Saturday, December 7
Moscow, Idaho
9:00 PM (ET)
Lehigh University
at
Idaho
Photo by: Hannahally Photography
Lehigh Heads To Idaho To Face No. 8 Vandals In FCS Second Round
12/3/2024 2:04:00 PM | Football
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – After picking up its first FCS playoff win since 2011 at Richmond, Lehigh returns to Idaho for the first time in 31 years as the Mountain Hawks will face No. 8 national seed Idaho at P1FCU Kibbie Dome Saturday in the second round. A 65-yard touchdown rush by Jaden Green and a 54-yard scoring pass from Hayden Johnson to Geoffrey Jamiel, combined with a strong second-half defensive effort helped Lehigh erase a 16-7 fourth-quarter deficit in the win at Richmond. The Patriot League champion Mountain Hawks will now face an Idaho team that earned a bye at 9-3. Two of the Vandals' three losses have come to teams ranked No. 1 in the nation (FBS No. 1 Oregon and FCS No. 1 Montana State).
The winner of the Lehigh-Idaho game will face the winner of No. 1 Montana State and UT Martin in next weekend's quarterfinals.
In Lehigh's first-round victory at Richmond, the Mountain Hawks came from behind after trailing by nine points with 10:36 remaining. Touchdowns by Jaden Green and Geoffrey Jamiel turned a 16-7 deficit into a 20-16 Lehigh lead. It marked the first time since the 2013 season opener that the Mountain Hawks won a game in which they trailed by more than one score in the fourth quarter. On Sept. 7, 2013, Lehigh trailed Central Connecticut State 37-17 with 10:46 remaining and rallied to win 51-44 in double overtime. The fourth-quarter comeback was the first of any kind for the Mountain Hawks since Lehigh erased deficits of five, and then four points in a 36-33 home win over Colgate on Nov. 12, 2022.
Lehigh's 11-man wide receiver group features eight players with first-year eligibility. Junior Geoffrey Jamiel has emerged as a leader in the receiver room. Jamiel led Lehigh with 53 catches as a first-year in 2022 and was named Patriot League Rookie of the Year. He followed that up with 43 catches and a team high-tying four receiving touchdowns in 2023. Lehigh's top receiver this season, Jamiel had a huge day at Richmond, setting career highs with 10 catches for 137 yards, with his 54-yard touchdown catch giving the Mountain Hawks the lead for good. He has 56 catches for 701 yards and eight touchdowns, with a trio of 100-yard receiving games, and two-touchdown efforts against Bucknell and Colgate. Jamiel earned his first all-league accolade with a second team selection.
Defensive backs Jordan Adderley and DJ Brown were named to the Academic All-Patriot League team on Nov. 27 for their respective academic and athletic pursuits. Adderley, a starting cornerback, holds a 3.73 GPA as a journalism major, while Brown owns a 3.90 GPA in political science as part of Lehigh's safety rotation. Among players on the 2024 roster, 34 Mountain Hawks own a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better, with 25 over a 3.2 and 12 over a 3.5. The three top cumulative GPAs on the team all belong to members of Lehigh's secondary. Junior CJ Wood owns a 4.0 GPA in accounting, followed by Brown, who holds a 3.9 in political science and then senior Harrison Jenkins, who carries a 3.85 in mechanical engineering.
Lehigh has a whopping 36 first-year student-athletes on its roster and recent history shows that many will be relied upon to contribute right away. Fourteen first-years appear on Lehigh's depth chart with quarterback Hayden Johnson, offensive lineman Sammy Ayache and punter/kickoff specialist Connor Poole listed as projected starters. Nine of the 14 first-years on the depth chart are on the offensive side of the ball. Twenty-three first-years have seen time in at least one game, including 17 who got in against Wagner. Eight first-years have played in each of Lehigh's 12 games, including running back Jaden Green, who is a two-time Patriot League Rookie ofthe Week (Sep. 23 and Oct. 28), and quarterbacks Johnson and Matt Machalik. Also appearing in all 12 games for the Mountain Hawks are Poole, Ayache, offensive lineman Colby Reph, running back Aaron Crossley and safety Mekhai Smith.
Lehigh's second round game at Idaho will mark its fourth ever contest played indoors, with the Kibbie Dome marking the first indoor facility that the Mountain Hawks will visit twice. The first indoor game for Lehigh was its 1993 visit to Idaho. The Mountain Hawks won 14-7 at the UNI-Dome in the opening round of the 2010 playoffs. Lehigh's last indoor game was its 2011 NCAA quarterfinal loss to North Dakota State at the Fargodome.
At 9-3, Lehigh enters the second round of the playoffs with its best record since the 2016 squad finished 9-3. A victory at Idaho would give the Mountain Hawks their 11th 10-win campaign and their first since the 2012 team finished at 10-1. Lehigh has won 10 or more games in the following seasons: 1888, 1977, 1979, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2010, 2011 and 2012. Lehigh's program record for single season wins is 12, shared by the 1977 Division II National Champions (12-2) and the 1998 (12-1) and 2000 (12-1) squads. The 1998 team also won at Richmond in the first round of the playoffs.
Idaho earned an at-large berth and a first round bye after a 9-3 regular season in the Big Sky Conference. The Vandals defeated rival Idaho State 40-17 in their last game Nov. 23. Idaho's three losses have come to FBS No. 1 Oregon, FCS No. 1 Montana State and FCS No. 5 UC Davis. The Vandals also own a FBS win over Wyoming. Fifteen Vandals earned postseason Big Sky honors, including seven first team selections. Defensive end Keyshawn James-Newby is a Buck Buchanan Award finalist, while first-year receiver Mark Hamper is a finalist for the Jerry Rice Award.
This will be just the second-ever meeting between Lehigh and Idaho. The Vandals defeated Lehigh 77-14 at the Kibbie Dome on Nov. 13, 1993 with the Brown and White taking a random late-season trip west. Lehigh rebounded from its defeat to beat rival Lafayette 39-14 the following Saturday to claim the first of its league-leading 13 Patriot League titles.
Saturday's game kicks off just after 6 p.m. PT (9 p.m. ET) from P1FCU Kibbie Dome in Moscow, Idaho. The contest will be broadcast on ESPN+ with audio coverage on FOX Sports Radio 94.7 FM and 1230 AM and LVFOXSports.com beginning at 8 p.m. ET.
Follow Lehigh Football on X/Twitter and Instagram and like on Facebook for exclusive updates throughout the season.
The winner of the Lehigh-Idaho game will face the winner of No. 1 Montana State and UT Martin in next weekend's quarterfinals.
In Lehigh's first-round victory at Richmond, the Mountain Hawks came from behind after trailing by nine points with 10:36 remaining. Touchdowns by Jaden Green and Geoffrey Jamiel turned a 16-7 deficit into a 20-16 Lehigh lead. It marked the first time since the 2013 season opener that the Mountain Hawks won a game in which they trailed by more than one score in the fourth quarter. On Sept. 7, 2013, Lehigh trailed Central Connecticut State 37-17 with 10:46 remaining and rallied to win 51-44 in double overtime. The fourth-quarter comeback was the first of any kind for the Mountain Hawks since Lehigh erased deficits of five, and then four points in a 36-33 home win over Colgate on Nov. 12, 2022.
Lehigh's 11-man wide receiver group features eight players with first-year eligibility. Junior Geoffrey Jamiel has emerged as a leader in the receiver room. Jamiel led Lehigh with 53 catches as a first-year in 2022 and was named Patriot League Rookie of the Year. He followed that up with 43 catches and a team high-tying four receiving touchdowns in 2023. Lehigh's top receiver this season, Jamiel had a huge day at Richmond, setting career highs with 10 catches for 137 yards, with his 54-yard touchdown catch giving the Mountain Hawks the lead for good. He has 56 catches for 701 yards and eight touchdowns, with a trio of 100-yard receiving games, and two-touchdown efforts against Bucknell and Colgate. Jamiel earned his first all-league accolade with a second team selection.
Defensive backs Jordan Adderley and DJ Brown were named to the Academic All-Patriot League team on Nov. 27 for their respective academic and athletic pursuits. Adderley, a starting cornerback, holds a 3.73 GPA as a journalism major, while Brown owns a 3.90 GPA in political science as part of Lehigh's safety rotation. Among players on the 2024 roster, 34 Mountain Hawks own a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better, with 25 over a 3.2 and 12 over a 3.5. The three top cumulative GPAs on the team all belong to members of Lehigh's secondary. Junior CJ Wood owns a 4.0 GPA in accounting, followed by Brown, who holds a 3.9 in political science and then senior Harrison Jenkins, who carries a 3.85 in mechanical engineering.
Lehigh has a whopping 36 first-year student-athletes on its roster and recent history shows that many will be relied upon to contribute right away. Fourteen first-years appear on Lehigh's depth chart with quarterback Hayden Johnson, offensive lineman Sammy Ayache and punter/kickoff specialist Connor Poole listed as projected starters. Nine of the 14 first-years on the depth chart are on the offensive side of the ball. Twenty-three first-years have seen time in at least one game, including 17 who got in against Wagner. Eight first-years have played in each of Lehigh's 12 games, including running back Jaden Green, who is a two-time Patriot League Rookie ofthe Week (Sep. 23 and Oct. 28), and quarterbacks Johnson and Matt Machalik. Also appearing in all 12 games for the Mountain Hawks are Poole, Ayache, offensive lineman Colby Reph, running back Aaron Crossley and safety Mekhai Smith.
Lehigh's second round game at Idaho will mark its fourth ever contest played indoors, with the Kibbie Dome marking the first indoor facility that the Mountain Hawks will visit twice. The first indoor game for Lehigh was its 1993 visit to Idaho. The Mountain Hawks won 14-7 at the UNI-Dome in the opening round of the 2010 playoffs. Lehigh's last indoor game was its 2011 NCAA quarterfinal loss to North Dakota State at the Fargodome.
At 9-3, Lehigh enters the second round of the playoffs with its best record since the 2016 squad finished 9-3. A victory at Idaho would give the Mountain Hawks their 11th 10-win campaign and their first since the 2012 team finished at 10-1. Lehigh has won 10 or more games in the following seasons: 1888, 1977, 1979, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2010, 2011 and 2012. Lehigh's program record for single season wins is 12, shared by the 1977 Division II National Champions (12-2) and the 1998 (12-1) and 2000 (12-1) squads. The 1998 team also won at Richmond in the first round of the playoffs.
Idaho earned an at-large berth and a first round bye after a 9-3 regular season in the Big Sky Conference. The Vandals defeated rival Idaho State 40-17 in their last game Nov. 23. Idaho's three losses have come to FBS No. 1 Oregon, FCS No. 1 Montana State and FCS No. 5 UC Davis. The Vandals also own a FBS win over Wyoming. Fifteen Vandals earned postseason Big Sky honors, including seven first team selections. Defensive end Keyshawn James-Newby is a Buck Buchanan Award finalist, while first-year receiver Mark Hamper is a finalist for the Jerry Rice Award.
This will be just the second-ever meeting between Lehigh and Idaho. The Vandals defeated Lehigh 77-14 at the Kibbie Dome on Nov. 13, 1993 with the Brown and White taking a random late-season trip west. Lehigh rebounded from its defeat to beat rival Lafayette 39-14 the following Saturday to claim the first of its league-leading 13 Patriot League titles.
Saturday's game kicks off just after 6 p.m. PT (9 p.m. ET) from P1FCU Kibbie Dome in Moscow, Idaho. The contest will be broadcast on ESPN+ with audio coverage on FOX Sports Radio 94.7 FM and 1230 AM and LVFOXSports.com beginning at 8 p.m. ET.
| Date: | December 7, 2024 |
| Event: | NCAA FCS Playoffs, Second Round |
| Opponent: | No. 8 Idaho Vandals |
| Kickoff: | 6:02 p.m. PT |
| Stadium: | P1FCU Kibbie Dome/15,250/MatrixTurf |
| Location: | Moscow, Idaho |
| Lehigh's record: | 9-3 overall, 5-1 Patriot League |
| Idaho's record: | 9-3 overall, 6-2 Big Sky |
| Series: | Idaho leads 1-0 |
| Tickets: | Through Idaho at GoVandals.com/Tickets |
| Video: | ESPN+ with Shawn Kenney and Marcus Ray |
| Radio: | Fox Sports Radio 94.7 FM and 1230 AM and LVFoxSports.com with Matt Kerr, Jim Guzzo and Connor Brown beginning at 8 p.m. ET |
| Key Stats: | •Lehigh ranks 10th nationally in both passing defense (162.5 ypg.) and total defense (294.9 ypg.) •In his last three games (all starts), quarterback Hayden Johnson is completing 77 percent of his passes (40-for-52) for 518 yards with six touchdowns and two interceptions. •Playing without three key defensive starters, Lehigh limited Richmond to 96 second-half yards last week. |
Follow Lehigh Football on X/Twitter and Instagram and like on Facebook for exclusive updates throughout the season.
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