 11/18/95 at Lehigh 37-30 L 10/18/97 at Cornell 41-34 L 10/03/98 at Dartmouth 13-10 L 09/08/01 at Towson 16-13 L 09/26/09 Penn 20-17 W 11/21/09 at Lehigh 27-21 L
T.O.P. FOR LC in '09: Time of possession was a key element in the Leopards' success in 2009. The Lafayette offense held the ball an average of 33:10 in each game, leaving just 26:50 for opponents. The Leopards finished seventh in the nation, but just second in the Patriot League behind Colgate (35:45). Colgate dominated the Leopards, holding the ball for 16 more minutes.
Opponent Leopards' T.O.P. Opponent's T.O.P. Differential Result Georgetown 37:41 22:19 +15:22 W Liberty 26:16 33:34 -7:18 L Penn 34:26 25:34 +8:52 W Yale 33:44 26:16 +7:28 W Columbia 36:01 23:59 +11:59 W Harvard 31:52 28:08 +13:44 W Fordham 37:08 22:52 +15:16 W Bucknell 38:40 21:20 +17:20 W Colgate 22:00 38:00 -16.00 W Holy Cross 32:50 27:10 +5:40 L Lehigh 34:12 25:48 +8:12 L AVERAGE 33:10 26:50 +6:10 8-3
HISTORIC FISHER STADIUM: Fisher Stadium has hosted the College's home football games since 1926. The facility underwent a $35 million transformation that gave Lafayette one of the premier FCS football venues in the nation. New spectator seating was built and additional visitors' seating was added for a maximum capacity of 13,132 fans. A state-of-the-art in-fill synthetic surface, lights, a press box and a 19-by-35 foot video board were installed, and improved restroom and vending areas were also included. The Bourger Varsity Football House includes a locker room, offices and team meeting rooms, as well as sports medicine and strength and conditioning areas. Now in its 84th season, Fisher Stadium has been host to 411 Lafayette football games with the Leopards enjoying an overall record of 245-153-13 for a winning percentage of .612. Of the previous 83 seasons, Lafayette has produced 12 undefeated home seasons with the most recent being the 1992 Patriot League champion Leopards that went a perfect 5-0 - the first undefeated home season for Lafayette at Fisher Stadium since 1970. During the 1991, 1992 and 1993 seasons, Lafayette won 10 straight home games--tying the Fisher Stadium school record for consecutive wins first set in 1926 and 1927 in the first 10 games ever played in the stadium.
LAFAYETTE ON THE RADIO: The Lafayette Sports Network radio broadcasts will be available on WJRH 104.9. Veteran broadcaster Dick Hammer is in his 44th season as the Leopards' play-by-play man and will be joined in the booth at home by at home by Phil Ng '88 on the road by Lafayette SID Phil LaBella.
A HISTORY OF NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS: The Lafayette football program has claimed three national championships -- 1896, 1921 and 1926 -- and recorded five undefeated seasons -- 1896 (11-0-1), 1921 (9-0-0), 1926 (9-0-0), 1937 (8-0-0) and 1940 (9-0-0). Of recent note, the Leopards have won six Patriot League championships -- 1988, 1992, 1994, 2004, 2005 and 2006 -- and made their first three appearances in the NCAA FCS Playoffs.
LAFAYETTE'S FOOTBALL INVENTORS: Two primary elements of the game of football -- the helmet and the huddle -- were invented by former members of the Lafayette football program. George "Rose" Barclay from the Class of 1898, one of Lafayette's all-time great running backs, invented the helmet when the "threat of cultivating cauliflower ears" led him to piece three thick leather straps around his head for the 1896 game against Penn. Former Lafayette coach Herb McCracken (1924-35; 59-40-6) devised the first huddle system during the 1924 season after learning the Pennsylvania football team had stolen Lafayette's signals. Lafayette became the first team to huddle before each play and this system was immediately adopted by other teams.
SARTORIAL SCHEMES: The Leopards' perfect mark in black jerseys came to an end in 2008 with a one-point loss to Holy Cross on Nov. 15 and a setback vs. Lehigh (black pants and jerseys). Lafayette is now 4-2 in the black jerseys. They wore black to beat Lehigh in 2004 and again in 2006 to win Patriot League titles. Fordham was also victim to the black jerseys in 2005. The only other time they've paired black jerseys with black pants was in a driving rain storm with standing water on the old Fisher Field grass surface against Columbia in 2005, a 14-7 victory. The Leopards pulled out the black pants against Holy Cross in week 10 in 2007, beating the Crusaders 31-21. Lafayette did not wear its black jerseys or pants in 2009.
INSIDE LAFAYETTE FOOTBALL: Inside Lafayette Football airs every Thursday at noon throughout the season exclusively on GoLeopards.com. Gary Laubach sits down with head coach Frank Tavani, as well as select student-athletes, to discuss the Lafayette football program.
CYBER LUNCH: New win 2010, all of Lafayette's media luncheons will be streamed live on GoLeopards.com beginning at 12:30 p.m.
ALL SEASON ON LSN: The Lafayette Sports Network, a national leader in Division I FCS television coverage, will televise all 11 regular-season Lafayette football games for the eighth straight year. Now in its 14th year, LSN has become a staple for Leopard fans both regionally and across the country. LSN's traditional live distribution to more than 10 million homes on RCN-4 and WBPH-60 covering all of Eastern Pennsylvania will be enhanced this season by live coverage on all of RCN's cable systems in major markets along the East coast. RCN subscribers in Boston, New York City, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. can watch all 11 Lafayette games on RCN-8. Nationally, LSN telecasts will be picked up for the 10th straight year by DIRECTV and DISH Network outlets, available to more than 90 million viewers via the Mid Atlantic Sports Network (MASN). MASN, which is available regionally and nationally on DIRECTV channel 640 and DISH Network channel 432, is the official television home of the Baltimore Orioles, Washington Nationals and Baltimore Ravens and reaches nearly 6 million homes in a seven-state region from Harrisburg, Pa. to Charlotte, N.C. A complete broadcast schedule is available in the PDF version of the notes.
LAFAYETTE SPORTS NETWORK ALL-ACCESS: If it doesn't air on ESPN3.com, LSN telecasts will be available live through LSN All-Access, which streams Lafayette contests and other programming worldwide to any high-speed internet connection. In all, more than 75 Lafayette athletic events are scheduled for broadcast through LSN All-Access this year at a rate of $9.95 per month and $79.95 for the entire year. The CBSSports.com ULive package, which includes content from all CBS Interactive collegiate member institutions, is available for $14.95 monthly or $119.95 annually.
