New Colgate Head Coach Curt Fitzpatrick meets with the media and his players

[Go...gate]

Coach Fitzpatrick met for about thirty minutes with local and regional media last week in Hamilton. All seemed to go well

He is still finalizing the hiring of his staff.

Today, he met with the full squad.

Despite the coaching transition, Colgate still garnered eleven new signees.

[RichH2]

Hope he works out for Gate. PL better with Gate competing for the title.

[NY Crusader 2010]

Hope he works out for Gate. PL better with Gate competing for the title.

100%. Has the Patriot League ever had a stretch where Lehigh, Colgate, Holy Cross and Fordham were all good at the same time? I hope that's where we're headed.

[Wolffan]

Coach Fitzpatrick met for about thirty minutes with local and regional media last week in Hamilton. All seemed to go well

He is still finalizing the hiring of his staff.

Today, he met with the full squad.

Despite the coaching transition, Colgate still garnered eleven new signees. As long as these are quality signees Colgate can return to its competitive self. The margins are very thin in the PL and a top recruit or two (along with a good new coach) makes all the difference.

[Wolffan]

100%. Has the Patriot League ever had a stretch where Lehigh, Colgate, Holy Cross and Fordham were all good at the same time? I hope that's where we're headed. Along those lines I've always wondered if HC's recent dominance was a cause of the relative decline of a few PL programs (by winning recruit battles and thus weakening their rosters... and then beating them on the field) or if there was an entirely coincidental and simultaneous decline in a few PL football programs. Probably a combination of both.

[Kramden]

I hope the new coach can turn around the program, but admittedly, I am not sold on picking a D3 coach who, although wining the Championship one year didn;t exaclty build a dynasty. I need to see if he will be able to recruit a higher level of athlete, which for Colgate has been deteriotrating for many years now. Any way, I wish him well.

[DFW HOYA]

Along those lines I've always wondered if HC's recent dominance was a cause of the relative decline of a few PL programs (by winning recruit battles and thus weakening their rosters... and then beating them on the field) or if there was an entirely coincidental and simultaneous decline in a few PL football programs. Probably a combination of both.

Probably a combination of:

1. Better coaching: Chesney was a more active recruiter and a better game day coach than his predecessor.

2. Talent: Matthew Sluka was ascendant when other PL quarterbacks were in a period of relative decline. His style was not as common when he arrived but is more prevalent now.

3. Coaching turnover elsewhere: John Garrett took over for Frank Tavani, Tom Gilmore took over for Andy Coen, there was coaching instability at Fordham, and Dan Hunt was pushed out at Colgate, all of which set these schools back a bit.

[Go...gate]

I hope the new coach can turn around the program, but admittedly, I am not sold on picking a D3 coach who, although wining the Championship one year didn;t exaclty build a dynasty. I need to see if he will be able to recruit a higher level of athlete, which for Colgate has been deteriorating for many years now. Any way, I wish him well.

Kramden, I share your reservations about a Division III coach but disagree that Colgate's athletes have been deteriorating.

[ngineer]

Along those lines I've always wondered if HC's recent dominance was a cause of the relative decline of a few PL programs (by winning recruit battles and thus weakening their rosters... and then beating them on the field) or if there was an entirely coincidental and simultaneous decline in a few PL football programs. Probably a combination of both.

With Lehigh, it was a confluence of ***** occurring within small window. Coen's illness, which impacted coaching and recruiting; then his resignation and sudden hiring of Gilmore which added to the effluent, only to be exacerbated by the COVID pandemic which put a double whammy on recruiting. Many thought it would take Lehigh 3-4 years to fully recover once Gilmore was released. Surprisingly, the hiring of Cahill in conjunction with a solid staff and an excellent first year recruiting class and the leadership of the seniors who stayed committed, came together to have Lehigh rebound with a tremendous season in 2024. Preseason, most would have been overjoyed with a 4-5 win season. So, to answer your question, "timing can be everything." Hopefully, "we're back" to stay for awhile.

[DFW HOYA]

Hopefully, "we're back" to stay for awhile.

So, what have we got for 2025?

Richmond: "Here we come."
Holy Cross: "We're still here."
Lehigh: "We're back."
Lafayette: "So are we."
Colgate: "Here we come."
Fordham: "Don't sell us short."
Georgetown: "There's always hope."
Bucknell: "What he said."

[RichH2]

So, what have we got for 2025?

Richmond: "Here we come."
Holy Cross: "We're still here."
Lehigh: "We're back."
Lafayette: "So are we."
Colgate: "Here we come."
Fordham: "Don't sell us short."
Georgetown: "There's always hope."
Bucknell: "What he said."
The perfect caption for the PL going into '25
🏈🤣😊

[Easton13]

So, what have we got for 2025?

Richmond: "Here we come."
Holy Cross: "We're still here."
Lehigh: "We're back."
Lafayette: "So are we."
Colgate: "Here we come."
Fordham: "Don't sell us short."
Georgetown: "There's always hope."
Bucknell: "What he said."

Smells like a multi-bid Patriot to me. xthumbsupx

[Kramden]

Smells like a multi-bid Patriot to me. xthumbsupx
I doubt it. With the IVY's coming in taking away one Bid, I can't see the PL getting more than the Auto Bid. They will need to start having a better record as a Conference in their OOC games in my opinion.

[RichH2]

Smells like a multi-bid Patriot to me. xthumbsupx

PL is improving quite a bit. More depth of good teams. Unless our OOC improves I don't see 2 bids particularly with the Ivies now playoff bound.

[Easton13]

Woof, tough crowd. The comedy needs a bit of work, I guess.