The Match-Up: Lafayette closes out its four-game homestand, hosting Bucknell on Saturday. The Leopards have won three of the last four against the Bison, but dropped the 2024 meeting, 21-14 on Nov. 2. Separated by one game in the league standings, both teams are coming off victories, as Lafayette topped Fordham 24-10 and Bucknell beat Richmond 33-28 in week six. 

Half-way Home: Lafayette is 4-2 at the midway point of the season, one game better than 2024.    

Last Time Out: Lafayette opened October with a 24-10 victory over Fordham. Dean DeNobile threw for 314 yards, as the Leopards were limited to 83 on the ground (a season low against FCS opponents). The Lafayette defense held Fordham to 51 rushing yards.  

Patriot Push: Six of the Leopards' final seven games will be Patriot League contests, with a trip to Oregon State the exception in week eight. Lafayette is playing seven conference games this season, with the addition of Richmond as an associate member. It's the first time since 2003 Lafayette will play seven league contests. The Maroon and White will play nine Patriot League games in 2026 when Villanova and William & Mary join as associate football members. 

DeNobile Dialed In: With Fordham intent on stopping the run, the Leopards turned their attention to the passing game and senior QB Dean DeNobile was up to the task. He completed 25-of-35 for 314 yards with two touchdowns. It was the second 300-yard passing game of his career and first this season. DeNobile completed passes to a season-high nine targets with Matthew Scerbo and Carson Persing each reeling in TD's. 

Lucky 13: The Maroon and White defense had a season-high 13 tackles for loss against Fordham. Junior DL Jaylon Joseph accounted for 2.5 sacks as the largest contributor. Eleven other players managed at least a half tackle for loss on the day as Lafayette racked up 55 yards for loss. The Leopards are ranked first in the Patriot League and 23rd in the NCAA in TFLs.

Special Score: The Leopards' punt return/block unit made its presence known vs. Fordham. Tighe Cummiskey blocked a third-quarter punt which Dylan Aguilera collected and returned 18 yards for a touchdown (the first for the Leopards in 2025). 

200 During the Bicentennial: John Troxell coached his 200th game vs. Fordham (10/4), one week after Lafayette College's Bicentennial kickoff. Troxell owns a 115-85 career record. Since taking over the football program in 2022, Troxell has a .600 winning percentage in conference play and a .561 overall winning percentage, both of which rank second among active Patriot League head coaches.

Solid Starts: Lafayette has begun its last three seasons with a 3-1 mark, a solid number considering that the losses in each campaign came at the hands of an FBS foe. 

Historically Accurate: Leopard QB Dean DeNobile ranks second at Lafayette in career completion percentage (66.1%) trailing only Ryan O'Neil '12 (66.5). He lands fourth in Patriot League history behind O'Neil and ahead of Drew Reed '17 (65.2), as Lafayette has three of the top five most accurate passers in Patriot League history. 

With a Win on Saturday, Lafayette Would: 
• notch program win No. 711
• register a win in four of the last five meetings with Bucknell
• start Patriot League play at 3-0 for the second time in the last three seasons

Nationally Ranked: Junior RB Kente Edwards is first in the nation in rushing yards per carry (8.2), second in rushing touchdowns (10), sixth in rushing yards per game (117.0)
and 11th in rushing yards (585). 

Opportunistic Offense: The Leopards have made the most of their third and fourth down opportunities. Lafayette ranks second within the Patriot League and 17th in the country in third-down conversion rate (.467). On fourth down, the Maroon and White own an even .500 conversion rate, good for third in the conference and 53rd in the nation.

26 On the Run to Player of the Week: Junior RB Kente Edwards racked up three straight 100-yard rushing games (the third-straight season a Leopard running back has achieved that feat) and was named Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week each of those times. Edwards had a 150-yard, three-touchdown effort vs. Columbia in week four. At Georgetown (9/13), he had 255 yards with four touchdowns (both career highs). It was the 13th 200-yard game since 1990 and first since 2023, and his four-TD performance was the first since 2006. Edwards ran for 127 yards at Stonehill in his first career start. 

One-Two Punch: The ground game continues to be a strength for the Maroon and White. RBs Kente Edwards and Ethan Weber are responsible for 90 of the Leopards' 181 points. The two tailbacks have contributed with 15 total touchdowns and 908 rushing yards.

Limiting the Run: Lafayette's youthful defense, which returned just one starter, has had  success limiting the run game. The Leopards have allowed 96.7 yards per game for the season (84.6 ypg against FCS opponents), ranking second and ninth in the conference and country, respectively. 

In the Red: Lafayette boasts the second-best red-zone defense in the Patriot League (.750) and ranks 24th in the nation.

Safe at Safety: Soph. Kevin Dodard has started in every game at free safety. Dodard has broken up six passes (second in the Patriot League) and picked off two (third in the PL).

Career Numbers for DeNobile: With 166 passing yards in the Columbia win, senior QB Dean DeNobile surpassed the 5,000 career passing yards plateau. DeNobile and is currently second for career completion percentage (66.1), fifth in career completions (504) and sixth in career passing yards (5,699).  

Catching Up: Senior Eli Steward continues to ascend the career receiving ranks. He's moved up to third for career completions (166) and sixth for career receiving yards (2,062). Steward needs four more catches to climb past Matt Mrazek '18. Steward is 50 receiving yards shy of Phil Ng '89 in fifth place. 

On the Sideline: John Troxell '94 is in his fourth season at the helm of his alma mater's football program, a tenure that includes a Patriot League title and NCAA playoff berth in his second season. That 2023 campaign saw the Leopards post the most wins in a campaign in more than 40 years. The team went from 4-7 (3-3 PL) in year one (2022) to 9-3 (5-1 PL) in year two (2023). Both seasons were capped by wins over archrival Lehigh.
    Troxell was named the Patriot League Coach of the Year in 2023 and was a finalist for the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award.

Dee Making Impact: LB Beckham Dee's impact has been immediate. He has a team-leading 38 tackles in SIX starts. Dee, who transferred from Penn State after one season, comes from a football family, as his father was a quarterback at Carnegie Mellon. After graduation, Dee's early career plans include working as an investment banker. 

Runaway Road Win: The Leopards rolled up 319 rushing yards at Stonehill led by a stellar day from junior RB Kente Edwards in his first career start. The Annandale, N.J. native carried the ball 12 times for 127 yards and three scores. He scored on runs of 4, 2 and 78 yards. It was the Leopards' first 70-yard running play since Nov. 11, 2023. For his work, Edwards was named the Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week. 
    It was also the first time since Sept. 30, 2023 that Lafayette had 300-plus rushing yards (316 vs. Bucknell). Junior Ethan Weber had six carries for 77 and a TD, while Jason Penza (6-47) and Dean DeNobile (4-13) added rushing TD's of their own.

Positive Trends: The Leopards are 3-0 when scoring first, when leading at halftime, when rushing for 200+ yards, when committing fewer turnovers, when winning the time of possession battle and when they hit for 400+ yards of total offense.

TD Records: Lafayette's single-season touchdowns record is 16 shared by Joe McCourt (2004), Tom Costello (1989) and Jamar Curtis (2024). With one more rushing TD, Kente Edwards will move into a four-way tie (Erik Marsh, Bruce McIntyre, Craig Williams) for 13th with 11 TDs. 

The Opponent: Bucknell enters with a 4-2 overall mark and a 1-1 record in Patriot League play. The Bison opened conference action with a 41-24 loss to Lehigh before capturing their first conference win Oct. 4, defeating Richmond, 33-28.
    Fifth-year QB Ralph Rucker commands the Bison offense. The school's career leader in total offense, Rucker has completed 68.1% (111-of-163) of his passes for 1,510 yards and 10 touchdowns. Against Richmond, Rucker passed for 284 yards and a touchdown en route to Patriot League Player of the Week honors. 
    RB Tariq Thomas handles the bulk of the carries, rushing 77 times for 339 yards. The 2024 Patriot League Rookie of the Year averages 4.4 yards per carry and has three touchdowns.
    Soph. Brandon Biagiarelli paces the defense with 41 total tackles to go along with three TFLs and an interception. Bucknell has five interceptions on the season, three of which came against Richmond.
    Dave Cecchini (Lehigh '85) is in his seventh season at the helm for the Bison.