BETHLEHEM, Pa. –  Lafayette finished off a nine-win regular season and the program's 700th victory in the best way imaginable, beating Lehigh 49-21 to capture a Patriot League title and a triumph in Rivalry 159.
 
The Leopards will learn their FCS playoff first-round opponent on Sunday afternoon during the FCS Playoff selection show on ESPNU beginning at 12:30 p.m.

Under the leadership of second-year head coach John Troxell, the Leopards improved to 9-2 overall for the first time since 1981, winning the program's first championship since 2013 and the eighth Patriot League title overall. Troxell is now 2-0 against the school's archrival, pushing Lafayette to its most Patriot League victories (five) since 2006 and the program's first NCAA FCS Playoff appearance since 2013. 
 
No. 22/24 Lafayette erased a seven-point halftime deficit, outscoring the hosts 35-0 in the second half to break open the game and start the celebration. Lafayette out-gained Lehigh 326 to 53 in the second half, as Lehigh did not make it past its own 44-yard line.
 
Five different Lafayette players scored touchdowns. Soph. QB Dean DeNobile threw for three touchdowns and 245 yards and ran for another TD to earn game MVP honors. That award just as easily could have headed to soph. RB Jamar Curtis, who finished the day with 27 carries for 166 yards and three touchdowns. The offense took advantage of timely play by the defense, turning the Mountain Hawks over three times, which led to 21 points.
 
The teams traded scores in the first quarter. With Lehigh expecting the run and stacking the box, the Leopards went right to play-action passing. DeNobile hit Chris Carasia for 37 yards and then Elijah Steward for 16 more. The Leopards faced a 4th-and-goal at the two-yard line. Senior TE Mason Gilbert slipped off his block and was wide open for the TD and a 7-0 lead four minutes into the game.  
 
On Lehigh's scoring drive, the Mountain Hawks picked up 4th-and-1 at the 41-yard line. Then a 24-yard pass from Dante Perri to Jack DiPietro set up DiPietro's two-yard TD run to knot the score at 7-7 at the end of the first quarter.
 
Lehigh took its first lead of the game two minutes into the second quarter. Perri hit Geoffrey Jamiel for a 21-yard score to cap a 12-play, 75-yard drive for the 14-7 margin.
 
The Leopards' defense forced a fumble deep in the Lehigh half of the field. Junior LB Reggie Thomas drilled Perri and rookie Darien Riley recovered the fumble. Lafayette's offense took advantage. A couple of Curtis runs set a DeNobile run and he stretched the ball into the endzone to tie the game at 14-14.
 
Lehigh re-took the lead just before the half, capping a 77-yard drive with a two-yard pass from Perri to Connor Kennedy. Lehigh led 21-14 at half, just the second time in 2023 that Lafayette trailed at intermission.
 
As the second half opened, the defense forced another Mountain Hawk turnover. Junior captain Saiku White picked off Perri inside Lehigh territory. White's third interception of the season led to a quick score. On the fifth play of the drive, DeNobile connected for a 19-yard TD to soph. Dallas Holmes up the seam into the endzone. Rookie Jack Simonetta converted the PAT and tied the game 21-21 at 11:19 in the third quarter.
 
The Leopards took the lead on their next possession but the drive almost ended before it got started. On 3rd-and-10 at the Leopard 24-yard line, DeNobile eluded a rusher, stepped up and zipped a pass to Curtis who picked up the first down with a 24-yard completion to midfield. On 3rd-and-7 at the 36, DeNobile hit Elijah Steward for 32 yards to the four-yard line. The next play to Curtis saw the 1,000-yard rusher carry it in for the TD and the 28-21 lead.
 
The Leopards put away the game in the fourth quarter with three more scores that finished off the Brown and White. DeNobile's pass to Carasia stretched the lead to 35-21 with 12:31 remaining.
 
On the ensuing kickoff, the Leopards' Kente Edwards forced a fumble which Griffin Rooney recovered deep inside Lehigh territory. The offense immediately responded, as Curtis gobbled up all of the yards and eventually scored a nine-yard touchdown. The sophomore added a 46-yard touchdown with seven minutes left to finish off the game scoring.
 
Notes: Lafayette improves its all-time advantage in college football's most-played rivalry to 82-72-5, having won two straight and four of the last five.

For Curtis, it was his seventh 100-yard rushing game of the season and eighth of his career. He now has 1,333 yards this season, the fourth most in a season at Lafayette. Curtis' 12 rushing touchdowns in a season have tied him for 10th place in a season.  Curtis was also the first Lafayette player to score three touchdowns in a game since CJ Amill on Sept. 29, 2018. Amill had one rushing, one receiving and one special teams score vs. Central Connecticut State.

DeNobile has completed 67 percent (160-of-240) of his passes on the season, the sixth best single-season mark in Lafayette history. His 18 touchdown passes in 2023 rank him eighth all-time at Lafayette for passing touchdowns in a season.