PatriotFB Notebook - Week Three | Notes from Around the League
 
TWO PATRIOT LEAGUE MATCHUPS, FIVE VS. THE IVY LEAGUE AND ONE VS. THE NEC
•Fordham at William & Mary - The Rams and Tribe meet in the Power of 10 Fan-Voted Game of the Week, conducted on the Patriot League’s social media channels. Follow @patriotleague to vote in each week’s poll.
•Georgetown at Richmond - The Hoyas and Spiders face off for the second time as League opponents. In last season’s matchup, Richmond erased an 11-point third-quarter deficit behind two touchdown passes and a touchdown run from QB Ashten Snelsire to complete a 31-24 comeback win at Cooper Field. 
•Patriot League vs. The Ivy League - Five Patriot League teams will face Ivy League opponents in Week Three, the first week of competition for the Ivies. The Patriot League went 5-7 in meetings with the Ivy League in 2025, with Lehigh going 3-0, Colgate going 1-0 and Lafayette going 1-1.  Lehigh, Colgate and Lafayette each face Ivy League opponents in Week Three, along with Holy Cross and Bucknell.
•Patriot League vs. FCS - In addition to the League’s five Ivy League matchups, Villanova travels to LIU (NEC) for another non-League FCS contest. Entering Week Three, the Patriot League is 4-0 against non-League FCS opponents.
 
WEEK THREE
Saturday, September 19
Villanova at LIU (NECFR), Noon
Dartmouth at Lehigh (ESPN+), Noon
Lafayette at Columbia (ESPN+), Noon
Cornell at Colgate (ESPN+), 1 p.m.
Yale at Holy Cross (ESPN+), 2 p.m.
Penn at Bucknell (ESPN+), 3 p.m.
Georgetown at Richmond (ESPN+), 3:30 p.m.
Fordham at William & Mary (ESPN+), 6 p.m.
 
A NEW ERA OF PATRIOT LEAGUE FOOTBALL: PATRIOT LEAGUE IN THE POLLS
•AFCA COACHES POLL: Three Patriot League teams are in the AFCA Coaches Poll entering Week Three. Lehigh moved up one spot to No. 7 after a 44-20 win over William & Mary. The Tribe slipped to No. 21 and Villanova checked in at No. 23. Colgate and Richmond are both receiving votes.
•STATS PERFORM FCS TOP 25 POLL: No. 7 Lehigh, No. 21 William & Mary and No. 22 Villanova all appeared in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 Poll, with Colgate and Richmond receiving votes. This marks the third straight week, and the first time since the postseason poll of the 2009 season, in which three League squads were ranked in the same poll. In that poll, Patriot League champion Holy Cross was No. 14, Colgate was No. 21 and Lafayette was No. 24.
 
2026 Patriot League Football Standings (as of Sept. 16)

School	PL	PL Pct.	Overall	Overall Pct.
No. 7/7 Lehigh	3-0	1.000	3-0	1.000
Rv/rv Colgate	2-0	1.000	2-1	.667
Rv/rv Richmond	1-0	1.000	2-1	.667
No. 21/21 William & Mary	1-1	.500	2-1	.667
No. 23/22 Villanova	1-1	.500	1-2	.333
Lafayette	0-0	.000	1-1	.500
Georgetown	0-1	.000	0-1	.000
Fordham	0-1	.000	0-3	.000
Bucknell	0-2	.000	1-2	.333
Holy Cross	0-2	.000	0-3	.000

ONLINE SCHEDULE | ONLINE STATS
 
PATRIOT LEAGUE FCS STATS LEADERS - AFTER WEEK TWO
Six Patriot League football student-athletes sit atop nine different FCS statistical categories after Week Two.
•Lehigh’s Luke Yoder (Sr., RB) leads the FCS in scoring (20.0), total touchdowns (10), rushing touchdowns (9).
•Bucknell’s Sam Milligan (Sr., WR) is the FCS leader in receptions (8.0 per game).
•Georgetown’s Brian Allen (So., DB) and Chigozie Oge-Evans (Sr., DL) lead the FCS in fumbles forced (1.0 per game). Allen leads the FCS in total tackles per game (14.0) and solo tackles per game (10.0).
•William & Mary’s Max Lipinski (Jr., PK) leads the FCS with 2.67 field goals per game.
•Villanova’s Dominic LeBlanc is tied for the FCS lead in field-goal percentage (1.000).
 
YODER AMONG FCS CAREER RUSHING LEADERS
Lehigh RB Luke Yoder posted his third straight 100-yard rushing game, totaling 169 yards and three touchdowns in the Mountain Hawks’ win over No. 16/16 William & Mary. Through three weeks, Yoder has 3,486 career rushing yards to rank second among active FCS leaders, behind only Montana’s Eli Gilman. Yoder is 13th among Patriot League career rushing leaders entering Week Three, 18 yards behind Lafayette’s Ross Scheuerman (2011-14). Yoder is also third among active FCS rushers with 39 career touchdowns, 10th-best in League history. He has rushed for more than 1,000 yards and at least 10 touchdowns in the last two seasons to lead Lehigh to consecutive Patriot League titles.
Rk. Name, School Career rush yds
1. Eli Gilman, Montana........................................... 4,005
2. Luke Yoder, Lehigh ........................................... 3,486
3. Beau Brungard, Youngstown St.......................... 2,854
 
BYRD ESTABLISHES HIMSELF AMONG FCS SACKS LEADERS
Richmond’s Camden Byrd is second in the FCS, averaging 1.33 sacks per game through three weeks. Byrd had his streak of six straight games with a sack snapped in a loss at NC State in Week Two. Despite that, the Patriot League Preseason Defensive Player of the Year still ranks second among all FCS players in career total sacks with 21.5.
Rk. Name, School............................... Career total sacks
1. Ckelby Givens, Southern U. ................................. 37.0
2. Camden Byrd, Richmond ..................................... 21.5
3. Lance Byndon, Stony Brook/Hudson Tucker Tn. Tech .. 14.5
 
THREE LEAGUE TEAMS AMONG FCS TAKEAWAY LEADERS
William & Mary leads the FCS in turnovers gained (11) and is third in turnover margin (+2.33). The Tribe had six takeaways against Delaware State in Week Two. Two more League teams rank in the top 20 in the FCS in turnovers gained, with Colgate (6) and Lehigh (6) tied for 17th. William & Mary’s Cade Ellis (Fr., CB) and Colgate’s Christian Magliacano (Jr., LB) are tied for sixth in the FCS with 0.67 interceptions per game.
 
RAIDERS DEFENSE MAKING ITS MARK THROUGH THREE GAMES
Colgate’s offensive stars have made early headlines with Danny Shaban (Jr., RB) posting 214 yards rushing and two touchdowns in a Week Zero before Matt Fogler (So., WR) caught six passes for 153 yards and three touchdowns in a Week One. But the Raiders defense has also been among the best in the FCS through three games. The Raiders lead the Patriot League and are second in the FCS in red zone defense (0.333), while ranking fourth in the nation in scoring defense (12.3). They have been among the nation’s top 20 in rush defense (113.0) and passing defense (152.0) highlighted by Tymir Wynn (Sr., DB), who ranks fourth in the FCS with 1.67 passes defended per game, and fourth among all active FCS players with 24 career passes defended. Magliacano ranks 14th in the FCS with 1.5 TFLs per game, while Trooper Price (Sr., LB) is 21st with 9.3 total tackles per game.
FCS Category................................................ Rank (Stats)
Passing Defense................................... 7 (152.0 yds/gm)
Red Zone Defense............................................. 2 (0.333)
Rushing Defense................................. 18 (113.0 yds/gm)
Scoring Defense...................................... 4 (12.3 pts/gm)
 
FOGLER AND MILLIGAN AMONG FCS TD RECEPTIONS LEADERS
Colgate’s Fogler and Bucknell’s Milligan are tied for seventh in the FCS with three touchdown receptions through three games. Fogler’s three touchdown receptions came in the Raiders’ 35-10 win over Holy Cross in Week One. Milligan leads FCS with 8.0 receptions per game with all three of his touchdown receptions coming in the Bison’s two League games. Milligan is tied for the Bucknell career record with 18 touchdown receptions.
 
BURSEY EARNS FCS NATIONAL DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Villanova’s Omari Bursey (So., LB) broke out with 29 tackles in the Wildcats’ first two games after recording 50 tackles in 15 games in 2025. Bursey received Stats Perform FCS National Defensive Player of the Week honors after his 14-tackle performance in a 17-16 win at Bucknell. Three of Bursey’s tackles came during the Bison’s last drive. Bursey is sixth in the FCS with 11.3 tackles per game and tied for the League lead and 14th in the nation in TFLs with 1.50 per game.
 
LIPINSKI LEADS FCS IN FIELD GOALS PER GAME
Through three weeks, William & Mary’s Max Lipinski leads the FCS with 2.67 field goals per game. The two-time Patriot League Special Teams Player of the Week also earned Stats Perform FCS National Special Teams Player of the Week for his Week Zero performance at Villanova. He booted a 45-yard field goal as time expired to complete a 10-point comeback in the final minute of the game, which also included a 40-yard field goal. His five made field goals broke a single-game program record. Lipinski made three field goals in a win over Delaware State, scoring 10 of the Tribe’s 22 points, including a career-long 51-yard field goal in the fourth quarter.
 
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 who are academically representative of their class. Participation in athletics at Patriot League institutions is viewed as an important component of a well-rounded education.