In a shootout on the road against Duquesne University, Lehigh went to their bread and butter — the ground game.
Since taking over the program in 2023, coach Kevin Cahill transformed the Mountain Hawk backfield into the Patriot League’s premier rushing attack, finishing with a conference-leading 2,624 yards and 31 touchdowns on the ground.
Saturday afternoon was no different.
With the opportunity to take a two-score lead late in the third quarter, Lehigh senior quarterback Hayden Johnson handed the ball off to Green, who surged right between the tackles. Green cut back towards the middle of the field, broke two tackles and beat the safety to the pylon for a 27-yard score.
Green’s touchdown gave Lehigh (3-0, 1-0 Patriot) an insurmountable two-touchdown lead, helping secure a 35-21 victory in the program’s inaugural matchup against Duquesne (1-2, 0-0 NEC).
Lehigh’s rushing attack continued to build off the momentum of its previous game against Sacred Heart University, where all four scores came on the ground.
The Mountain Hawks totaled 166 rushing yards, outgaining the Dukes by 59 yards on the afternoon.
Despite having the top-ranked run defense in the Northeast conference, Duquesne failed to contain the tandem of junior running back Luke Yoder and Green. Yoder led the Mountain Hawks with 68 yards, while Green kept close behind with 61 and a score.
However, while Green and Yoder continued to control tempo, Lehigh’s offense found more success through the air.
Johnson had his most efficient game of the season, playing turnover-free ball and throwing for 224 yards and three scores.
After a scoreless first quarter, the Mountain Hawks drew first blood at the beginning of the second quarter.
Johnson tried to find senior receiver Geoffrey Jamiel, but the pass was broken up, promptly popping the ball into the air. A defender tried to intercept the pass, but had the ball ricochet off his hands and into the waiting arms of sophomore tight end Garrett Guess.
The unorthodox play gave Lehigh a 7-0 lead, and Guess his first career touchdown in the brown and white.
Two drives later, Duquesne responded with a touchdown drive of its own. Senior quarterback Tyler Riddell orchestrated an 80-yard drive to tie the game, capped off by junior tight end Daniel Tarabrella beating three Mountain Hawk defenders to the pylon for a score.
After consecutive three-and-outs, Lehigh quickly recaptured the lead in the waning seconds of the first half on one play.
Johnson threw a strike over the middle of the field to Jamiel, who sped past multiple defenders for a go-ahead 54-yard touchdown. Subsequently, the Mountain Hawks took momentum and a 14-7 lead into the half.
By the end of the third quarter, both teams doubled their scores after three consecutive touchdown drives closed out the frame. Johnson found sophomore receiver Matt D’Avino in the end zone before Riddell connected with senior receiver Joey Isabella for a 66-yard score.
The trend continued into the final quarter. Duquesne cut Lehigh’s 14-point lead to seven after sophomore quarterback Logan Kushner plunged into the end zone from a yard out. However, the one-possession lead always seemed out of reach.
Cahill’s offense chewed five minutes of the clock before sophomore running back Aaron Crossley — who came inches from a score against Sacred Heart — punched in the final score, giving Lehigh a 35-21 lead.
On the ensuing drive, the defense finally defended the nest.
Lehigh’s defense, which opened the season holding its previous opponents — Richmond and Sacred Heart — to under 200 yards, failed to keep that streak alive on the road. They struggled to contain Isabella, who led all receivers with 153 yards through the air and allowed 318 total yards of offense.
Down two scores, Duquesne drove to the Lehigh 12-yard line late in the fourth quarter.
The Dukes’ offensive line forgot to account for senior linebacker Tyler Ochojski, who had a free rush to the quarterback. Ochojski blasted Riddell from his blind side, forcing a fumble that fell into the hands of fifth-year defensive lineman Dillon Sheehan.
Lehigh promptly ran out the final three minutes of the game to improve to 3-0 in their title defense season.
The 35-21 victory marks the first time the Mountain Hawks started a season 3-0 since 2013, when they would finish 8-3.
Next on the team’s schedule is Bucknell University, a team that handed the Patriot League Champions their only conference loss last season, a 38-35 double-overtime thriller.
The Mountain Hawks will look to avenge that loss and continue their winning streak on Sept. 20 at Christy Mathewson Memorial Stadium.
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