The Match-Up: The Leopards look to keep their momentum when Patriot League play opens on Saturday vs. Bucknell on Homecoming Weekend. Lafayette (3-1) has won two straight and is off to its best start since the 2012 season. 

Running the Ball: Lafayette is averaging 199.5 rushing yards per game through four games, a mark that ranks the Leopards 18th in the nation among 122 schools. Behind a solid offensive line, soph. Jamar Curtis accounts for most of the yards, racking up a Patriot League best 127.2 yards per outing (fifth in the nation). 

Patriot League Opener: Saturday's game is the Patriot League opener for both teams. Lafayette is 20-17 in Patriot League openers, with play beginning in 1986 as the Colonial League, and 18-15 since 1990 when the league took its current name. Since 2000, the Leopards are 11-11 in Patriot League openers, having won the last two (24-14 at Bucknell in 2022 and 24-10 vs. Colgate in the spring 2021 season).

DeNobile Under Center: Soph. Dean DeNobile has started the last three games at quarterback for the Leopards. The Upper Saddle River, N.J. native has completed 36-of-56 (64%) for 375 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions. 
    The Economics major secured Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week honors following the Monmouth win. He ran for two TDs and threw for two others in a 28-20 win over the CAA foe. DeNobile completed 10-of-14 for 110 yards while carrying the ball 12 times for 50 yards to earn the first weekly honor of his collegiate career. 

With a Win on Saturday, Lafayette Would: 
• Start the season at 4-1 for the first time since 2009
• Improve to 3-0 at home for the first time since 2013
• Up its series advantage to 57-38-6 vs. Bucknell 
• Beat the Bison for a second straight time and five of the last six meetings
• Give Leopard coach John Troxell his 100th career head coaching win
Offensive Output: Lafayette's 28 points against Monmouth were a season-high and the most for the Leopard offense since Oct. 2, 2021 when the Leopards scored 41 against Fordham. 

Sack of Seven: The Lafayette defense tallied seven sacks in the win over Monmouth (the most sacks since April 10, 2021 vs. Lehigh). Tim O'Hearn led the way with two sacks while Preston Forney, Blamassi Meite, Jaylon Joseph, DeMarion McCoy each had one and Marco Olivas and Darien Riley split one.
Lafayette is ranked 10th in the nation in sacks per game.

Curtis Breaks the Century Mark Again...and Again...and Again: Soph. Jamar Curtis ran for his third 100-yard rushing game of the season (fourth of his career) vs. Monmouth. With 509 rushing yards, the Waldorf, Md. native has already surpassed his 2022 rushing total (465 yards).

Weekly Winners: Lafayette has had four Patriot League weekly award winners through four games, with the first three winners coming from the freshman class. Following the Columbia game, freshman DL Jaylon Joseph made his second start of the season and recorded three tackles with a half sack to garner Rookie of the Week honors. Joseph helped the Leopards limit Columbia to 137 yards of total offense. Classmate Jack Simonetta secured Special Teams Player of the Week laurels vs. Columbia, connecting on his first career field goal, a 34-yarder in the fourth quarter. In week one, Michael Vaughn was the conference rookie of the week after a two-sack performance. Most recently, soph. Dean DeNobile was the Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week after a performance that had him involved in four touchdowns in a win over Monmouth. 

The Ledger: Lafayette is in the midst of four-straight non-league contests to open the season (and five overall). Lafayette's current homestand includes Columbia, Monmouth and Bucknell in September. The Leopards will not play a home game in October. 

In the Red: The Lafayette defense is currently ranked sixth in the nation in red-zone defense, allowing opponents to score 67 percent of the time inside the 20.  

Conversion Rate vs. Columbia: The Leopards converted 9-of-16 third-down situations and 3-of-3 fourth downs against Columbia. 

200+ Plus = Wins: The Leopards churned out 223 rushing yards at Sacred Heart, a mark they had not reached since week three of 2019. They followed with 239 vs. Columbia and 206 vs. Monmouth, all leading to victories.

Year Two in the Troxell Era: Lafayette football is under the leadership of John Troxell '94 who is in his second season at the helm of the College Hill program. Troxell guided the Leopards to a 3-3 conference finish and third place in the Patriot League standings in 2022. Lafayette capped the season with a rivalry victory over Lehigh and won two of its last three games.

Fresh Faces: Two Leopards have forced their way into the starting 11 on defense. Jaylon Joseph has started three games at defensive tackle while Ahmir Crawley started the season opener at nosetackle. They have been joined by Michael Vaughn, De'Marion McCoy and Darien Riley, all of whom have had significant reps on the D Line. 
    Offensively, Carson Persing has seen time at wide receiver and holder, and is surrounded by a smattering of fellow rookies on special teams, including Jack Simonetta at kicker and Darren Wu handling kick-off duties.

Maroon and "White": Junior Saiku White has been a defensive standout from his safety position. He had a game- and career-high 12 stops against Sacred Heart and the Atlanta, Ga. native followed with a game-high 11 tackles at No. 21 Duke. In the Leopards' last outing, White made a game-high nine stops.