EASTON, Pa. – Seniors Mike Barr, Marco Olivas, Carl Smith and Saiku White have taken over the leadership reins of the Lafayette football team in 2023, selected as recipients of the Chris LaPietra '89 Captain Award for the 142nd season.
 
For Olivas, it marks his second straight season as a team captain. The 2023 Preseason All-Patriot League linebacker was an All-Patriot League First-Team selection in 2022. He started all 11 games for the Leopards and led the team with 92 tackles.  An Academic All-Patriot League selection in 2021 and 2022, Olivas added 7.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks in 2022 while forcing a pair of fumbles and recovering two more. The Integrative Engineering major helped guide a defense that ranked eighth in the nation and first in the Patriot League for rushing defense (106.7).
 
White, a defensive teammate who was also a 2023 Preseason All-Patriot League honoree, started 11 games at free safety in 2022 and finished second on the team in tackles. The Economics major rang up 84 stops with 1.5 tackles for loss while adding four pass breakups. He was one of 46 Lafayette selections to the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll in 2022.
 
Offensively, Barr will be an anchor on the line. He started 10 games in 2022, including the final eight at center after playing right tackle early in the season. The Economics major played in eight games with four starts in his junior campaign.
 
Smith is coming off a 2022 campaign in which he played in eight games with two starts at wide receiver. The Art major finished the season with nine catches for 120 yards and two touchdowns, making at least one grab in five games.
 
"Our team did a great job in selecting a group of captains that are relentless and selfless," said John Troxell, the Fred M. Kirby II '42 Head Football Coach. "These four men will represent those who came before them and will leave a legacy for those who come after them. They know their responsibility is to continue to build a championship culture."
 
Lafayette opened training camp on Aug. 2 and will begin the season a month later, traveling to Sacred Heart for week one.