Lehigh University
3-0 , 1-0
Duquesne
1-2 , 0-0
No. 10/12 Mountain Hawks Move To 3-0 With 35-21 Win At Duquesne
9/13/2025 4:35:00 PM | Football
PITTSBURGH – Sophomore quarterback Hayden Johnson connected with senior Geoffrey Jamiel on a 54-yard touchdown pass right before halftime and No. 10/12 Lehigh scored on its first three possessions of the second half on the way to a hard-earned 35-21 victory over Duquesne Saturday at Rooney Field.
A balanced offensive attack saw Lehigh rush for 166 yards and pass for 224, while the defense limited the Dukes to 318 yards and secured two takeaways. Senior Tyler Ochojski had five tackles and two sacks, the second of which also included a forced fumble, which Lehigh recovered late, allowing the Mountain Hawks to run out the clock.
Lehigh improved to 3-0 on the season with the victory over a Duquesne (1-2) team that won or shared the last two NEC titles.
Hear from Lehigh Football head coach Kevin Cahill & senior LB Tyler Ochojski on Lehigh's 35-21 win over Duquesne. pic.twitter.com/rEg9Toq7Qd
— Lehigh Sports (@LehighSports) September 13, 2025
Johnson completed 17-of-25 passes for 224 yards with three touchdowns. Jamiel was his top target with seven catches for 95 yards and a touchdown, while junior Mason Humphrey added 80 yards on four catches.
In the run game, junior Luke Yoder carried 11 times for 68 yards and sophomore Jaden Green gained 61 yards and scored a touchdown on nine carries. Sophomore Aaron Crossley scored his first touchdown of the season and gained 22 yards on eight rushes.
The teams traded punts throughout the first quarter before Lehigh broke through early in the second quarter. On 2nd-and-9 from the Duquesne 13, Johnson was looking for Jamiel but the pass ricocheted off his hands, off a Duke defender and then was hauled in by sophomore Garrett Guess in the back of the end zone for a touchdown.
Hear from Lehigh Football head coach Kevin Cahill & senior LB Tyler Ochojski on Lehigh's 35-21 win over Duquesne. pic.twitter.com/rEg9Toq7Qd
— Lehigh Sports (@LehighSports) September 13, 2025
Duquesne's offense got going behind a 35-yard pass from Tyler Riddell to Joey Isabella, which later set up an eight yard touchdown pass to Daniel Tarabrella that tied the game at 7-7 with 2:32 left before halftime.
After an exchange of punts, Lehigh got the ball back with 45 seconds left in the half and Johnson connected on a deep pass down the middle to Jamiel, who broke several tackles to score from 54 yards out and give the Mountain Hawks the lead. Sophomore Mekhai Smith intercepted a Riddell pass in the final seconds of the first half to give Lehigh a 14-7 lead at halftime.
Hear from Lehigh Football head coach Kevin Cahill & senior LB Tyler Ochojski on Lehigh's 35-21 win over Duquesne. pic.twitter.com/rEg9Toq7Qd
— Lehigh Sports (@LehighSports) September 13, 2025
The Lehigh defense opened the second half with a 3-and-out, and the offense went back to work. An eight-play drive was capped by an eight-yard touchdown pass to sophomore Matt D'Avino to give the Mountain Hawks a 14-point lead.
Duquesne answered with a 66-yard touchdown from Riddell to Isabella to get back within seven, but Lehigh's ground game started to assert itself. Johnson and Humphrey connected for 16 yards to convert a 3rd-and-8 and on the next play Green scored on a 27-yard run, breaking tackles and bouncing to the outside to put Lehigh up 28-14.
The Dukes once again answered with a 13-play scoring drive, with Duquesne getting back within one score on a Logan Kushner one-yard run.
Lehigh answered with its third scoring drive of the half. Eight plays, seven of which were rushes, and 59 yards after a strong Green kickoff return. Crossley scored from a yard out to re-establish the 14-point cushion.
Duquesne marched down the field once again. The Dukes drove to the Lehigh 12 when Ochojski came in off the edge and sacked Riddell, knocking the ball loose with fifth-year Dillon Sheehan recovering the for the Mountain Hawks.
Hear from Lehigh Football head coach Kevin Cahill & senior LB Tyler Ochojski on Lehigh's 35-21 win over Duquesne. pic.twitter.com/rEg9Toq7Qd
— Lehigh Sports (@LehighSports) September 13, 2025
A 35-yard completion to Humphrey on 3rd-and-8 gave Lehigh a first down in Duquesne territory and allowed the Mountain Hawks to run out the clock.
Riddell completed 17-of-28 for 211 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. Isabella caught eight passes for 153 yards and a score.
Senior Brycen Edwards led Lehigh with seven tackles, while classmate Mason Moore added six.
The Mountain Hawks are back on the road next Saturday when they return to Patriot League play with a 6 p.m. game at Bucknell. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ with audio coverage on FOX Sports Radio 94.7 FM and 1230 AM and LVFOXSports.com.
EXTRA POINTS… Lehigh won the first ever meeting with Duquesne and is now 15-3 all-time against current NEC members in football… Head Coach Kevin Cahill moved over the .500 mark for the first time in his Lehigh career at 14-13… Lehigh tight ends (Guess and Joseph Marranca) combined for four receptions, 36 yards and a touchdown… at plus-2 Lehigh won the turnover battle for the first time in 2025… Green (1,005) went over the 1,000-yard rushing mark for his career… the Mountain Hawks paired white helmets and brown pants with their white away jerseys, as Lehigh broke out the brown pants for the first time this season.
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Team Stats
LEH 7, DUQ 0
LEH - Guess,Garrett 13 yd pass from Johnson,Hayden (Garrido,Nick kick) 10 plays, 64 yards, TOP 04:41
LEH 7, DUQ 7
DUQ - Tarabrella,Daniel 8 yd pass from Riddell,Tyler (Marcinko,Matt kick) 9 plays, 80 yards, TOP 04:35
LEH 14, DUQ 7
LEH - Jamiel,Geoffrey 54 yd pass from Johnson,Hayden (Garrido,Nick kick) 1 plays, 54 yards, TOP 00:10
LEH 21, DUQ 7
LEH - D'Avino,Matt 8 yd pass from Johnson,Hayden (Garrido,Nick kick) 8 plays, 63 yards, TOP 04:22
LEH 21, DUQ 14
DUQ - Isabella,Joey 66 yd pass from Riddell,Tyler (Marcinko,Matt kick) 4 plays, 80 yards, TOP 01:55
LEH 28, DUQ 14
LEH - Green,Jaden 27 yd run (Garrido,Nick kick), 7 plays, 75 yards, TOP 03:17
LEH 28, DUQ 21
DUQ - Kushner,Logan 1 yd run (Marcinko,Matt kick), 13 plays, 83 yards, TOP 06:48
LEH 35, DUQ 21
LEH - Crossley,Aaron 1 yd run (Garrido,Nick kick), 8 plays, 59 yards, TOP 04:59
