Nov. 17, 2007
It didn't happen in the most conventional or predictable manner, but the Fordham Rams can celebrate their first-ever outright Patriot League Football Championship on Saturday.
Fordham wasn't able to take care of business at home against Bucknell, as the Bison scored their first Patriot League win of the year with a 38-24 triumph. But before that game had concluded, the Rams learned that they would claim sole possession of the Patriot League crown as Holy Cross rallied from a 20-10 deficit to top Colgate, 27-20. The Rams finish at 5-1 in the League, while Holy Cross and Colgate tie for second place at 4-2. Lafayette made it a three-way tie for second place by beating archrival Lehigh for the fourth consecutive time, 21-17.
Fordham had already clinched the Patriot League's automatic berth to the NCAA Division I Football Championship, and claimed at least a share of the League title for the second time in school history and first since 2002. They will find out their playoff opponent and bracket when the selections are announced on Sunday at 3:30 p.m. on ESPNU.
The Rams (8-3, 5-1) are the first Patriot League team to claim the title outright since Colgate in 2003. They had a chance to post the first undefeated League campaign since that Colgate team, but could not stop a Bucknell (3-8, 1-5) team that was out to avoid a winless League campaign. The Bison took the early lead on an 82-yard touchdown pass from Marcello Trigg to A.J. Kizekai, and grabbed command of the game in the second half after trailing, 17-14, at halftime. They claimed a 21-17 lead on a 56-yard bomb from Trigg to Cale Cadman early in the third, and stretched the lead out to 31-17 by the end of the quarter. Bucknell put the game away with a 52-yard touchdown run by Corin Erby late in the contest to go up 38-17. The Bison racked up 261 yards on the ground, and notched 475 yards of total offense. Fordham had its six-game winning streak snapped.
Colgate (7-4, 4-2) could have taken advantage of Fordham's loss to claim a share of the League title, and remained in the race for an at-large playoff spot, by beating Holy Cross (7-4, 4-2). But it was not to be for the Raiders, even though they started off in fine fashion. Colgate took a 14-0 lead in the first half on a pair of Jordan Scott touchdown runs, but Holy Cross bounced back to cut it to 14-10 at halftime. The Raiders increased their lead to 20-10 on Scott's third touchdown run of the day on the first possession of the third quarter. After Holy Cross cut the deficit to 20-13, Colgate missed an opportunity to extend the lead when Casey Gough picked off an Alex Relph pass in the endzone early in the fourth quarter.
The Crusaders capitalized right away, going 80 yards in four plays to tie the score at 20 on a 26-yard touchdown pass from Dominic Randolph to Brett McDermott. With momentum on their side, the Crusaders quickly forced a Colgate punt and marched down the field to take the lead with a three-yard scoring strike from Randolph to Justin Maher for the winning score with 7:28 to play. Holy Cross put the game away with a pair of interceptions to stop Colgate drives.
The game featured incredible individual efforts from the Patriot League's two finalists for the Walter Payton Award, which is given to the most outstanding player in the Football Championship Subdivision. Scott carried 39 times for 206 yards and three touchdowns, but was upstaged by Randolph's day of 29-of-42 passing for 441 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. Randolph set career highs for passing yards and total offense (473), and had the second-most passing yards in Holy Cross history.
The contest between Lafayette (7-4, 4-2) and Lehigh (5-6, 2-4) had the least significance on the standings, but the neighboring rivals added another memorable chapter in the 143rd edition of the Most-Played Rivalry in College Football. The teams traded scores throughout the first half, with Matt McGowan's one-yard touchdown run giving Lehigh a 17-14 lead at the break. It stayed that way throughout the third quarter, and Lehigh was unable to extend the lead when Jason Leo missed a 35-yard field goal with 9:17 to play after a 10-minute drive. That gave Lafayette the ball at its own 20, and the Leopards methodically moved down the field to set up a third-and-goal at the Lehigh 3. Quarterback Rob Curley hit Kyle Roeder with a three-yard touchdown on the play, giving Lafayette a 21-17 advantage with 3:30 left in the game. The Leopards stopped Lehigh on four plays on the next possession, and ran out the clock to wrap up their first four-game win streak over the Mountain Hawks since winning nine in a row from 1943-49.
Lafayette had a 374-244 advantage in total offense. The Leopards posted a winning Patriot League mark for the fourth consecutive season, while sending Lehigh to its first losing Patriot League and overall record since 1997.
Four Patriot League teams finished with a 4-2 record or better in League play for just the second time in the League's 22-year history. Also, four teams finish the season with seven overall wins or more for the sixth time in League annals. Both feats were most recently accomplished in 2004.
For full recaps on Saturday's action, read the game stories from school websites.
Crusaders Come From Behind For 27-20 Victory Over Colgate
For the Colgate story, read: Scott Rushes For 206, But Holy Cross Rallies For 27-20 Win
Big Plays Lead Bucknell Football to 38-24 Upset of Fordham in Season Finale
For the Fordham story, read: Fordham Football Drops Regular Season Finale to Bucknell, 38-24
For the Lehigh story, read: Mountain Hawks drop 143rd meeting on late TD
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