It took seven and a half games for the Hoyas’ offense to get going.

Once they thought they had things figured out, a bye week forced a two-week layoff.

Now, on the eve of a road matchup with the Patriot League’s top dog, Lehigh, Georgetown (4-4, 2-2 Patriot) will have to get things moving again for any chance of improbably climbing above .500.

Return, for a moment, to Georgetown’s last home football game. It’s homecoming weekend. You had an awesome time at kegs and eggs or the tailgate, and you are just dying to brag to your state-school buddies that Georgetown football can actually be kind of fun. For some of you, this is your first taste of homecoming, while others are experiencing it for the last time.

But by halftime, things have changed. It’s cold and rainy. You could be having a lot more homecoming fun elsewhere, right? After all, the winless Fordham Rams have just scored three unanswered touchdowns and are leading by 18 points.

The astute fans at the Multi-Sport Facility knew that Georgetown had scored 18 points just once this season, and it took an overtime field goal just to get that far. Though the Hoyas had relied on comebacks a few times earlier in the year, those comebacks had been from just a few points behind. This was 18. So what did most of the smart, reasonable Hoya fans do? Head for the hills.

One segment of the student body, however, stuck around. Luckily, it was the football team.

Whatever Coach Bob Benson did at halftime, it worked. The third quarter started relatively quietly, with each team forcing a pair of defensive stops. But after recovering a Fordham fumble on the visitors’ 15-yard line, the Georgetown offense sprang to life.

Junior quarterback Nick Cangelosi hit sophomore tight end Harrison Beacher with a three-yard touchdown pass to pull the Hoyas within 11. For Cangelosi, it was his fourth touchdown pass of the year.

After forcing another punt, the Hoyas regained possession. With the ball on their own 45 yard line, the Hoyas capitalized on the short field and drove down 55 yards for another touchdown. Marcus Slayton pulled the Hoyas to within a score on his three-yard touchdown run. On the day, Slayton fought for 192 yards rushing.

Things were slow from then on, until there were just two minutes remaining on the fourth quarter clock. Down four points, the Hoyas took over on their own 11-yard line. Eighty-nine yards lay between Georgetown and a victory.

It is hard to say exactly how Georgetown’s offense became so efficient, but in just a minute, the Hoyas marched down the field for a score. Senior tight end Glenn Castergine, plagued throughout the year by neck and ankle injuries, caught the game-winning touchdown pass with 49 seconds remaining.

For Castergine, the end of his senior homecoming game could not have been more perfect.

“It’s been a rough five weeks,” he said. “This is the last [homecoming] for me. I’ve done well the last couple of homecomings, but [this one] was the highlight of my career. I get shivers just thinking about it.”

Georgetown’s victory was a tale of two halves. But Saturday’s opponent Lehigh (6-2, 2-1) will demand not a 30-minute performance, but a full 60 minutes of competition from the Hoyas.

The Mountain Hawks, ranked 13th among Division I-AA football teams, are led by senior running back Eric Rath. Though just 5-foot-7, the 190-pound Rath has combined his speed and power to run for 662 yards and 15 touchdowns.

The key, as always for Benson, is stopping the run. Benson is hoping his defensive unit can stop Rath and put the Mountain Hawks in predictable passing situations. If they can do that, Benson says the Hoyas can hang right with Lehigh.

Castergine was willing to give the Mountain Hawks their due. “It’ll be a challenge. Lehigh has been great,” he said. “They have great players.”

According to the senior tight end, the key to victory is “coming out fast. We need to play hard and play fast. We have a few guys injured, so we need the guys that are filling in to really step into their roles and do their part.”

One of those injured players is Slayton. Georgetown’s chief offensive threat of late, Slayton will need to be in the lineup for the Hoyas to achieve success. According to Benson, he is questionable.

What is unquestionable about Slayton is how well he is playing. A senior, Slayton is two years removed from a 700-yard sophomore campaign in which he, at least for a little while, seemed to have a chance of becoming Georgetown’s first 1,000-yard rusher.

A year ago, as Kim Sarin reached that sacred plateau, injuries limited Slayton to just 184 yards and a sole touchdown.

Now, it is Sarin who has been forced to the sidelines with an injury, and Slayton has been reinstated as Georgetown’s principle back. He enjoying a renaissance of a senior season, rushing for 594 yards on just 122 carries.

“Confidence,” Benson said when asked about the key to Slayton’s improvement. “He is playing with complete confidence. And the offensive line has done a better job.”

Additionally, Benson says, Georgetown will need to win its special teams battle against Lehigh. In last year’s matchup, Lehigh returned the opening kick for a touchdown. Benson does not want to see that again.

If the Hoyas can dictate field position with their special teams and defense, Benson feels they will be in business. He is also looking for the offense to hold onto the ball longer and take control of the clock.

Though the offense was finally clicking before the bye week, the extra rest did come at the perfect time, according to Benson.

“We rested the team, and we got some extra time to prepare for Lehigh,” he said. “It was a good time [for a bye week].”

Entering Saturday’s contest, three games remain on the Hoyas’ season. Obviously, they would love to win all three, but with both Lehigh and Colgate among their remaining opponents, it will not be easy.

Castergine, for one, would love three more wins, but his goals for the rest of the season are a bit more elementary.

“These will probably be my last three games ever,” he said. “I just want to make it memorable. [I want to] have a good time with it, and three wins would be great.”

Saturday at 12:30 p.m. in Bethlehem, Pa., Georgetown will look to get back on a roll and give Castergine and the other seniors the farewell they deserve.