In the crisp morning air, Lehigh cheerleaders kick off Lehigh-Lafayette game day with spirit and cheers echoing across campus long before football players take the field.
The nation’s longest uninterrupted annual football game — Lehigh vs. Lafayette — marks its 161st anniversary this Saturday.
Junior cheer captain Alyssa Vandett said the week leading up to the game is one of the busiest of the season, as the team balances the start of basketball games with campus events.
“This week for us is super exciting and also the busiest, but getting to be a face on campus, getting people involved and interacting with our community is a special part of this week,” she said.
On game day morning, the team attends the President’s Tailgate — a tradition where cheerleaders meet with both Lehigh and Lafayette’s presidents and perform cheers and stunts for them. Vandett said the event helps build the day’s excitement and energy.
Pregame tailgates, she said, are among her favorite parts of football season.
This week, the team cheered at two basketball games — the men hosted St. Francis University on Tuesday and the women hosted Drexel University on Wednesday.
But Vandett said their most exciting events happen on Thursday.
The team joins the Marching 97 for “EcoFlame,” when the band plays Lehigh songs in classrooms throughout the morning. She said Ecoflame is a favorite tradition on campus among the cheerleaders.
Sophomore Vivian Mollenhauer said she considers it the best day to be a Lehigh cheerleader.
“We walk around campus with the Marching 97 from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. and dance in classrooms,” Mollenhauer said. “Last year, we got to dance in Professor (Frank) Gunter’s Economics class. Someone said that was the first time anyone saw him smile.”
Later that day, the team cheers on runners at the annual Turkey Trot.
After Lehigh hosted the game two years in a row, The Rivalry will be played at Lafayette’s Fisher Stadium this year.
Mollenhauer said she expects a big turnout from Lehigh fans and strong community energy.
“This season, we have had good weather and the crowds are much bigger than last year,” she said. “Cheering at Le-Laf last year was incredible. The stadium was packed, and the energy was fantastic.”
This will be Vandett’s first Le-Laf game off her home turf, and she said she feels slightly uncertain about performing in a new environment.
Still, she said she’s preparing the squad for the intensity to make sure they can remember their drills, stunts and cheers.
“It forces us to step out of our comfort zone to encourage people to come and for us to interact with fans,” Vandett said.
She said the captains help guide first-years through Rivalry Week traditions and the intimidating atmosphere.
Hannah Rosenel, one of three seniors on the squad, said her class year is the only group on the team with experience cheering at an away Le-Laf game.
Though she wishes her final rivalry game were at home, she said she’s helping prepare the first-years.
“We have been taking time in practice to discuss and prepare what is going on for the game and this week,” Rosenel said. “It will be stressful being in a different environment, but it should be fun.”
She said last year was especially memorable, as she was on the field when Lehigh won and fans stormed to take down the goalpost.
Rosenel said she hopes to make her final Le-Laf just as memorable.
As a big believer in home field advantage, Rosenel said she wishes her last game was at home. Regardless, she’s still excited for Saturday.
“I look forward to Le-Laf every year, and it’s upsetting this is my last,” she said.
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