The Lehigh Mountain Hawks keep losing games in the last seconds, and it was no different this past Saturday. Their best PP, WR Sekou Yansane had the game-winning TD in his hands all the way to the ground in the Harvard endzone with a minute to play, but the ground and Harvard PP CB Andrew Berry combined to shake it out of his grasp. On the next play, QB J.B. Clark was hit from behind while scrambling to the left, and the ball popped out from between his arms (looked like it had been thrown) right to a Harvard LB who picked it off, preserving the Crimson's narrow 27-24 victory. This was basically a dual of topflight mid-major FCS wide receivers between Harvard's 6'6", 225 junior Matt Luft, and Lehigh's Yansane, although Lehigh's backup RB (in because of an injury to the starter) Jr. Matt McGowan accomplished something that has not been done against the Crimson since Brown's Nick Hartigan in 2005--Rush for over 100 yards.


SCOUTING SUMMARY:

College: Lehigh Conference: Patriot League Columnist: Steve Martin
Name # Ht Wt Speed Pos Class Game Notes

Jason Leo 21 5' 10.0" 180 5.10 P 2009: Does all of the kicking and punting for Lehigh. Places kickoffs inside the 5, generally. Shows decent range on FGs (solid up to 45) and can really [erform the onsides kick beautifully. Currently 11th in the FCS with 42 yards per punt. GRADE: Slightly positive

Brian Jackson 91 6' 1.0" 245 4.90 DT 2009: Playing "DT" in the Mountain Hawks 3-man front, but he's really a college DE, and should be looked at as an OLB at the next level. Despite being a smallish 3-4 collegiate DE he holds up well at the POA, and gets some penetration. Had a huge sack late in the game that gave Lehigh the ball back and a chance to win. Harvard ran the other way most of the time. Steps nicely over trash nd protects his legs. Nice rip move. Looks flexible enough to be given a look at OLB, but I have no idea how he would react in space. Played over the LOT most of the day, but when he was matched with Pilconis, he won. GRADE: Positive

Tim Diamond 25 5' 11.5" 215 4.85 LB 2009: Shouldn't challenge OGs at the POA, but does and gets locked inside. Active and productive, but way too small to be a pro. GRADE: Neutral

Sekou Yansane 9 6' 2.4" 195 4.60 WR 2009: Swims to separate. Can make the tough catch. Goes fearlessly over the middle. Nice toe toucher. Injured on what could have been the game-winning catch (referenced above). Looks like he has the whole packae, size and hands--except speed. Looks like a 4.60-4.65 guy. If I am wrong, and he's 4.5ish, Look out...Could be a real solid sleeper. GRADE: Positive

College: Harvard Conference: Ivy League Columnist: Steve Martin
Name # Ht Wt Speed Pos Class Game Notes

Eric Schultz 52 5' 11.0" 215 4.75 LB 2009: Steady LB who has been the Crimson's leading tackler in the past, but just 5th this year. Good pass defender. Played a very nice game today, but again, like Diamond, he just isn't big enough or fast enough. GRADE: Neutral

Peter Ajayi 50 6' 3.0" 245 4.60 DE 2009: Hand fights too much. Needs to develop a spin move. He MUST get consistent pressure in the passing game, and today, he didn't. GRADE: Slightly negative

Chris Pizzotti 19 6' 5.0" 225 4.80 QB 2009: Nice stat line (25 of 40, 303, 2/1) and still shows all the positive "heady" attributes previously listed, but I counted at least 4-5 passes where the ball severely wobbled. Wonder if that is correctable, or if he has small hands. You can have everything else upstairs, but you MUST be able to throw a spiral nearly every time to have a chance. Also let the ball sail a couple times today. Impressed by his reads, check downs and short-medium accuracy. Throws a nice 30-yard medium sidelines pass. How big are those hands? GRADE: Neutral

Desmond Bryant 90 6' 5.0" 280 4.85 DT 2009: More active than during the Cornell game. Got better penetration. Still he must be dominating this level to have any chance at the next, and he doesn't. GRADE: Slightly negative

Ryan Pilconis 73 6' 6.0" 290 5.10 OT 2009: Playing ROT, and that is red flag #1. ROTs from the Ivy League rarely do more than college football. He looked OK most of the game. Showed a nice punch and recoil, and decent hand usage, but he was walked by Jackson when matched up with him in the 3rd quarter, and Jackson is listed at 245 pounds. GRADE: Negative

Andrew Berry 4 6' 0.0" 175 4.55 CB 2009: Avoided like the plague, and that is about all you can say. Had a huge PBU versus Yansane in the endzone late, the one time he was really tested. Shut down his side of the field. Not involved much in the run game today at all. I only had him assisting on 2 tackles. Can you get a good grade for doing your job without putting up stats? Yes, you can. GRADE: Positive

Matt Curtis 91 6' 1.8" 255 4.65 DT 2009: There are times when I think Curtis could be Harvard's best PP. Here is a guy who is playing two slots out of position (on better college team's he'd be a 3-4 DE...but he really needs to be evaluated as a LB). If he really is a 4.6 guy as Harvard claims, he could even be tried at ILB. I'd love to see that. Stalemated a lot today by the solid Lehigh interior line, and was double teamed most of the time. Goes to the sidelines well. Bring him in and have a look. Has Gocong's size, but not his pass rushing instincts. Looks like he COULD play ILB. GRADE: Neutral

OTHER NOTES:

Lehigh: Junior LB Matt Cohen (#22 6'0", 225) had a nice game including a big 25-yard fake punt run. An active OLB who will be one of the Patriot League headliners next year.

Rookie QB J.B. Clark battled Pizzotti step for step, and throws a better ball.


Harvard: IF he wants to play football, Jr. WR Matt Luft definitely deserves to be in a camp in the summer of 2010. He is 6'6", 225 and shows (...and this is rare) the ability to use that size effectively.