2003 Colgate Raiders football team

The 2003 Colgate Raiders football team was an American football team that represented Colgate University during the 2003 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Colgate was undefeated in the regular season, won the Patriot League championship and played in the Division I-AA national championship game.

2003 Colgate Raiders football
Patriot League champion
ConferencePatriot League
2003 record15–1 (7–0 Patriot)
Head coach
Captains
  • John Frieser
  • Tem Lukabu
  • Sean McCune
Home stadiumAndy Kerr Stadium
2003 Patriot League football standings
Conf  Overall
Team W L    W L 
No. 2 Colgate $^  7 –0     15 –1  
No. 23 Lehigh  6 –1     8 –3  
Fordham  4 –3     9 –3  
Bucknell  4 –3     6 –6  
Towson  3 –4     6 –6  
Lafayette  2 –5     5 –6  
Georgetown  1 –6     4 –8  
Holy Cross  1 –6     1 –11  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant
Rankings from The Sports Network poll

In its eighth season under head coach Dick Biddle, the team compiled a 15–1 record (12–0 in the regular season). John Frieser, Tem Lukabu and Sean McCune were the team captains.[1]

The Raiders outscored opponents 480 to 303. Colgate's undefeated (7–0) conference record placed first in the Patriot League standings.[2]

Colgate started the year unranked in the Division I-AA national poll, but as the season-long win streak developed, the Raiders steadily climbed in the rankings. They debuted at No. 24 in mid-September and were ranked No. 6 at the end of the regular season.

The Raiders were seeded No. 4 in the Division I-AA national playoffs. After three playoff wins, Colgate lost to Delaware in the national championship game. In the final poll of the year, Delaware was ranked No. 1 and Colgate No. 2.

Colgate played its home games, including its first two playoff games, at Andy Kerr Stadium in Hamilton, New York.

Schedule
DateOpponentRankSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 6 at Georgetown
W 20–19 2,406 [3]
September 13 at Buffalo*
W 38–15 20,324 [4]
September 20 at Dartmouth* No. 24
W 31–9 6,920 [5]
September 27 Towson No. 22
W 26–7 7,467 [6]
October 4 at Cornell* No. 19
W 27–24 4,142 [7]
October 11 at Princeton* No. 17
W 30–3 14,096 [8]
October 18 Yale* No. 18
  • Andy Kerr Stadium
  • Hamilton, NY
W 52–40 7,895 [9]
October 25 Bucknell No. 16
  • Andy Kerr Stadium
  • Hamilton, NY
W 50–6 8,655 [10]
November 1 at Lafayette No. 12
W 47–31 [1]
November 8 No. 24 Lehigh No. 10
  • Andy Kerr Stadium
  • Hamilton, NY
W 17–10 [1]
November 15 Fordham No. 7
  • Andy Kerr Stadium
  • Hamilton, NY
W 14–3 4,673 [11]
November 22 at Holy Cross No. 6
W 45–38 10,166 [12]
November 29 No. 5 UMass* No. 6
W 19–7 4,197 [13]
December 6 No. 10 Western Illinois* No. 6
W 28–27 5,287 [14]
December 13 at No. 13 Florida Atlantic* No. 6
W 36–24 12,857 [15]
December 19 vs. No. 3 Delaware* No. 6
L 0–40 14,281 [16]

References
  1. "Colgate Athletic History: Football" (PDF). Hamilton, N.Y.: Colgate University. pp. 13-14 and 27. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  2. "Football All-Time Year-by-Year Results". Patriot League Football Record Book (PDF). Center Valley, Pa.: Patriot League. 2020. p. 9. Retrieved August 10, 2020.
  3. "Colgate 20, Georgetown 19". Democrat and Chronicle. Rochester, N.Y. September 7, 2003. p. 7D – via Newspapers.com.
  4. "Colgate 38, Buffalo 15". Democrat and Chronicle. Rochester, N.Y. September 14, 2003. p. 7D – via Newspapers.com.
  5. "Colgate Rides Back's 3 TDs". Press & Sun-Bulletin. Binghamton, N.Y. September 21, 2003. p. 7C – via Newspapers.com. Attendance figure in "New England Summaries". Boston Sunday Globe. Boston, Mass. September 21, 2003. p. C13.
  6. Bump, Larry (September 28, 2003). "Colgate Blows by Towson". The Baltimore Sun. Baltimore, Md. p. 16E – via Newspapers.com.
  7. Feaver, Christopher (October 6, 2003). "Cornell's Rally Falls Short". The Ithaca Journal. Ithaca, N.Y. p. 3B – via Newspapers.com. Attendance figure in "Ivy League Summaries". Boston Sunday Globe. Boston, Mass. October 5, 2003. p. C19.
  8. "Colgate 30, Princeton 3". Courier News. Somerville, N.J. Associated Press. October 12, 2003. p. C-8 – via Newspapers.com. Attendance figure in "Ivy League Standings, Summaries". Boston Sunday Globe. Boston, Mass. October 12, 2003. p. C15.
  9. Hine, Tommy (October 19, 2003). "Yale Makes a Mess of It". Hartford Courant. Hartford, Conn. pp. E10, E15 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. Housenick, Tom (October 26, 2003). "Raiders Exploit Bison Breakdowns". The Daily Item. Sunbury, Pa. p. D3 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. Brennan, Sean (November 16, 2003). "Rams' Playoff Bid Ends". Daily News. New York, N.Y. pp. 60, 79 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. Gearan, Jay (November 23, 2003). "Colgate Dodges Shocker; HC Can't Quite Contain Branch". Telegram & Gazette. Worcester, Mass. p. D6 – via NewsBank. Attendance figure in "Atlantic 10, New England Summaries". Boston Sunday Globe. Boston, Mass. November 23, 2003. p. C16.
  13. Burris, Joe (November 30, 2003). "Winter Blunderland: It's No Joy Ride as UMass Can't Weather Colgate". Boston Sunday Globe. Boston, Mass. p. C1 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. Muder, Craig (December 7, 2003). "Branch's Late TD Lifts Colgate over W. Illinois". Press & Sun-Bulletin. Binghamton, N.Y. pp. 1B – via Newspapers.com.
  15. Hutton, Ted (December 14, 2003). "End for Owls: Dominant Raiders End FAU's Playoff Run". Sun-Sentinel. Fort Lauderdale, Fla. p. 1D – via Newspapers.com.
  16. Tresolini, Kevin (December 20, 2003). "Blue Heaven: Delaware Routs Colgate, Wins First I-AA Crown". Sunday News Journal. Wilmington, Del. p. C1 – via Newspapers.com.
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