The nation’s longest running and most played college football rivalry will produce another edition this Saturday when the Lafayette Leopards travel to Bethlehem, Pa., to take on the Lehigh Mountain Hawks for the 160th time.
First played in 1884, “The Rivalry” has been played every year except for 1896. While they didn’t play in 2020, the two teams met in the spring of 2021 to keep the streak alive.
“The Rivalry” is such a special game that multiple sports outlets have ranked it on their lists of top college football rivalries in the country and PBS even made a documentary about the game.
TALE OF THE TAPE
Series History: Lafayette leads 82-72-5
Series Began: October 25, 1884
Recent History: Lafayette has won four of the last five meetings
Largest Victory: Lehigh won 78-0 in 1917
Rivalry Trophy: Keeping with tradition, this rivalry doesn’t have a trophy. However, the winning team keeps the game ball, paints it with the score of the game, and displays the ball on their campus.
BAD BLOOD BEGINS
Like most great football rivalries, this rivalry is rooted in religion and the founding of both schools.
The man at the center of the beginning of this rivalry is Asa Packer. Packer was a carpenter who moved into the Lehigh Valley and joined the Presbyterian Church to which his family had been involved with. Unfortunately, Packer did not get along with the members of the church and left the church and joined the Episcopalian Church instead.
Packer’s time in the Lehigh Valley was prosperous, as he gained a fortune through building and repairing boats, and later through coal transportation and railroad. Packer also became a judge and influential citizen of Pennsylvania.
Because of his fortune, Packer was approached by Ariovistus Pardee, a major factor in the founding of Lafayette College, with the hopes that Packer would help fund an engineering wing for Lafayette.
Packer was happy to help initially, but once he learned that Lafayette was run by the Presbyterians he quickly withdrew his support and eventually founded Lehigh College 17 miles down the road.
BIGGER THAN FOOTBALL
While “The Rivalry” mostly revolves around the annual football game, the result of each sporting contest between the two schools is recorded and the school with the most wins at the end of the year is the real “winner”.
Both schools celebrate the rivalry with a week of events to get fans prepared for the game. At Lehigh, students create banners, have bed races, and the marching band plays throughout campus. Meanwhile at Lafayette, students also create banners and vandalize an old car.
All of these events lead up to the football game which has a habit of creating memorable moments, some of which you can read about here.
What will the 160th edition bring?
2024 MATCHUP
Date: Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024
Site: Goodman Stadium, Bethlehem, Pa.
Time: 12:00pm ET
TV: ESPN+
*Other notable FCS rivalry games this week include Montana-Montana State, William & Mary-Richmond, Yale-Harvard, and Idaho-Idaho State*