Chasing a trip to the top
Holy Cross, Harvard own tools to win league titles
If first-year coach Bob Chesney and Holy Cross want to rise up in the Patriot League this season, the Crusaders will have to do more than just overcome big losses on the field, headlined by quarterback Peter Pujals.
They’ll also have to overcome a tough conference back for more.
Lehigh and Colgate return as the favorites, a year after they finished as co-champions with 5-1 records. The Mountain Hawks emerged as the conference’s FCS playoff representative, losing in the first round to Stony Brook.
Still, both programs return with loads of talent. Colgate was picked to win the Patriot League in the preseason poll, with Lehigh not far behind.
It’s for good reason. Colgate’s Dan Hunt, the league’s 2017 coach of the year, returns a whopping nine starters on both offense and defense, including sophomore quarterback Grant Breneman, the reigning rookie of the year, and junior defensive lineman Nick Wheeler, the league’s preseason defensive player of the year.
The Mountain Hawks, who are looking for their third consecutive trip to the FCS playoffs, lost wide receivers Troy Pelletier and Gatlin Casey, but still boast a high-powered offense. Senior running back Dominick Bragalone, who led FCS with 1,388 yards and 18 touchdowns last season, returns as the league’s preseason offensive player of the year, and quarterback Brad Mayes led the league in passing yards last season.
Fordham has a first-year coach in Joe Conlin, who faces a tall task in replacing running back Chase Edmonds, the Patriot League’s all-time leading rusher and scorer.
After Holy Cross, Bucknell and Lafayette tied for fifth in the preseason poll, with Georgetown in seventh.
Ivy League
Harvard endured its worst league finish in nearly two decades last season in fifth place, but the Crimson are projected to be back among the league’s best this season.
It won’t be easy.
Five of the eight teams earned at least one first-place vote in the preseason poll with Yale at the top. The Bulldogs won the title last season for the first time since finishing as co-champions in 2006. They’re the overwhelming favorite to go back-to-back.
The biggest reason? Preseason All-American running back Zane Dudek is the horse that makes Yale’s running game go. Dudek became the first true freshman in Ivy League history to lead the conference in rushing with 1,133 yards, and he was named the rookie of the year.
Princeton may be Yale’s greatest challenger. The Tigers, who finished seventh last year, are primed for a breakout year led by senior quarterback John Lovett. They also boast a preseason AllAmerican in senior wide receiver Jesper Horsted, who broke school records with 92 receptions and 14 touchdowns last season.
After Harvard, Columbia and Penn are no slouches. The Lions finished in a tie for second last season, their best since 1996, but they’ll have to overcome the loss of quarterback Anders Hill. The Quakers also face an uphill battle after losing wide receiver Justin Watson to the NFL.