Charles Nailen/The Hoya Along with junior running back John Sims, the Hoyas will turn to sophomores Marcus Slayton and Kim Sarin to gain yards on the ground against Lehigh.

There is one thing standing between Georgetown football and the biggest turnaround in the program’s history: Lehigh.

The Hoyas opened their first two Patriot League campaigns against the Mountain Hawks. In year one, Georgetown suffered a 41-14 defeat at home; in year two, a No. 3 Lehigh team decimated the Hoyas, 69-0.

The next chapter in the series takes place Saturday afternoon on Harbin Field, when the Hoyas (3-4, 1-2 Patriot) hope to continue their incredible resurgence after falling to 0-4 to start the year. Coming off a bye week, Lehigh (4-2, 2-0 Patriot) looks to take the steam out of a Georgetown team that has won its last three. The ountain Hawks will have to overcome a few key injuries while playing one of the most difficult schedules in its recent history, including contests – both losses – against No. 21 Pennsylvania and Division I-A Connecticut.

“We’ve been able to get some guys healed up,” said Pete Lembo (GSB ’92), Lehigh head coach and former Georgetown football captain.

Junior quarterback Kyle Keating made his first start of 2003 against St. Mary’s, going 10-of-22 for 124 yards and a score. Keating replaced senior Chad Schwenk, who sustained a season-ending wrist injury during the team’s 35-17 loss to Connecticut.

“Chad was a great leader in our program,” Lembo said. “He was having a great year. But we feel good about Kyle – with each snap, he gets more experience.”

Keating, who is 4-0 as a starter, will rely on an experienced receiving corps, including junior tight end Adam Bergen and senior wide receiver Dave Crockett. If Lehigh stays on the ground, it has the capabilities of senior running back Jermaine Pugh at its disposal. Pugh has 515 yards through six contests, including a 238 yards in a 23-16 win over Fordham in week two.

On the other side of the ball, the Mountain Hawks have the second-best run defense in the Patriot League, allowing 114.2 yards per game. Only Colgate has a lower average, and the Hoyas lost to the Raiders, 20-19, on opening day.

“We have to back up those statistics this Saturday,” Lembo said. “Our defense has been solid all year long, but our strength is at linebacker.”

Senior linebackers Mike Taggart and Tom McGeoy form the core of a defensive line that tallied nine sacks Oct. 11 against St. ary’s. McGeoy added 11 tackles of his own, giving him a team-leading 48 tackles on the year.

The Hoyas can retaliate with a potent defensive front of their own. Senior linebacker Andrew Clarke leads the Patriot League in tackles for loss, though Clarke was in and out of last weekend’s Cornell match with a sore knee. His fellow senior linebacker William Skultety leads the defense in tackles, and Georgetown has the second highest turnover margin in the conference with plus eight. In order to succeed against Lehigh, the Hoyas will have to play one of their best games of the year, according to head coach Bob Benson.

“We’ve got to contain Pugh. We’ve got to really bring the “A” game – high intensity, great effort. We have to be functioning on all cylinders,” he added.

Junior quarterback Andrew Crawford must rebound from his slump last week for the offense to be successful. He completed less than 50 percent of his passes – six throws for 90 yards and one touchdown. Sophomore running back Marcus Slayton will have difficulty matching the 109 yards and two touchdowns he earned last weekend at Cornell – especially with the likes of Taggart and cGeoy lurking on the opposite side of the line of scrimmage. But as in past contests, the Hoyas will also be able to turn to sophomore running back Kim Sarin, junior running back John Sims and freshman quarterback Alondzo Turner to advance the ball on the ground.

The special teams play could be one of the spectacles of the afternoon. Georgetown senior Luke McArdle ran back two punts last week for 56 and 88 yards, while Lehigh sophomore Gerran Walker returned a kickoff 84 yards for a touchdown against St. ary’s.

Lehigh is historically the best team in the Patriot League, possessing a 63-29-1 all-time conference record. It has also won the league title six times – more than any other school.

The Mountain Hawks are in a three-way tie for first place in the conference with Colgate and Bucknell, who face off Saturday. But the match in Hamilton, N.Y. will be of no interest to Lembo and his team while playing at Harbin Field.

“We have to take care of our game,” Lembo said. “This is going to be a challenging game. We have to be ready to play our best game of the year.”

The Hoyas will have quite a challenge in continuing the success they had last week at Cornell – their first Ivy League victory since 1916.

“[Lehigh] is the best opponent we’ve seen on campus in a long time,” Benson said. “Our kids are fired up. We’re excited to be the back in conference [play].”