BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Junior Tim Diamond was named the College Sporting News National Defensive Player of the Week, while Diamond and classmate Jason Leo were named the Patriot League Defensive and Special Teams Players of the Week, respectively, on Monday afternoon. The pair of third-year Mountain Hawks led the Brown and White to an exhilarating 20-13 victory over Harvard this past weekend at Goodman Stadium for Lehigh’s third consecutive victory. Diamond registered a career and game-high 22 tackles, while Leo averaged 44.1 yards on eight punts and also added two field goals and an extra point.
Diamond put together one of the best defensive games of anyone in FCS football this entire season, as the New Jersey native stuffed the stat sheet with 22 total tackles, one sack, one fumble recovery and a forced fumble that led to the Mountain Hawks winning touchdown. Diamond’s 22 tackles were the most by a Lehigh player since Sam Brinley had 22 in 1997 versus Bucknell, and the 22-tackle effort was the second-highest total in an FCS game this entire season (second only to Fordham’s Matt Loucks who had 26 versus Albany on September 8). For the season, Diamond leads the Mountain Hawks in both tackles (35) and fumble recoveries (2) and he has added 1.5 tackles for loss and a forced fumble.
Leo had himself another outstanding kicking afternoon against the Crimson as the Pennsylvania native booted eight punts for an average of 44.1 yards, which included his season high of 66 yards. Leo also pinned six punts inside of the Harvard 20-yard line, including two inside of the ten. Leo added two field goals, which included his season-long of 40-yards and an extra point on the afternoon. For the season, the 2006 Patriot League Special Teams Player of the Year is averaging 43.6 yards per punt, which is eighth in the nation, and he has pinned 13 of those punts inside of the opponents’ 20-yard-line. Leo leads the Mountain Hawks in scoring with 29 points, which includes six field goals and 11 extra points.
Diamond, Leo and the rest of the Mountain Hawks return to action on Saturday when they open up league play in New York versus the Rams of Fordham at Coffey Field. Kick off from the Bronx is set for 1:00 and all of the action can be heard live on ESPN Radio 1230 and 1320 AM as well as around the world on Lehighsports.com with streaming audio powered by Yahoo! Sports.
Fans wishing to speak to Lehigh head coach Andy Coen can do so on The Andy Coen Report. The show airs live on Monday evenings on ESPN Radio 1230 and 1320 and on Lehigh’s website at Lehighsports.com beginning at 6:05 PM. To speak with Coach Coen, fans can call into the show at 877-ESPN-NOW or send an email with your name and home town to sports@lehigh.edu.
