RFC Summer Semester--Patriot League Preview (FCS)

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2011 Final Standings

Looking back:  Lehigh (11-2 overall) rode an undefeated season (5-0) in league play to win the Patriot League's automatic bid to the NCAA Division I Football Championship in 2011.  The Mountain Hawks were the only team from the conference to advance to the FCS playoffs.  They advanced to the quarterfinals, where they were shut out and eliminated by eventual North Dakota State, 24-0, on December 3.

Looking ahead: Although seven teams currently make up the Patriot League for football, Fordham can't play for the conference title until 2014.  That's because the Rams have chosen to award athletic scholarships, which the Patriot League previously didn't allow.  Although conference officials have since changed those policies, with scholarships starting in 2013, Fordham still must wait another two years before earning the right to compete for the Patriot League's autobid to the FCS playoffs.

2012 Predicted Order of Finish (2011 overall record in parentheses)

1. Lehigh (11-2):  The Mountain Hawks will shoot for a third straight 10-win season, as well as a third straight trip to the FCS playoffs.  In order to get there, they must overcome the loss of multiple contributors to last year's playoff run, yet rely on 11 returning starters from a year ago.

2. Georgetown (8-3):  The Hoyas hope that 2012 will bring a postseason berth to their campus, something the football program has never experienced.  Their last conference championship came in 1997, when they won the title of the now-defunct Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference.

3. Holy Cross (6-5):  The Crusaders enter this season shooting for an eighth straight winning season.  Tough non-conference games await them against the likes of FCS playoff participant New Hampshire, as well as defending Ivy League champion Harvard.


4. Bucknell (6-5):  The Bison begin anew after struggling to a 2-3 mark in Patriot League play in 2011.


5. Colgate (5-6):  How's this for a season opening September?  The Red Raiders will open the 2012 campaign with five straight (yes, that's right!) games on the road.  Their home opener will be on October 13, when they play host to Holy Cross in the Patriot League opener.  In the meantime, the Colgate squad will travel as far away as South Dakota for a game on September 8.


6. Lafayette (4-7):  The Leopards look to make a leap upward in the Patriot League standings after a disappointing 2011 season.


Not eligible for Patriot League title

Fordham (1-10):  Even with nothing to play for in 2012 and 2013, the Rams still have a long way to go to reach respectability among their Patriot League rivals.