South Mountaineer Volume 39, Issue 03

              PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Split end Deron Braswell and freshman
linebacker Ian Eason earned league
honors. Braswell (6-190) set a Goodman
Stadium record and Eason had 16 tackles.
FOOTBALL: Lehigh wins in first Patriot League contest, 12
OLYMPIC SPORTS: Golf team comes away with a victory in
season-opening tournament with Colgate and Cornell, 11
South Mountaineer
Volume 10, Issue 3
Lehigh University Athletics Weekly
September 17,1996
Lehigh wins Patriot opener
Brown and White's defense and
aerial attack dominate Fordham
by Matl Leedy '98
South Mountaineer Editor
Friday the 13th came a day
late for Fordham University.
Split end Deron Braswell and
the Lehigh defense that showed
up in Goodman Stadium to hang
a 20-14 loss on the Rams proved
much scarier than any broken
mirrors or superstitious fears.
Sophomore quarterback Dan
Madine, USA Today's 1994 pick
for New Jersey Scholastic Player
of the Year, appeared especially
spooked. Madine completed just
13 of 30 passes for a meager 189
yards and four interceptions.
Madine also slipped for a
seven-yard loss in the fourth
quarter on fourth down, needing
nine yards for the first. Fordham
was threatening to at least tie the
game when Madine went down.
Braswell took advantage of
single coverage and a blitzing
Fordham defense to burn the
Rams for six catches, 190 yards
and a 56-yard touchdown.
Braswell was left wide open in
the first quarter when comer
back Shane McAndrew slipped
and senior quarterback Aaron
Brown found him all alone down
the left sideline.
Still just a sophomore,
Braswell is the Engineers' go-to
receiver and caught everything
thrown within reach. He turned
the majority of balls tossed his
way into big plays, averaging
more than 31 yards a catch.
Braswell was part of a Lehigh
offensive scheme dedicated to
stretching the field and throwing
the long ball more often.
"We just knew they would
take a lot of chances and blitz a
lot," Braswell said. "It was in our
game plan to audible when they
showed blitz and we took
advantage by going deep."
The Brown and White defense
dominated play against Fordham
and capitalized on numerous
turnovers. A blitzing linebacker
corps and secondary forced
Madine into many poor decisions and four interceptions. The
Rams also fumbled four times,
most of which occurred during
hand-off exchanges.
"I think take-aways and turnovers are one thing every coach
looks at before a game and
certainly talks a lot about after a
game," Lehigh Coach Kevin
Higgins said.
Linebacker Ian Eason had
another spectacular day, making
16 unassisted tackles, four of
which went for a loss. The
freshman also had three sacks
and knocked down a pass.
Fellow linebacker and
sophomore Mark Henry, making
his first start, had a pair of
interceptions and recorded nine
tackles.
"Wc figured for the amount of
time they put the ball up in the
air we should get some interceptions or knock downs," Henry
said.
Defensive end Nick Martucci
also chipped in with a pair of
sacks. The pocket frequently
collapsed on Madine, who was
sacked a total of six times.
Daphnie Stare
Senior quarterback Aaron Brown completed 16 of 30
passes for 288 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
"As much as they were
blitzing we had to make some
adjustments, but it obviously
wasn't enough," Quartaro said.
"What they were doing was no
mystery. It was just a matter of
man-on-man blocking and we
failed miserably."
Brown, and the rest of
Lehigh's offense, had no
difficulty responding to
Fordham's pass rush. When the
Rams stacked the line and
showed blitz early the Brown
and White relished in the
opportunity to make big plays.
Brown completed 16 of 30
passes for 288 yards and a pair
of touchdowns. He also found
the end zone on a quarterback
keeper. Brown rolled out on
many pass plays and did not
hesitate to throw down field,
showing his athleticism and a
very strong arm.
"Lehigh has always had
excellent receivers and when
they go deep you just kinda
James Simmons makes a
nice grab in the end zone.
Daphnie Stare
have to hold your
breath," Quartaro said.
Bilal King made up
the majority of the
Engineer running
attack, carrying the ball
18 times for 55 yards.
In the fourth quarter
King was replaced by
sophomore Brian
Baker. Baker carried
the ball in the game's
last nine plays, rushing
for 50 yards (a 5.6
average), including a
24-yard scamper.
"Brian Baker was
exactly what we needed
at that part of the
game," Higgins said.
"We needed a fresh
body in there who
could hold onto the
ball. Brian is one of
those kids who will do
whatever needs to be
done for the team to be
successful."
Baker played most of
the game as a receiver,
catching three passes
for 44 yards and a 28-
yard touchdown.
LEHIGH / FORDHAM
GAME STATS
Score By Quarters
1    2   3 4 F
Ftedham        0   7  0 7 14
Ldngi 7   13 0 0 20
LEHIGH FORDHAM
20 First Downs 17
94 Net Rushing 69
288 Net Passing 189
382 Total Yards 258
8-56 Penalties 4-30
4-1 Fumbles/Lost 4-1
4 Interceptions 1
32:53 Possession 27:07
6 Sacks By 2
Lehigh statistical leaders
Rushing: Bilal King 18-55
Passing: Aaron Brown 16-288
Receiving: Deron Braswell 6-190
Tackles: Ian Eason 16
QUOTEBOARD
"Our defense stepped up in
many situations today. I have a
lot of confidence in them, and
they find a way to get it done
The kids kept their poise on the
field today."
Lehigh coach
Kevin Higgins
"The biggest frustration is
when they [Lehigh] scored it
looked too easy. It's very tough to
take."
Fordham coach
Nick Quartaro
"The team had to deal with it
[injuries to Rabih Abdullah
and Lance Eckenrode] every
single day. I think it's a tribute
to the kids that they kept their
heads up and made the plays
when they had to."
Lehigh coach
Kevin Higgins
"We just knew they would take
a lot of chances and blitz a lot.
It was in our game plan to
audible when they showed blitz
and we took advantage by
going deep."
Sophomore receiver
Deron Braswell
"Lehigh has always had excellent receivers and when they go
deep you kinda just have to
hold your breath."
Fordham coach
Nick Quartaro