More than bragging rights on the line
Despite record, Leopards could wind up as Patriot League’s automatic qualifier
Paterson, New Jersey, and Baden, Pennsylvania, are 378 miles apart by car, so it’s unlikely that Yasir Thomas and Jake Marotti would have met except for a common love: football. And, now, Lafayette football.
“Four years ago, we came in for summer workouts; I didn’t know him and he didn’t know me. But look at us now … we’re captains … it’s really been a blessing,” Marotti said.
“I thank Lafayette for giving me the opportunity,” Thomas said. “It’s a blessing, especially coming from where I come from. It’s great to meet people — like Jake.”
Thomas, who has been a starter in the defensive secondary 36 times since midway through his freshman year, and Marotti, who has started 30 games on the offensive line, are preparing for what might be the final start of their careers.
The Leopards, despite their 3-8 overall record, could wind up as the Patriot League’s automatic qualifier to the NCAA FCS playoffs.
It’s Lehigh Week for Coach John Garrett’s team … the 155th meeting in college football’s most-played rivalry, and “the tradition behind it is pretty amazing stuff to think about,” said Marotti, who played his high school ball at Ambridge High in western Pennsylvania.
And Thomas, who played at Passaic Tech, added, “… to see the passion [alumni] speak with when they speak about the game makes you want to play harder for them, just to have respect for the rivalry.”
Throw in the possibility of claiming the league title and the NCAA berth that goes with it — and the fact that this year’s seniors have not beaten their arch-rival — and motivation will not be
a problem for the Leopards.
Lafayette and Lehigh have 3-2 league records, trailing only Holy Cross, which is 4-1 and is at home against Georgetown. Holy Cross wins it all by defeating the Hoyas; but a Crusader loss, combined with a Leopard victory over Lehigh, makes Lafayette the champ.
Eighteen seniors, who came to Easton when Frank Tavani was the head coach, will try to put a positive stamp on their Lafayette careers, but only seven of them — four on offense, three on defense — are listed as probable starters.
Fourteen players on the two-deep chart are freshmen who are in for a bit of a surprise at 12:30 p.m. in Lehigh’s Goodman Stadium on Saturday.
“Yeah, we explain the tradition to them, 155 games , most games played, but this game has to be treated like any other game,” Marotti said. “We have to give the same amount of energy, focus, execution. In that aspect, it doesn’t change much. But with the tradition, there’s more on the table.”
“Essentially, it’s about poise, Thomas said. “… We can’t go into this game thinking we have to do too much and overextend ourselves. We have to prepare like it’s any other game and understand the implications behind that. As far as [the flow going] back and forth, that’s the challenge; if you out-execute your opponent, that will get you the result you want.”
“I definitely do,” Thomas said when he was asked if he remembered the Lehigh game of his freshman year. “It was my third game on defense [he moved from wide receiver] … all these people, a crazy atmosphere, teams chatting back and forth, the craziest thing. And every year has gotten better.”
Marotti was in that 2016 game, too, but as a tight end. “An extra lineman, essentially, but I got to wear No. 84, which was really cool. But like [Thomas] said, running out of the tunnel and seeing the stands and all the noise, it’s like something you dream of as a little kid. It’s like a little kid on Christmas.”
But losing to Lehigh is hard to take, especially in a game like last year. The Brown and White scored on a 43-yard fumble return 19 seconds into the game and went on to a 34-3 rout.
“It was bitter, so we definitely want to leave last year be last year,” Thomas said. “We are looking forward to creating our own history and our own last game and our own memories, not trying to linger on the past or whatever it may be. Look where we have come; the record says otherwise, but we work really hard at what we do so at the end of the day, the main goal is to come out with a win.”
“I agree; we can’t dwell on the past,” Marotti said. “You do that [and] you’ll sit in your sorrows forever. There’s a point where you have to say, let’s go, snap out of this. Let’s do what we know how to do.”