CENTER VALLEY, Pa. – The Patriot League’s seven football programs have announced the addition of 58 student-athletes to open the regular signing period on Wednesday. The League’s seven programs have combined to sign 149 newcomers to National Letters of Intent (NLIs) between the current signing period and the Early Signing Period in December.
 
Georgetown will welcome a League-high 28 incoming freshmen for the 2020 season while defending Patriot League champion Holy Cross adds 27. Colgate brings 22 student-athletes to Hamilton, N.Y. with both Bucknell and Lehigh signing 20, Lafayette adding 18 and Fordham rounding out the signings with 14.
 
BUCKNELL BISON: Head Coach Dave Cecchini announced the addition of 10 student-athletes to Bucknell’s incoming freshman class on the first day of NCAA football’s traditional signing period. The Bison class is up to 20 student-athletes with five offensive linemen, three wide receivers, three defensive linemen, two quarterbacks, two running backs, two defensive backs, one tight end, one linebacker/defensive back and one punter/placekicker.  Twelve states are represented in the class including Illinois (3), Ohio (3), Pennsylvania (3), Florida (2), North Carolina (2) and one apiece from Arizona, California, Kansas, New Jersey, New York, Tennessee and Virginia.
 
QUOTE FROM COACH CECCHINI: “I'm thrilled with the way our first recruiting class is shaping up,” Cecchini said. “It's a diverse group representing 12 states, which reflects the effort our staff put into expanding our reach nationally from coast to coast. We've addressed several of our most important needs and significantly upgraded the overall speed and athleticism of our program.”
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COLGATE RAIDERS: Head Coach Dan Hunt announced an additional eight signees on Wednesday to bring the Raiders incoming freshman class to 22. Colgate inked 10 on the offensive side with a quarterback, two running backs, two tight ends, three wide receivers and two offensive linemen. On defense, Colgate signed three defensive linemen, three linebackers and four defensive backs. A placekicker and an athlete rounded out combined list. The Raiders will welcome seven new student-athletes from Pennsylvania, three from New Jersey, with two each from Florida, New York and Ohio. Single signees are from Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois and Indiana.
QUOTE FROM COACH HUNT:
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FORDHAM RAIDERS: Head Coach Joe Conlin added five players on this week to bring his incoming class to a total of 14. The new class features seven defensive players and seven offensive players. By position, defensive backs lead the way with five, followed by three offensive linemen, two each at wide receiver and defensive line, and one each at running back and quarterback. The 14 newcomers hail from six different states, with three being high school teammates. New Jersey is home to four signees while Georgia was kind to the Rams this year with three of the 14 signees hailing from the Peach State, all three products of Lanier High School. Maryland and Texas each provided two incoming freshmen for the Rams while the other four newcomers hail from New York, Ohio, and Virginia.
 
QUOTE FROM COACH CONLIN: “We are excited to welcome these talented student-athletes to our program,” said Conlin. “Each member of this class has had tremendous success in high school and we're looking forward to seeing them continue that success here at Fordham. We're anxiously awaiting their arrival to Rose Hill so that they can get their collegiate careers started.”
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GEORGETOWN HOYAS: Head Coach Rob Sgarlata announced the addition of 14 student-athletes this week to bring their total incoming class to 28. The group includes 15 players on defense with 11 on offense and two on special teams. The defense will receive six new defensive backs, five defensive linemen and three linebackers. On offense, Georgetown welcomes six offensive linemen, two wide receivers, one quarterback, one running back and one tight end in addition to two that will compete for punting and placekicking duties. The Hoyas will welcome newcomers from 13 different states including four members from New Jersey and Florida, with three apiece from Illinois, Massachusetts and Texas. GU will also welcome one student-athlete from California, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maryland, Oregon, Tennessee, Virginia and Washington, D.C.
 
HOYAS MAKE TEAM IMPACT PART OF NATIONAL SIGNING DAY: During the Hoyas’ signing day festivities they welcomed 11-year old Dominic Stanley to the Georgetown football family through Team IMPACT. Stanley was introduced during a press conference on campus on Wednesday morning in front of family, his new teammates and coaches and members of the Georgetown athletics department. The Hyattsville, Md. native joins the program as part of a Team IMPACT program that connects children facing serious or chronic illnesses with college athletic teams, forming lifelong bonds and life-changing outcomes.
 
QUOTE FROM COACH SGARLATA: I think our coaches did a great job of going nationwide to put this class together,” Sgarlata said during Georgetown’s signing day show. “I’m really happy with the way our coaches went out and stayed with our mantra of recruiting character and I think this one of the more solid groups top to bottom that I’ve seen come to the Hilltop.”
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HOLY CROSS: Head Coach Bob Chesney announced the addition of eight student-athletes to Holy Cross’ incoming class, bringing the total to 27, who will be joining the team for the 2020 season. The Crusaders signees will come to Worcester, Mass. from 12 different states and one Canadian province. Chesney continues to build depth for a program that returns 15 starters, with seven defensive backs, five defensive linemen, five offensive linemen, four wide receivers, two linebackers, two quarterbacks, one running back and one tight end.
 
QUOTE FROM COACH CHESNEY: “We are proud to welcome our newest members into our team and their families into our family,” Chesney said during the Early Signing Period. “We have recruited most of these young men since last spring and with every interaction we knew that they would be great fits for Holy Cross Football and the Holy Cross Community. We believe in each of these student-athletes and understand how difficult of a decision this can be but ultimately they all believe in Holy Cross and that will pay dividends in their immediate and long-term futures. This is a group that we can all be proud of. They will represent our team, our college and the Worcester community well.”
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LAFAYETTE LEOPARDS: Head Coach John Garrett announced the signing of five student-athletes this week to increase the total for the Class of 2024 to 18. The Leopards’ class features 11 on defense and seven on offense. Wednesday's signings include two defensive backs, a defensive lineman, a tight end/fullback and a wide receiver.
 
QUOTE FROM COACH GARRETT: “If you love Lafayette College football, you will be excited about the 2020 recruiting class we are constructing on National Signing Day. In addition to the talented student-athletes we signed in December, we are thrilled to add a group of talented, hard-working, competitive student-athletes to this recruiting class,” said Garrett. “Thanks to our coaches, our staff, our enrollment team and all those in our athletic department for their hard work and dedication to constructing a recruiting class that will make us proud on and off the field.”
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LEHIGH MOUNTAIN HAWKS: Head Coach Tom Gilmore added eight incoming freshmen to Lehigh’s overall class of 20 on Wednesday. Lehigh will welcome student-athletes from eight different states, including seven from Pennsylvania, four from Florida, three from New Jersey, two from Texas and one apiece from Connecticut, Maryland, Missouri and Virginia. The Mountain Hawks will add 11 players to their defense with five defensive backs, four defensive linemen and two linebackers. On offense, Lehigh will welcome three offensive linemen, three wide receivers, one quarterback and one tight end. The class also includes one athlete.
 
QUOTE FROM COACH GILMORE: “This class is going to help us immensely,” Gilmore said. “One of our biggest issues last year was the depth across the board on our roster. We've added depth, but we've also added a lot of quality. We anticipate a lot of these guys being able to help us early because of some of those shortages that we have on the depth chart. A lot of these guys are going to be able to come in and help us in some capacity right away. That's really exciting. We're going to have to do a great job as a coaching staff getting these guys ready and making sure that they're ready, not only to be members of the team, but to be productive players on the field.
 
“Many of these student-athletes we signed to scholarships this year were highly-recruited players, that were recruited all around the country, at not only the FCS but the FBS level,” Gilmore continued. “We really feel great about the quality of these players and their ability to impact the program.”
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ABOUT THE PATRIOT LEAGUE 
The Patriot League is in its fourth decade of academic and athletic achievement, continually demonstrating that student-athletes can excel at both academics and athletics without sacrificing high standards. The Patriot League’s athletic success is achieved while its member institutions remain committed to its founding principle of admitting and graduating student-athletes that are academically representative of their class. Participation in athletics at Patriot League institutions is viewed as an important component of a well-rounded education.