Three things to look for in today's Lehigh-Georgetown game

http://blogs.mcall.com/groller/

FROM KEITH GROLLER

Lehigh is finally back at home for the first time in three weeks and just the second time in six weeks.

The nationally-ranked Mountain Hawks, No. 16 and 18 in the FCS polls, finally open league play (at least league games that count) against Georgetown.

Lehigh has dominated this series, winning 12 games since the Hoyas joined the league in 2001, and most of the games have been lopsided.

But this Lehigh team, for whatever reason, doesn't dominate anyone. The Mountain Hawks played down to the competition last Saturday in a 24-10 win over Columbia.

They need to use these two weeks against Georgetown and Bucknell, who are a combined 2-9, to get everything in sync for what I consider to be the Big Three -- the games against Holy Cross, Colgate and Lafayette in November that will determine the league championship and the automatic bid for the NCAA tournament.

Three things to look for today:

1. The Lehigh defense to rise up and put a lot of pressure on Georgetown, which has allowed 18 sacks in three games. Look for locals Matt Laub (Parkland) and Noah Robb (Central Catholic) to possibly get in the act. And the increased pressure might produce some turnovers, which have been hard to come by for Lehigh so far this season. The Mountain Hawks have had just six takeaways in six games and have a minus-6 turnover margin.

2. The Mountain Hawks lead the Patriot League in passing offense with 366.5 yards per game and have the nation's leading receiver in Lee Kurfis. However, when the weather gets cold and the field has the potential to get sloppy next month, a running game and offensive balance will be keys. So look for Lehigh to try hard to get its running game going today. It managed just 120 yards against Columbia last week, but Georgetown has one of the worst rush defenses in the league -- allowing 204 yards per game.

3. Lehigh should go for the jugular and see if it can put away an opponent without much stress. The Mountain Hawks have yet to have any breathing room all season and it would be nice to be up by three or four touchdowns in the fourth quarter so that they can play some of the younger guys and get them some experience. What Lehigh can't do is play down to the level of the opponent again and be overconfident. As head coach Andy Coen said the other day, this team is simply not talented enough to take series and quarters off. If Lehigh gets complacent and keeps Georgetown around, the Mountain Hawks will be playing with fire and could get burned.

Here's the preview capsule that ran in the print editions of Saturday's Morning Call:

GEORGETOWN (1-5) AT LEHIGH (5-1)

When/where: 12:30 p.m. at Goodman Stadium, Bethlehem

TV: Service Electric TV2.

Radio: ESPN of LV, AM 1230 and 1320

Series: Lehigh leads 13-5.

Last meeting: Lehigh 17-14 on Oct. 13, 2012 in Washington.

Georgetown stat leaders: Isaiah Kempf 109-191, 1,107 yds, 6 TDs, 6 INTs; Nick Campanella 72 car., 278 yds, 3.9 ypc, 3 TDs; Zack Wilke 25 rec., 260 yds, TD; Patrick Boyle 49 TT, INT.

Lehigh stat leaders:  Brandon Bialkowski 176-273, 2,174 yds, 17 TDs, 8 INTs; Keith Sherman 83 car., 385 yds, 4.6 ypc, 2 TDs; Lee Kurfis 64 rec., 934 yds, 6 TDs; Sergio Fernandez-Soto 28 rec., 365 yds, 2 TD; Tyler Ward 52 TT, 2 TFL; 2 INT; Noah Robb 35 TT, 2 TFL, Sack, INT.

The skinny: After back-to-back trips to New York City, the Mountain Hawks are back at home for just the second time in six weeks and are happy to be getting into their Big Five – the five Patriot League games that count in the standings. Lehigh didn’t play particularly well on offense at Columbia last week and will look to get back in sync while continuing to improve on defense. Lee Kurfis continues to be a focal point. The senior WR is tops in FCS football in both receptions and receiving yards. The Mountain Hawks have dominated this series, outscoring the Hoyas by an average of 38-10 over the last 12 years. But Lehigh struggled against the Hoyas on the road in both 2010 and 2012 and will look to put them away early this time.

Keith Groller’s pick: Lehigh 41-17.