Rivalry No. 158
Come-from-behind victory over Colgate gives Lehigh momentum ahead of Lafayette matchup
Tom Gilmore won 72 games and a league championship in 14 seasons as the head coach at Holy Cross.
He also won eight games as Lehigh’s coach over the span of two full fall seasons, a spring season and the first eight games of this season.
So why did Gilmore get emotional Saturday after his team’s 36-33 win over Colgate at Goodman Stadium?
“It was just the stretch we went through there,” Gilmore said. “A lot of people on the outside doubted that we’d be able to pull off that game, especially the way we did in such dramatic fashion.
“I got asked a question in a postgame interview, and for some reason it kind of hit me and it was emotional because I was so proud of the effort and so proud of the resiliency that our players and staff have shown throughout the year. It wasn’t just Saturday; it was everything leading into Saturday.”
Lehigh entered the game on a seven-game losing streak. The Mountain Hawks fell behind 14-0, 17-7, 26-14 and 33-29 before going 73 yards on five plays for the game-winning score on an 11-yard pass from Dante Perro to
Eric Johnson with 22 seconds left.
“All the emotions came rushing out at the same time and I had to take a moment,” Gilmore said.
It was Lehigh’s first win at home this season and put the Mountain Hawks at 2-8 entering Saturday’s game at Lafayette in the 158th version of college football’s mostplayed rivalry. It also gave them a chance to finish the season with a .500 league mark, with a win over Georgetown back in September joining the Colgate victory to bookend the seven-game skid.
It is not the season Gilmore, his assistants, the players or anyone associated with the program wanted. But the tenacity shown against Colgate was proof that the team hasn’t given up, and the hope is the win generated momentum the Mountain Hawks can carry into Saturday’s game.
“For us, it injected some much-needed confidence and removed some doubts,” Gilmore said. “It sets a positive tone.
“We went through a long stretch where we weren’t winning. We felt like we were improving and doing some good things, and we were playing good opponents. But you wonder, can we get this done?
“Not only winning the game, but how we won it showed the qualities of this team ... resiliency, toughness, confidence. I got some comments after the game that we played like an 8-1 team and not a 1-8 team. I think it helps for this week, just the belief from the kids in what we’re doing.”
Senior defensive tackle Dean Colton said Saturday’s win may have provided a turning point.
“That win was awesome,” Colton said. “As a defensive guy, I was disappointed with how we came out in that first half. But the offense backed us up, and I have to give all of those guys a shoutout because they killed it.
“I’m so proud of them. That was extremely exciting and the power an offense has to revitalize a team is really special.”
Colton said this year’s season has been frustrating because of the potential he sees across the board.
“What it takes is everyone banding together as brothers in the offseason, and we really do have a close-knit group of guys,” Colton said. “But what we need is player-led accountability.
“It’s hard to call out your friend. Everybody on the team is a buddy and it’s hard to chew anybody out. That’s difficult and it will be difficult going forward, but it’s what is needed to bring out the potential because a lot of guys have the potential to be great players.”
Junior left guard Christian Jablonski also believed last week’s win was huge.
“It was a huge confidence boost, and we need to understand that if we put in the work we’re going to get the results,” Jablonski said. “It was disappointing to not see those results for a while and it was a rough couple of weeks, but that win has given us a momentum boost.
“We know Lafayette has a great defense, so we’re going to need to play a great offensive game and make less mistakes and play disciplined football and just play our game and not be something we’re not.”
Gilmore said he hasn’t talked about injuries at all season this season but noted that the offensive line had to be rebuilt again this season.
“We had one player that has played on the line that never took a snap as a college player before this season,” Gilmore said. “That’s a huge statement. We lost the only two seniors we had on the offensive line, Jack Kempsey and Brendon Passarelli.
“Passarelli would have been a four-year starter for us and Kempsey was a mainstay. But I couldn’t be prouder of a position group than I am of the offensive line because of how guys have stepped up and come together.”
Gilmore noted that last week three players were playing new positions on the offensive line and another player was thrown into the mix.
“It has been a tough road, but there has been a lot of progress there and the good news is that they all have three years of eligibility left,” Gilmore said. “We have really good skill players who have all shown really nice growth, which makes me excited for the offense, and we’ve seen some great things on defense and we’ve seen some inconsistency as well. Injuries have played a factor there as well, but we’ve recruited well and there’s talent in the program.”
Overall, Gilmore said that in 2021 Lehigh was one of the youngest teams in the country. In 2022 more experience was in place and a lot of the same players are coming back.
“I know it can be frustrating at times,” he said. “Me, and the rest of the staff and every single player on our team wants to win games. That’s the goal.
“But we see the progress. There’s hope on the horizon and we see where we’re going. We wish it would happen faster, but the belief is there that we’re much closer now.”