Lehigh University Athletics
Lehigh heads to Princeton for nationally-televised showdown Saturday night
9/17/2013 12:03:00 PM | Football
Game notes | Audio broadcast | NBC Sports NetworkÂ
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Winners of its first two games by a combined 10 points, No. 18/22 Lehigh returns to New Jersey to battle Ivy League rival Princeton Saturday night under the lights at Princeton Stadium. The Mountain Hawks rallied for a 28-25 win at Monmouth last weekend to move to 2-0 on the season. Senior Lee Kurfis continued his torrid start to 2013 with ten catches for 211 yards and two touchdowns, including the go-ahead 40 yard touchdown from Brandon Bialkowski with just over ten minutes to play.
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While Lehigh plays game No. 3 of its season Saturday, Princeton will open its 2013 campaign. The Tigers rebounded from a 1-9 campaign in 2011 to finish at 5-5 last season. Former Tiger center Bob Surace begins his fourth season on the Tiger sidelines. Princeton returns its top two quarterbacks from a year ago in juniors Quinn Epperly and Connor Michelsen. Both signal callers saw significant time under center last year with Michelsen putting up better passing numbers and Epperly more of a dual threat. The Tigers also return their top rusher from a year ago, Will Powers, and top two receivers Matt Costello and Roman Wilson. The Princeton defense is led by top returning tackler Alex Polofsky at linebacker and All-America defensive end Caraun Reid.        Â
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Kurfis is off to an outstanding start in 2013. He is the first player in Lehigh and Patriot League history to record back-to-back 200-plus yard receiving games; catching seven passes for a Goodman Stadium record 222 yards and two touchdowns in Lehigh's come-from-behind win over Central Connecticut State and ten passes for 211 yards and two scores last week at Monmouth. The FCS leader in receiving yards and receiving yards per game, Kurfis hauled in four passes for 205 yards and two scores in the fourth quarter and overtime against CCSU. Last week against Monmouth, Kurfis' 40 yard touchdown catch in the fourth quarter proved to be the game winner. Kurfis now owns the fifth and eighth-highest single-game receiving yardage totals in school history.
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A major reason for Lehigh's offensive success over the last two seasons is its ability to generate big plays. The Mountain Hawks had 28 plays from scrimmage of 30 yards or more in each of the last two seasons. Through two games this season, Lehigh already has nine plays of 30 yards or more, including six long passes from Bialkowski to Kurfis.
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Lehigh brings an impressive 15 game regular season road winning streak into Saturday's game. In regular season play, the Mountain Hawks have not lost away from Goodman Stadium since a 31-10 loss at New Hampshire on September 25, 2010. The streak started October 16, 2010 at Harvard when Lehigh erased a 17-0 halftime deficit to win 21-19. The Mountain Hawks have also played four FCS playoff games on the road since this streak began. Lehigh is 2-2 in those games with a first round win at Northern Iowa in 2010 and a second round win at Towson in 2011.
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Lehigh meets Princeton for the 57th time Saturday with the Tigers leading the series 39-15-2. The Mountain Hawks have won 11 of the past 14 matchups, including three straight. These two teams met for the first time in 1887.
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Maybe the Mountain Hawks should consider installing lights at Goodman Stadium. Lehigh has played exactly one night game in every season since 2003 and the Mountain Hawks are 7-3 in those games. Dating back to 1999, Lehigh is 10-4 in night games, including a 5-1 record in night games at Princeton. Lehigh is 5-2 in night games under Andy Coen with wins at Villanova in 2006 (Coen's first win as a head coach), Drake in 2010, Princeton in 2007 and 2011, and at Liberty last season.
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Saturday's game kicks off just after 6 p.m. from Princeton Stadium in New Jersey. The game will be televised nationally on the NBC Sports Network (Service Electric Dial Position 93 and DirecTV channel 220). Audio coverage will be available on ESPN Radio 1230 and 1320, ESPNLV.com and Lehighsports.com, with pregame coverage beginning at 5 p.m.
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The Mountain Hawks will then return home to face New Hampshire on Homecoming at Goodman Stadium, September 28 at 12:30 p.m.
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BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Winners of its first two games by a combined 10 points, No. 18/22 Lehigh returns to New Jersey to battle Ivy League rival Princeton Saturday night under the lights at Princeton Stadium. The Mountain Hawks rallied for a 28-25 win at Monmouth last weekend to move to 2-0 on the season. Senior Lee Kurfis continued his torrid start to 2013 with ten catches for 211 yards and two touchdowns, including the go-ahead 40 yard touchdown from Brandon Bialkowski with just over ten minutes to play.
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While Lehigh plays game No. 3 of its season Saturday, Princeton will open its 2013 campaign. The Tigers rebounded from a 1-9 campaign in 2011 to finish at 5-5 last season. Former Tiger center Bob Surace begins his fourth season on the Tiger sidelines. Princeton returns its top two quarterbacks from a year ago in juniors Quinn Epperly and Connor Michelsen. Both signal callers saw significant time under center last year with Michelsen putting up better passing numbers and Epperly more of a dual threat. The Tigers also return their top rusher from a year ago, Will Powers, and top two receivers Matt Costello and Roman Wilson. The Princeton defense is led by top returning tackler Alex Polofsky at linebacker and All-America defensive end Caraun Reid.        Â
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Kurfis is off to an outstanding start in 2013. He is the first player in Lehigh and Patriot League history to record back-to-back 200-plus yard receiving games; catching seven passes for a Goodman Stadium record 222 yards and two touchdowns in Lehigh's come-from-behind win over Central Connecticut State and ten passes for 211 yards and two scores last week at Monmouth. The FCS leader in receiving yards and receiving yards per game, Kurfis hauled in four passes for 205 yards and two scores in the fourth quarter and overtime against CCSU. Last week against Monmouth, Kurfis' 40 yard touchdown catch in the fourth quarter proved to be the game winner. Kurfis now owns the fifth and eighth-highest single-game receiving yardage totals in school history.
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A major reason for Lehigh's offensive success over the last two seasons is its ability to generate big plays. The Mountain Hawks had 28 plays from scrimmage of 30 yards or more in each of the last two seasons. Through two games this season, Lehigh already has nine plays of 30 yards or more, including six long passes from Bialkowski to Kurfis.
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Lehigh brings an impressive 15 game regular season road winning streak into Saturday's game. In regular season play, the Mountain Hawks have not lost away from Goodman Stadium since a 31-10 loss at New Hampshire on September 25, 2010. The streak started October 16, 2010 at Harvard when Lehigh erased a 17-0 halftime deficit to win 21-19. The Mountain Hawks have also played four FCS playoff games on the road since this streak began. Lehigh is 2-2 in those games with a first round win at Northern Iowa in 2010 and a second round win at Towson in 2011.
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Lehigh meets Princeton for the 57th time Saturday with the Tigers leading the series 39-15-2. The Mountain Hawks have won 11 of the past 14 matchups, including three straight. These two teams met for the first time in 1887.
Â
Maybe the Mountain Hawks should consider installing lights at Goodman Stadium. Lehigh has played exactly one night game in every season since 2003 and the Mountain Hawks are 7-3 in those games. Dating back to 1999, Lehigh is 10-4 in night games, including a 5-1 record in night games at Princeton. Lehigh is 5-2 in night games under Andy Coen with wins at Villanova in 2006 (Coen's first win as a head coach), Drake in 2010, Princeton in 2007 and 2011, and at Liberty last season.
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Saturday's game kicks off just after 6 p.m. from Princeton Stadium in New Jersey. The game will be televised nationally on the NBC Sports Network (Service Electric Dial Position 93 and DirecTV channel 220). Audio coverage will be available on ESPN Radio 1230 and 1320, ESPNLV.com and Lehighsports.com, with pregame coverage beginning at 5 p.m.
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The Mountain Hawks will then return home to face New Hampshire on Homecoming at Goodman Stadium, September 28 at 12:30 p.m.
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| Date: | September 21, 2013 |
| Opponent: | Princeton Tigers |
| Kickoff: | 6:06 p.m. |
| Stadium: | Princeton Stadium/27,800/FieldTurf |
| Location: | Princeton, N.J. |
| Tickets: | Tickets can be purchased by calling Princeton at (609) 258-4TIX |
| Lehigh's Record: | 2-0 overall, 0-0 Patriot League |
| Princeton's Record: | 0-0 overall, 0-0 Ivy League |
| Series: | Princeton leads 39-15-2 |
| Television | NBC Sports Network (Service Electric DP 93, DirecTV Channel 220) |
| Radio | ESPN Radio 1230 and 1320 AM with Matt Kerr, Lance Haynes '94 and Matt Markus beginning at 5 p.m. |
| Internet Broadcast: | Audio at Lehighsports.com and ESPNLV.com |
| Key Stats: |
• Lehigh is the only FCS program to win at least 10 games in each of the last three seasons. •The Mountain Hawks own a 33-6 record over the last three seasons and have won 21 of their last 22 regular season games. •Senior wide receiver Lee Kurfis leads the FCS in receiving yards (433) and receiving yards per game (216.5). |
| Behind Enemy Lines: |
http://www.goprincetontigers.com |
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