Where have all the Leopards gone?

With 11 freshmen listed on the two-deep this week, this might be a good time to look at what a disastrous season this has been for the Lafayette football team.

Coach John Garrett doesn’t make a habit of talking about injured players, but when he was asked by Mike Joseph at Tuesday’s luncheon whether he expected to see some of his key players returning to the lineup against Penn on Saturday, Garrett said:

“We certainly hope so, Mike. We look at it every day. We have constant communication with Matt Bayly and the staff. We check in with them three-four times a day just to see who’s available for practice and to what extent and then start to make those prognoses for the weekend. So, we hope to, but nothing is definitive now.”

I looked at the participation chart from last week’s game at Albany and compared it to the roster. While I know the head coach has been hedging on this player or that player, I didn’t realize exactly how many were NOT available for that game against the Great Danes.

Will Shoemaker, Leopards 'clean up' for Albany?

I wonder how good Lafayette football coach John Garrett thinks freshman quarterback Keegan Shoemaker can be.

At Tuesday’s weekly luncheon, Garrett praised the youngster from Texas, saying, “ … he allows us to play explosively … I’m really pleased with his play.”  But later, he said, “… he has a lot to clean up on his game.”

Shoemaker has completed 64 percent of his passes (57-for-89) in his first three college games. He has an efficiency rating of 148.53. How good is that? Well, last year, Sean O'Malley's rating was 93.97, and in 2017, it was just over 104. Shoemaker already has more touchdown passes than O’Malley had all of last season (four).

Leopards: A look back, and a look ahead

Caught on the tape recorder at Tuesday’s football luncheon:

“It came down to a fourth-and-1 and they jumped into a wildcat and they were able to knock us off the ball and run out the clock. So, we were right there and pleased how team played.” – Coach John Garrett. He was referring to the closing minutes of last Saturday's game, when Monmouth was able to control the clock while Lafayette needed a stop. That fourth-and-1 play resulted in a 16-yard gain and the Hawks were able to finish it off from there because Lafayette could not stop the clock.

“[Special teams coordinator Greg] Frantz has done great job building a culture on how important special teams are. A lot of kids coming in never had to play special teams because they were the best kids on their teams. Everybody was all-conference, all-state, something. So, when they got in the room, Coach Frantz really made it an emphasis point that you’re going to have to earn your spot and some of you guys aren’t going to be able to make the bus, especially for Patriot League games … We want 11 guys out there that are going to want to hit and make a difference in the game. I and the other seniors try to emphasize that you can change the game just by a punt, by a kick, by a huge kickoff return.” – Ryan Monteyne, who got the first punt block of his entire football career, on the lead role he can play as a member of all the special-teams units.