Richmond delivers a happy homecoming for two local products in win over Lehigh
The game was over for close to 45 minutes late Saturday afternoon at Goodman Stadium and Tristan Wheeler was still on the field in uniform exchanging greetings and hugs and posing for pictures for family and friends.
Wheeler, one of the best defensive players in Football Champion Subdivision-level college football, was part of Richmond’s 30-6 win over Lehigh and the former Freedom High standout was in no hurry to get back on the bus for the 5 ½-hour return trip to Virginia’s capital.
“I was excited to be back in Bethlehem and my boys were excited to see where I grew up playing,” Wheeler said after making six tackles and being a part of a defensive unit that allowed just 15 Lehigh rushing yards. “The coolest thing was to see all of my family and friends. I think I had 30-something people here and it was also cool to play against [Lehigh’s] Trevor Harris. We went to rival schools since he went to Liberty. It’s fun to see how far we’ve come and how all the work we’ve put in to get to the next level and now we’re here.”
For now, Wheeler’s Richmond program is at a higher level than Lehigh.
The Spiders won the 2008 national championship and have made the FCS playoffs four times since. The Mountain Hawks are seeking their first winning season since 2016.
Wheeler wasn’t the only Lehigh Valley product savoring the return home. Easton graduate Jakob Herres also had a lot of people rooting for him and he delivered six catches for 70 yards. He is in his first season at Richmond after a record-breaking career at Virginia Military Institute.
“A lot of people came and it’s a blessing to have all of this support and have all of these people want to come and see me play,” Herres said. “I’m just glad to be in this position. It’s also cool to be playing with Tristan knowing he’s a Lehigh Valley kid. We know where we came from and it’s cool to see everybody at this level.”
Herres is getting used to a new coaching staff, new system and new personnel at Richmond and it looks like the transition is going well.
“Everything has been meshing really well,” Herres said. “We’ve got a lot of good athletes on the team and the coaches did a good job preparing us during camp and the summer and the fruits of our labor are starting to show. But we still have a long way to go.”
Herres caught a 16-yard pass from Reece Udinski on Richmond’s first play from scrimmage. The Spiders moved 74 yards on nine plays for a touchdown on the first drive and never looked back.
Udinski, a North Penn High School product who played with Herres at VMI and then spent the 2021 season at Maryland was 35-for-42 for 351 yards and threw a pair of touchdowns.
Another Richmond score came on a double pass with Connor Deveney hauling in a 23-yard pass from running back Savon Smith.
It was the only Spiders (2-1) score of the second half as Lehigh’s defense made adjustments after the Spiders got touchdowns on three of their first four possessions and led 20-0 just 19 minutes into the game.
“We knew Richmond was a really good team and they proved that to us today,” said
Mountain Hawks coach Tom Gilmore. “But I’m still disappointed in how we performed and it wasn’t any one thing. One of the players just told me we were all taking our turns.”
Lehigh had run for more than 150 yards in its first games but managed a net 15 yards on the ground against Richmond.
Quarterback Dante Perri was sacked four times and under pressure numerous other times, but still completed 22 of 34 yards for 188 yards.
The Mountain Hawks’ one highlight moment came in the third period when Zaythan Hill took a screen pass and found a lane that became a fast track to the end zone. It was a 77-yard touchdown and cut the deficit to 20-6, but Lehigh’s four possessions produced just 16 yards, three punts and an interception.
“It was definitely a good moment,” Hill said. “But I wish we would have capitalized on it afterward. That kind of spark, getting those explosive plays, we can do it. We’ve just got to trust ourselves, trust this game and keep playing no matter if it’s a CAA team or a Big 12 team, it doesn’t matter. We’ve just got to play our brand of football. So that play felt good, but I’d rather take a W.”
Gilmore emphasized the positive and while he was particularly disappointed in his defense’s tackling, he was pleased the Mountain Hawks were able to hold Richmond to 49 yards on 30 attempts.
Mike DeNucci led the defense with nine tackles, including a sack, and TyGee Leach added eight stops and two tackles for loss.
“In the first quarter we were playing too loose in our coverage,” Gilmore said. “We had to tighten it up and anticipate [Udinski’s] quicker throws. One we did that, his percentage went down. I think most of his incompletions were probably in the second and third quarter. He’s a very good football player and a very experienced player. We needed to change things up so we didn’t give him as many easy throws.”
Gilmore said he’s looking for more progress over the next two weeks until his team returns to league play on Oct. 8 against Fordham.
“We need to build on our strengths and correct our mistakes and if we do that, we’ll be in good shape,” Gilmore said. “It kind of stinks after a loss like this but I think we have confidence we can keep improving. We showed today that when we’re on, we can compete successfully against these people. But when we’re not on, you’ll get a result like we got today.”
What’s next
Lehigh plays at Princeton in a 3 p.m. start Saturday before returning home Oct. 1 against Monmouth. Richmond hosts Stony Brook Saturday and then visits Elon on Oct. 1. Elon is coached by former Whitehall coach Tony Trisciani.