Lehigh Preview

The Bulldogs will travel to Bethlehem this weekend to compete against the 0-4 Lehigh Mountain Hawks.  Kickoff is scheduled for noon and the game will be televised on ESPN+.

The Mountain Hawks have faced a brutal schedule to start the season with contests against #15 Villanova, #22 Richmond, Princeton and Colgate.  Offensive mistakes have plagued Lehigh as they have yet to score a touchdown and have only posted 9 total points in four games.  Lehigh is still a battle-hardened squad with a solid coaching staff led by Tom Gilmore, a Penn alumnus and former coach at Penn, Columbia and Dartmouth.  The Mountain Hawks cannot be overlooked this weekend as this contest has all the indications of a classic trap game for Yale.

The Mountain Hawks have yet to find consistency at the quarterback position with four different players attempting passes this season.  Junior QB Cross Wilkinson started the first three contests but was replaced last week versus Colgate by sophomore Dante Perri.  Perri finished 13 of 19 for 46 yards and an interception in his first start.  As a team, the Mountain Hawks have completed 58% of passing attempts for an average of 6.2 yards per completion.  Decision making and accuracy have not been strong points for Lehigh’s quarterbacks as they’ve thrown 7 interceptions without a touchdown.  We’ve witnessed a backup quarterback from Lehigh throw for over 400 yards on the Yale defense, so the Bulldogs’ secondary will need to play sound football to contain the aerial threats.

Junior WR Johnny Foley (6’2”, 200 lbs.) has been the favorite target of Lehigh passers with 10 receptions for 81 yards.  Sophomore WR Eric Johnson (no relation to the former Eli) is another tall physical receiver to keep an eye on in this contest.  Senior TE Alex Snyder (6’5”, 245 lbs.) leads the Mountain Hawks in receiving yards with 83 yards on 8 receptions.  Cornell missed a few opportunities with open tight ends last week, so Lehigh may try to lean heavily on their tight end production this week.

Senior RB Rashawn Allen (5’9”, 220 lbs.) is a stout runner that is hard to bring down, although his production has suffered this season behind a struggling offensive line.  Freshman RB Gaige Garcia (5’10”, 215 lbs.) is a transfer from Michigan that has played well in his first season leading the Mountain Hawks in rushing yardage while averaging 4.5 yards per carry.   Disrupting the line of scrimmage and tackling well will be vital for a Bulldog victory.

The Lehigh offensive line is an experienced and sizable group averaging 295 lbs. across the board with only one new starter in the mix.  Senior C Justin Gurth (6’3”, 300 lbs.) is the leader of the offensive line as a four-year starter and 2^nd Team All-Patriot League performer last season.  Despite the size and experience, the offensive line has not lived up to their potential failing to control the line of scrimmage in the running game.  Playing from behind certainly has not helped the offensive line as defenses have been able to aggressively rush the passer resulting in 14 sacks against Lehigh for a total of 104 yards lost.

The Lehigh defense has not played as a cohesive unit yet this season allowing an average of 457.3 yards per game and a total of 16 touchdowns.  Opponents have averaged over 5 yards per carry and over 8 yards per passing attempt.  The defense does tighten up on third and fourth downs limiting opponents to 45.0% efficiency on 3^rd downs and 37.5% efficiency on fourth downs.  The Mountain Hawks’ defensive line has been able to effectively rush the passer racking up 9 sacks this season to place them 2^nd in the Patriot League in sacks.  Juniors Mikhari Sibblis (6’4”, 250 lbs.) and Stephen Bland (6’1”, 250 lbs.) and Sophomore Trevor Harris (6’3”, 245 lbs.) are all tied with two sacks each.  Senior LB and captain Pete Haffner has not played since the Richmond contest and the Mountain Hawks have sorely missed the presence of the two-time 2^nd Team All-Patriot League selection.  Senior LB Nate Norris has played well despite the absence of Haffner racking up 23 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks.  Sophomore linebackers Liam McIntyre and Mike DeNucci have combined for another 38 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, and an interception.  Junior safety Tygee Leach was a 1^st Team All-Patriot League selection last year and is the most talented defender on the roster.  Leach leads the team with 24 tackles, 1 tackle for loss and 3 pass breakups.  Freshman DB Logan Jones has the potential to be an All-Patriot League defender in the years to come and has notched 19 tackles and 2 pass breakups to start his career.      

Junior kicker Dylan Van Dusen has been perfect on field goal attempts (3 for 3) accounting for all of Lehigh’s points this season.  Sophomore punter Daniel Simpson has averaged 38.2 yards per punt and has pinned opponents inside their 20-yard line on 8 occasions.   The Mountain Hawks have blocked punts in two consecutive games, so our punting unit will face their toughest blocking assignment this week.