Air Force 38, Colgate 7, 7:51 remaining 4th period

[Go...gate]

Colgate scored first but AFA scored three TD's in the second quarter and has controlled the play.

[Go Lehigh TU owl]

38-13 Final

The beating was decisive, the check respectable...

[TheValleyRaider]

AF 38-13
Final

It was hard to keep the video up and running all game, so I missed big chunks of it, but the middle of our lines (OL and DL) seemed to be having difficulty all game. McCarney looked pretty winded at the end, but overall it's hard to draw any real conclusions about the team going forward. Lots of guys got carries today, so clearly there's still some questions at TB, but if Biddle is willing to try, I think a DiCicco/Wilkins rotation could be productive.

The biggest task will be to not get allow the letdown heading into the Albany game next weekend.

[Gater]

Colgate looked really good on both sides of the ball for the 1st quarter. And Colgate had a nice drive to start the second half--went for it on 4th from the Air Force 12 down 21-7. I think playing at 6,600 feet and having it be 115 on the field (according to the broadcasters) has to be about the best home field advantage you can get. I am hopeful that the first quarter Raiders are the team we see for the majority of the year.

[Go...gate]

38-13 Final

The beating was decisive, the check respectable...

Colgate certainly did not embarass itself.

Lehigh should step-up and play a good OOC sometime - as they used to do not all that long ago.

Until the Engineers do that, your rhetoric rings with a hollow tone.

[Go Lehigh TU owl]

Colgate certainly did not embarass itself.

Lehigh should step-up and play a good OOC sometime - as they used to do not all that long ago.

Until the Engineers do that, your rhetoric rings with a hollow tone.

This was a game Colgate was never going to win. I'm sorry but I don't see how that's stepping up. I give Colgate way more credit for scheduling UNH and SBU.

Your game against Albany means way more.

[CFBfan]

I was at the game and the altitude was a big factor. you go see the energy drain mid 2nd quarter. I arrived Fri and have been lightheaded all day (some would say that's a permanent condition for me!). Before getting gased they looked REAL good.

[Go...gate]

This was a game Colgate was never going to win. I'm sorry but I don't see how that's stepping up. I give Colgate way more credit for scheduling UNH and SBU.

Your game against Albany means way more.

In any walk of life, a person hopes to get a chance to play and work with and against the very best, at the highest level. That way, one is not afraid of the challenges that may come along.

[Go...gate]

I was at the game and the altitude was a big factor. you go see the energy drain mid 2nd quarter. I arrived Fri and have been lightheaded all day (some would say that's a permanent condition for me!). Before getting gased they looked REAL good.

That was the word on the Colgate board. A lot of tough games coming up, though.

[Go Lehigh TU owl]

In any walk of life, a person hopes to get a chance to play and work with and against the very best, at the highest level. That way, one is not afraid of the challenges that may come along.

Football is not life, well maybe it is. Either way there's class segregation in football. The PL teams need to win some marquee FCS games before they worry about playing an FBS team 2500 miles away.

[Go...gate]

Football is not life, well maybe it is. Either way there's class segregation in football. The PL teams need to win some marquee FCS games before they worry about playing an FBS team 2500 miles away.

Some of the PL teams need to schedule marquee FCS games. Colgate is doing both - quality opponents on the FBS and FCS level.

[Go...gate]

From a Colgate observer"

"There are definitely some great things that came out of this game:

1) A great experience for the players and staff;

2) A surprisingly large Colgate turnout;

3) Our players hanging and playing tough, in spurts* and;

4) While not showing in the stats, to me Wilkins showed that he's going to be a big, tough guy to tackle and seems like he can be the next stud 'gate RB.

*As a qualifier, this was an AF team that only returned 5 starters. While they are well coached, they might not be as great and fearsome as we think.

On the negative, outside of the first TD drive, McCarney was really off. He missed a lot of throws with open receivers. Several throws were no where close.

Aside from that, I might attribute other negatives to altitude and heat. AF simply wore our D down. They weren't bigger then us, but they played very up tempo and advantages in conditioning showed.

Our D was completely gassed in the 2nd quarter and deep in the 3rd. We also had our standard special teams error in a blocked PAT.

All that matters now is getting on track with Albany, who we've struggled against. They lost handidly to a Duquesne team that was 5-6 last year.

Longer term, I am a huge proponent of playing 1 of these FBS stretch games every year, particularly against the service academies. Great pagenatry and tradition."

[Engineer86]

Some of the PL teams need to schedule marquee FCS games. Colgate is doing both - quality opponents on the FBS and FCS level.

This! You can't beat them if you never play them. And by them, I mean playing up in FCS much less an FBS team

[Gater]

Towson was a poor Patriot League team not that long ago. On Thursday they decisively beat UCONN. There is no reason teams like Colgate shouldn't move in the same direction. In a lot of ways, you are who you play and you recruit better players by playing better teams. Bill and Mary almost beat West Virginia and Villanova could have taken BC today. If Colgate wants to be at the top of the FCS, it needs to play these games. Obviously our lifelong Lehigh fan who went to Temple isn't a fan of Colgate but I'm excited about the direction the program is headed. There will be bumps in the road but I'd much rather take this route than have "reach" games be against FCS teams that should be our football peers.

[RichH2]

Love being a tease but Joe has lined up a very serious upgrade to LU's schedule for 15 and 16. Andy better hit a bunch of home runs with this next class.

[Go Lehigh TU owl]

Towson was a poor Patriot League team not that long ago. On Thursday they decisively beat UCONN. There is no reason teams like Colgate shouldn't move in the same direction. In a lot of ways, you are who you play and you recruit better players by playing better teams. Bill and Mary almost beat West Virginia and Villanova could have taken BC today. If Colgate wants to be at the top of the FCS, it needs to play these games. Obviously our lifelong Lehigh fan who went to Temple isn't a fan of Colgate but I'm excited about the direction the program is headed. There will be bumps in the road but I'd much rather take this route than have "reach" games be against FCS teams that should be our football peers.

What is Colgate's best win outside of the PL over the last 10 years? Outside of UMass in 2005 I can't think of one. The playoff performances have been woeful.

My point is, Colgate is not Towson, McNeese, EWU etc. There is no hope of beating a team like AF right now. I'm just being honest. Every objective person agreed in their picks.

[Gater]

How do you make a program better? By scheduling good schools or bad schools? How do you get better recruits? By scheduling good schools or bad schools? Towson got better. Colgate wants to get better. The school is upgrading its program. It is adding scholarships. It is scheduling tougher teams. If Colgate was happy with its record outside of the Patriot League over the past 10 years these things would not be changing.

[Go...gate]

What is Colgate's best win outside of the PL over the last 10 years? Outside of UMass in 2005 I can't think of one. The playoff performances have been woeful.

My point is, Colgate is not Towson, McNeese, EWU etc. There is no hope of beating a team like AF right now. I'm just being honest. Every objective person agreed in their picks.

So we should quit? Sorry. Not going to happen. And don't think the PL does not benefit by having a couple of schools with scheduling ambition.

Why don't you guys concentrate on upgrading your own schedule instead of being so worried about ours, or Lafayette's, or anyone else's?

[Go...gate]

Towson was a poor Patriot League team not that long ago. On Thursday they decisively beat UCONN. There is no reason teams like Colgate shouldn't move in the same direction. In a lot of ways, you are who you play and you recruit better players by playing better teams. Bill and Mary almost beat West Virginia and Villanova could have taken BC today. If Colgate wants to be at the top of the FCS, it needs to play these games. Obviously our lifelong Lehigh fan who went to Temple isn't a fan of Colgate but I'm excited about the direction the program is headed. There will be bumps in the road but I'd much rather take this route than have "reach" games be against FCS teams that should be our football peers.

Exactly.

[Go...gate]

Love being a tease but Joe has lined up a very serious upgrade to LU's schedule for 15 and 16. Andy better hit a bunch of home runs with this next class.

Sounds good.

[Go Lehigh TU owl]

How do you make a program better? By scheduling good schools or bad schools? How do you get better recruits? By scheduling good schools or bad schools? Towson got better. Colgate wants to get better. The school is upgrading its program. It is adding scholarships. It is scheduling tougher teams. If Colgate was happy with its record outside of the Patriot League over the past 10 years these things would not be changing.

You don't make the program better by playing Air Force, Cincy or Temple and lose by 3+ TD's. You do it by beating your peers. I'm honestly not trying to hate on Colgate. Just look at the combined scores of Colgate's last two FBS teams. They are still WAY out of reach.

[Sader87]

I'd rather lose to Air Force than Bryant.....

[Gater]

If you want your peers to be Villanova and Bill and Mary then you play those teams. Who do you want Lehigh's football peers to be? How successful do you want the Patriot League to be? As good as the CAA? If you do, then you need to play FBS schools. The best schools in the FCS play FBS schools. If you want to be the best in the FCS you play FBS schools.

[heath]

If you want your peers to be Villanova and Bill and Mary then you play those teams. Who do you want Lehigh's football peers to be? How successful do you want the Patriot League to be? As good as the CAA? If you do, then you need to play FBS schools. The best schools in the FCS play FBS schools. If you want to be the best in the FCS you play FBS schools.
I agree with your statement,but many FCS schools including Colgate REALLY need to upgrade their facility as much as their schedule."you build it,they will come'xnodx

[Go Lehigh TU owl]

If you want your peers to be Villanova and Bill and Mary then you play those teams. Who do you want Lehigh's football peers to be? How successful do you want the Patriot League to be? As good as the CAA? If you do, then you need to play FBS schools. The best schools in the FCS play FBS schools. If you want to be the best in the FCS you play FBS schools.

You can't deny that 80% of those are paycheck games. That is what Air Force was. It is not stepping up unless you have a legitimate shot at winning.

I'm sorry if I have trouble giving credit to Colgate for scheduling a loss. I know Carney is with me on this. This isn't basketball....

[Go Green]

Some of the PL teams need to schedule marquee FCS games. Colgate is doing both - quality opponents on the FBS and FCS level.

Yale?

xlolx

[Gater]

A paycheck is certainly nice to get and probably makes it a bit easier to justify scholarships. I understand that you will sidestep the other arguments for why Colgate will play these games and why every top FCS school plays these games. Colgate is looking to upgrade its program. Scheduling FBS schools is part of that. Let me know if you want me to continue posting this.

[Go Lehigh TU owl]

A paycheck is certainly nice to get and probably makes it a bit easier to justify scholarships. I understand that you will sidestep the other arguments for why Colgate will play these games and why every top FCS school plays these games. Colgate is looking to upgrade its program. Scheduling FBS schools is part of that. Let me know if you want me to continue posting this.

I'm not sidestepping anything.There are FBS teams the I honestly do believe Lehigh can beat. Air Force is not one of them.

Army, EMU, Buffalo, UConn, Akron, Directional FLA would have been better choices if Colgate wanted a FBS team they were ready to compete with.

Posting from a cell stinks.

[Gater]

Hopefully Lehigh will start playing those schools soon. I'm sure most Lehigh fans would welcome these types of games and it would be great for the entire league.

[Bill]

Heath - no disrespect intended, but what do you think "upgrading" Colgate's facility would accomplish? It's not that bad, considering the size of the school and the surrounding area. If the "stadium" (and I use that term loosely) got any bigger, it would never sell out...there's just not a big enough population to support it.

[Lehigh Football Nation]

There were times when Colgate looked real solid against AFA, but the heat and altitude and talent and everything were too much in the end. I thought they represented the PL well, played a very high academic service academy and played in an unforgettable game for the student-athletes. This was not Baylor 69, Wofford 3 or Oregon 66, Nicholls 3. It was a neat one-off game, a paycheck, and something that will probably serve the Gate well going forward.

[Kramden]

You can't deny that 80% of those are paycheck games. That is what Air Force was. It is not stepping up unless you have a legitimate shot at winning.

I'm sorry if I have trouble giving credit to Colgate for scheduling a loss. I know Carney is with me on this. This isn't basketball....

It is what has separated Colgate for years and hopefully this type of scheduling will continue. Academies are a great addition to their schedule. I agree that top tier FCS programs would be nice too but this type of scheduling gives the players the experience they might not get in a FCS game and some money for the school. When Rutgers and Army were regulars on the schedule, and Syracuse/Penn State made some cameo appearances, that was right in the heart of the Colgate culture; stretch your limits. Hope they have a nice season.

[Go...gate]

Yale?

xlolx

Maybe we could play Dartmouth. Oh, that's right, DC ended the series with us after playing us periodically for a century.....

We are playing Albany, Stony Brook and UNH in addition to Air Force. Maybe we will lose them all. But we are trying - and I dare say it will help us as the season continues.

[Go...gate]

You can't deny that 80% of those are paycheck games. That is what Air Force was. It is not stepping up unless you have a legitimate shot at winning.

I'm sorry if I have trouble giving credit to Colgate for scheduling a loss. I know Carney is with me on this. This isn't basketball....

I could care less if Jackie Gleason, Audrey Meadows, Joyce Randolph and Amos Alonzo Stagg were with you on it as well.

[Doc QB]

We are playing Albany, Stony Brook and UNH in addition to Air Force. Maybe we will lose them all. But we are trying - and I dare say it will help us as the season continues.

I am completely envious of the 'Gate schedule. Regrdless of one's feelings on paycheck/bodybag/play-up games and their consequences on team morale, experience, development, or growth, etc....they also have THREE CAA teams. Three! Right where I'd love Lehigh to be. We're not even close. They're hitting NY hard, too. Well done Raiders.