The FCS football season is fast approaching, so we’re going inside each conference race. With defending co-champs Lafayette and Holy Cross leading the way, here’s our 2024 Patriot League football preview.
Lafayette’s resume is strong, entering the 2024 season off winning a co-Patriot League championship and earning an FCS playoff appearance, and with a No. 17 national ranking while returning eight starters on each side of the ball.
To be careful, though, use pencil when writing in the Leopards as a title lock.
The Patriot League has an excellent depth of title hopefuls this season, and that includes Holy Cross, last year’s co-champion which had won outright titles in the four previous seasons.
There’s also not a shortage of key returning players on offense. Plus, PL teams performed well against outside competition, going 17-13 in FCS matchups.
2024 Patriot League Football Preview
Predicted Order of Finish
*-FCS Playoff Qualifier
1. *Lafayette (9-3, 5-1; No. 17 national preseason ranking) – The road schedule is daunting for coach John Troxell’s squad, starting at Buffalo and Monmouth and including Fordham and Colgate. All-America running back Jamar Curtis, the PL’s preseason offensive player of the year, set the program’s single-season record for rushing yards (1,460), and the offense has a strong passing combo with quarterback Dean DeNobile (2,177 yards of total offense, 26 total touchdowns) and wide receiver Elijah Steward. Left tackle Ryder Langsdale has started every game for two years running. Defensive end Jaylon Joseph is coming off PL defensive rookie of the year, while the secondary is strong with the return of Saiku White and A.T. Ntantang.
2. Fordham (6-5, 2-4) – All six of Fordham’s 2023 PL games were decided by eight or fewer points, so this season, the Rams need to reverse the close losses. Quarterback CJ Montes engineered an FBS win over Buffalo and threw with elite efficiency (3,000 passing yards, 64.1%, 26 touchdowns, one interception). Defenses have to remain honest against Montes given RB Julius Loughridge’s exploits (1,146 rushing yards) out of the backfield. The defense boasts an unmatched duo in the league with defensive end Matt Jaworski (13.5 tackles for loss, nine sacks), who was the PL preseason defensive player of the year, and linebacker James Conway (129 tackles, 386 in career).
3. Holy Cross (7-4, 5-1) – New coach Dan Curran was a strong hire to replace the ultra-successful Bob Chesney when considering he guided Merrimack (53-58 record in 11 seasons) to an upset of the Crusaders in 2021. Quarterback Joe Pesansky also has a daunting task in replacing long-time standout Matthew Sluka, but he passed for five TDs in winning two starts a year ago. Of course, it helps the PL’s top-ranked offense to return All-America RB Jordan Fuller (1,046 yards and 18 TDs on just 156 carries) and WR Justin Shorter (95 career receptions). Linebacker Frankie Monte is a big-hit machine.
4. Colgate (6-5, 4-2) – The Raiders, who won six of their last seven games and handed Lafayette its only PL loss last season, lurk as a dark horse. Quarterback Jake Stearney impressed as a passer in his freshman campaign, although Michael Brescia is a veteran of 29 career games with 20 starts. They’ll work behind a Bardhyi Gashi-led offensive line and target Treyvhon Saunders, who was second in the PL in receptions (68) and third in receiving yards (859). The pass defense must improve after being ravaged for 283.5 yards per game and 27 TDs – both league lows.
5. Georgetown (5-6, 3-3) – Incredibly, in his only action, QB Danny Lauter set the program’s single-game record with 428 passing yards against Lafayette, and this year’s offense returns WRs Jimmy Kibble (33 catches, 753 yards, eight TDs) and Nicholas Dunneman (70-706-4) and tight end Isaiah Grimes (30-266-2) as well as RB Naieem Kearney (601 rushing yards). There’s some retooling going on after the Hoyas ranked No. 1 in the PL in total defense, allowing just 324.1 yards per game, but there’s maturing talent, and defensive backs Wedner Cadet and Zeraun Daniel excel against the pass.
6. Bucknell (4-7, 1-5) – Like Georgetown, Bucknell has never appeared in the FCS playoffs. But even the team picked last in the PL’s preseason poll returns a standout passing duo with QB Ralph Rucker (program-record 2,537 passing yards and a record-tying 21 TD passes with just five interceptions) and WR Eric Weatherly (42 receptions, 603 yards, seven TDs). Defense used to be the Bison’s calling card, but improvement is needed after opponents averaged 33.7 points and 431.2 yards per game. Linebacker and leading tackler Brad Jamison returns.
7. Lehigh (2-9, 1-5) – The Mountain Hawks struggled to get turned around in coach Kevin Cahill’s first season, and they’re 14-44 (11-22 PL) since 2018. Improvement should come behind the lead of LB Mike DeNucci and safety Nick Pelekian, who were named to the league’s preseason team. Quarterback Dante Perri, the 2021 and ’22 starter, hopes to get back on track as being No. 2 on the depth chart last season. As a freshman, Luke Yoder rushed for 644 yards, including 545 in six league games.
How the Conference Predicted the Race
Five Players to Know
Jamar Curtis, RB, Lafayette (Walter Payton Award preseason nominee) – Curtis capped his sophomore season with 151 yards from scrimmage and four TDs in a playoff loss to Delaware. He had 1,624 scrimmage yards and 17 TDs for the season.
Mike DeNucci, LB, Lehigh – Always all over the field, DeNucci had 87 tackles last season, but he also seeks to get back to his dominance in 2022 (16.5 tackles for loss, 8.5 sacks).
CJ Montes, QB, Fordham (Walter Payton Award preseason nominee) – As a sophomore,Montes had the fourth-lowest interception percentage (0.3 – one pick in 376 attempts) in the last 25 FCS seasons among QBs to throw 150+ passes.
Jordan Fuller, RB, Holy Cross (Walter Payton Award preseason nominee) – With 40 rushing TDs in 34 career games, Fuller holds the Crusaders’ record. Last year’s 18 scores on the ground also marked their single-season high.
James Conway, LB Fordham (Buck Buchanan Award preseason nominee) – Conway ranks 10th in PL history with 386 career tackles and is closing in on the all-time record (former Holy Cross linebacker Jacob Dobbs with 432).
Five Must-See Matchups
1. Holy Cross at Lafayette (Oct. 26) – Lafayette posted a 38-35 road win in last year’s showdown, which featured over 1,000 yards of total offense. Jamar Curtis racked up 250 yards from scrimmage with two TDs. In defeat, former Crusaders signal caller Matthew Sluka set an FCS record for rushing yards by a QB (330).
2. Lafayette at Fordham (Oct. 5)
3. Lafayette at Lehigh (Nov. 23)
4. Fordham at Holy Cross (Oct. 9)
5. Lafayette at Colgate (Nov. 9)
Fast Fact
Lafayette vs. Lehigh – “The Rivalry” – is college football’s most-played series. Lafayette has an 82-72-5 all-time lead heading into this season 160th meeting, or 14 more games than the No. 2 series of Princeton vs. Yale in the Ivy League.
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