2003 Schedule Preview

 

Coming off back to back 2-9 seasons, the stalwart Georgetown football fans out there could rightly ask: is there improvement ahead?

It starts with the schedule.

The 2023 Hoyas will face teams that posted a combined 63-58 record (.520) in 2022, with its non-conference opponents checking in at a 2022 record of 30-22 (.576). Three consecutive home games to open the season, the first such run since the opening to the 1981 season, will provide a barometer as to where this team figures to settle as the schedule steps up in competition. For the Hoyas to escape another 2-9 rut, early season wins are crucial.

Here's a brief look at the 2023 opponents.

Marist  (4-7 in 2022)

September 2, Cooper Field

Despite an 18-5-0 overall record versus the Red Foxes, Georgetown has not won four consecutive games over Marist in the Patriot League era. Entering this season opener, Georgetown has won three straight.

The lone relic from its MAAC football schedules of the 1990s, wins over Marist are not necessarily harbingers of good fortunes (as the last three years will suggest), but an early season loss to a Pioneer League team has been troublesome. A 14-12 loss in 2017 led Georgetown to a 1-10 season, its loss to the Red Foxes in 2013 began a run of eight consecutive losses, and a late season loss by Georgetown in 2009 was part of an 0-11 season. While no one will confuse this as a rivalry game beyond perhaps, the head coaches, an early season stumble is magnified by past performance.

The Red Foxes have finished wither 4-7 or 5-6 in 10 of the past 11 seasons. Returning seven starters on offense and six on defense, a 5-6 record is in reach this season, but Marist needs at least one win in a non-conference trio of Georgetown, Columbia, and Bucknell. Sophomore QB Brock Bagozzi threw for over 2100 yards last season and returns starting WR Will Downes (32-389-2), but the team's meager rushing numbers (84.5 per game) forced the action into the secondary last season.

Fifth year linebacker Mike Arrington leads a Marist  defense with led the PFL in passing defense, holding opponents to 15 passing touchdowns last season, with Georgetown's former QB Pierce Holley held to just 175 yards and one touchdown in last season's game, a contest decided on three Bagozzi interceptions and two blocked punts by the Georgetown  defense.

The Hoyas have averaged 41.6 points in each of its last three games versus the Red Foxes. Anything close to this would be a green light for a season opening win.

Sacred Heart (8-4)

September 9, Cooper Field

The presumed return game from a 2010 game played between the schools at Bridgeport, CT,  Sacred Heart makes its first ever visit to Washington.

The Pioneers finished 8-4 last season, matching its total from 2021. The 2023 team faces a significant rebuild, with just three returning starters on offense and three on defense. Running back Malik Grant ranked among the top 25 rushers in the nation last season, but SHU lost four starters on its line from last year.

Sacred Heart was picked third in the Northeast Conference pre-season poll, and Georgetown fans should get a better view of what to expect after its season opener with Lafayette. 

Stonehill (4-5)

September 16, Cooper Field

No, it's not the "Ed Cooley Classic", though the Stonehill grad will likely make a visit to the game en route to a scrimmage later than afternoon.

This is a game the Hoyas really need to win. The Skyhawks (nee Chieftains) are in its second season in Division I, having added football in Division II in 1999.  In its first season in the Northeast Conference, Stonehill was a creditable 4-5, although two of the wins came over Division II programs. Otherwise, Stonehill struggled in its opening season of NEC play and is picked sixth of eight NEC teams this upcoming season.

Stonehill is not Marist, however. Georgetown often struggles against scholarship talent and with 40 grants-in-aid, the Skyhawks are not a pushover.  Stonehill returns seven starters on offense and seven on defense, with quarterback Ashur Carraha (135-250-14), running back Jermaine Corbett (123-774-9) and wide receiver Cameron Alves (32-303-2) all returning.  A tough opener with New Hampshire and a road game at Central Connecticut precede this game for the Skyhawks, so anything better than an 0-2 start will be a clear and present danger to the Hoyas in its third consecutive home game.

at Columbia (6-4)

September 23, Wien Stadium

The off-season retirement of Al Bagnoli brings some unexpected change to the Lions entering 2023, as offensive coordinator Mark Fabish takes over as the interim coach in 2023. Bagnoli did what some say could not be done--he made Columbia a winner, with four winning seasons in its last five and a fifth place, 6-4 record in 2022, winning its final three over Harvard, Brown, and Cornell.

The Lions return its top three offensive contributors from last season, where Columbia ranked 5th in offense and in defense during the 2022 Ivy season. Having won four of its last five over Georgetown, Columbia will be favored to do the same in its home opener after opening up at Lafayette the week before.

Fordham (9-3)

81st Homecoming Game

September 30, Cooper Field

In its 11th appearance before a Homecoming crowd at Georgetown, but only its third since 1985, the Rams enter this game minus a major offensive option from 2022, but still appear to be a formidable opponent. 

Tim DeMorat left the Bronx this spring as the school's all-time passer, with a staggering 13,461 yards and 123 touchdowns. New Mexico transfer C.J. Montes opened this past weekend as the new signal caller in a 34-13 loss at Albany, but the Rams continue to be a difficult opponent for the Hoyas, having won 24 of the last 27 in the series and 18-3 in the Patriot League era, with GU's last home win coming in 2011. 

Fordham returns 12 seniors and fifth year students in is starting lineup, and will be favored in home games with Wagner and Stonehill before traveling to Georgetown at month's end. The key for the Hoyas will be to keep the scoring down: in the PL era,  the Hoyas are 2-1 when holding the Rams under 17 points and 1-17 when allowing 17 or more.

at Pennsylvania (8-2)

October 7, Franklin Field

In its last appearance in Philadelphia, the 2007 Hoyas were down 28-0 in the first quarter and never challenged in a 42-13 walkover. If last season is more relevant, the Quakers scored five consecutive touchdowns after halftime and clocked the Hoyas 59-28 en route to an 8-2 season. The last meeting of this current two game contract does not offer much hope for the Hoyas at midseason.

The Quakers are picked third in the 2023 Ivy pre-season poll, led by quarterback Aidan Sayin (253-390-18), who threw for four touchdowns in that game. Penn's defense held Georgetown to 34 yards rushing in 2022 and return six starters from that unit for 2023.

Road games at PL opponents Colgate  (Sep. 16) and Bucknell (Sep. 23) should provide a window into how the Quakers will be prepared for this game, having won all three versus Georgetown in the PL era. 

at Lehigh (2-9)

October 14, Goodman Stadium

Following its worst run since the 1960s, Tom Gilmore stepped aside as Lehigh coach last season, with longtime Yale assistant Kevin Cahill getting his first head coaching opportunity.

The Engineers are picked fifth in the pre-season PL poll, but have a lot of upside. Returning nine on offense and seven starters on defense, Lehigh was fourth in the PL in rushing and passing, but its 99.5 yards per game on the ground is  insufficient even for a passing team. (So too, Georgetown, with a league  low 81.9 yards per game last season). The Lehigh running game needs more production to give senior Dante Perri better opportunities downfield. Five games were decided in 2022 by four points or less, including Lehigh's 21-19 win at Georgetown. 

Lehigh will enter this game coming off three consecutive road games at Dartmouth, Monmouth and Fordham, and need to win two of them to maintain momentum heading into the second half of its schedule. The Engineers must improve upon a 17.2 points per game scoring average in 2022 to be more competitive in the PL and maintain its mastery over Georgetown, having won 20 of the last 21 versus Georgetown, with a 10-0 mark at Goodman Stadium.

Colgate (3-8)

October 21, Cooper Field

Much like Lehigh, 2022 was a poor season for Colgate, who nonetheless handled Georgetown 34-24 last season in Hamilton, NY. With a 3-5 record entering November, the Red Raiders dropped its final three games of the season.

Quarterback Michael Brescia returns his top two rushers and two of his top three receivers from last season, but Colgate lost a lot on defense and after having given up over 30 points a game last season. A challenging early schedule (road games at Syracuse, Villanova, and Holy Cross) will test its defensive sets from the start, where all-PL selections Tyler Flick (LB) and Owen Goss (DB) will be prominent. 

Much like last season, the Red Raiders could be well under .500 by the time they arrive in Washington, but it does not make them any less competitive in a series that has been one-sided from the start. A 40-17 win by the Hoyas in 2011 is the only win by Georgetown in this series in 19 games dating to 2001, and the Red Raiders have scored 28 or more points in each of the last six games versus the Hoyas

Lafayette (4-7)

October 28, Cooper Field

Optimism abounds in John Troxell's second season at College Hill, yet Lafayette fans still can't quite get over why the Leopards have struggled against one opponent in particular: in its last four seasons, Georgetown is 3-1 versus Lafayette and 4-16 versus all other PL teams.  

A September 9 game at Duke highlights the overall 2023 Lafayette schedule, one that should have the Leopards at or near .500 entering in its final road game of the season outside the Lehigh Valley. Coming off road games at Princeton and Holy Cross, Lafayette will look to this game as a momentum builder before the meat of its remaining schedule with home games with Colgate and Fordham before the finale at Lehigh.

Changes will be in evidence for the Leopards in 2023. An inexperienced offense in 2023 leads to more experience this fall, while a solid defense in 2022 must recover from the loss of its front four in 2023. Solving its rotating chair at quarterback will \help Lafayette, using three different quarterbacks last season to varying effect. If the Leopards have a solid #1 QB entering this game, they figure to be a strong challenge in Georgetown's senior day, where the Hoyas have not won their home finale since the 2014 season.

at Bucknell (3-8)

November 11, Christy Mathewson Memorial Stadium

Georgetown's last realistic hope of an upset in 2023 stands at Lewisburg, PA,. where it comes off a late bye week to face Bucknell, who tied Georgetown for last place in the 2023 PL poll.

As has been the case for many years, the Bucknell offense struggles to generate points (12.2 per game in 2022) and its defense must carry the weight. Quarterbacks Nick Semptimphelter and Tyler Beverett passed for just 803 yards last season between them, with four touchdowns and four interceptions between. Ralph Rucker, a junior transfer from Oklahoma, will compete for the starting role, but the Bison must generate more on the ground, averaging just over three yards a carry.

Senior Tyler Alston leads a Bucknell defense that ranked first in passing defense among Patriot League teams, holding opponents under 200 yards in the air, and first in interceptions. With all those numbers, the Bison were a mere 1-8 entering last season's game with the Hoyas, and followed it up with a win over Marist to finish 3-8.

Bucknell opens the 2023 season with James Madison, VMI, and Penn before entering PL play, and ends the season with Georgetown and Marist as in 2022. The Hoyas have averaged just 14.6 points per game in its last six meetings with the Bison, with each of the last three games being decided by eight points or less. The teams have split the last four meetings, and at this late point of the season, the team entering the game with the fewest injuries would be favored to win.

at Holy Cross (12-1)

November 18, Fitton Field

Barring injuries or an unforeseen upset, Holy Cross will arrive to Fitton Field at season's end to collect its fifth consecutive PL title, and Georgetown will not.

With seven first team preseason all-PL selections on offense, the Crusaders are well prepared for another championship run, led by senior quarterback and All-America candidate Matthew Sluka. Sluka threw for 2,489 yards last season but was equally effective on the ground, finishing atop the PL rushing yards list as a quarterback with 1,234 yards.  As Sluka averaged more per game on the ground (94.9 per game) that Georgetown did as a team (81.9), he's a unique dual-threat option, and one which took the Hoyas out early last season en route to a 47-10 win.

Fifth year senior Jacob Dobbs leads the Crusaders on defense, with the depth to reload on defense and justify a #5 preseason national ranking. Dobbs joined Sluka and OL Luke Newman as pre-season first team All-America selections.

The excellence of the HC program starts at the top, with sixth year coach Bob Chesney, 37-17 overall at Mt. St. James and a sterling 23-3 in conference play over his five seasons there. In his last three games against Georgetown, Chesney's Crusaders have won by an average of 31.6 points per game, and Holy Cross has averaged 34.2 points a game in each of the last seven wins in the series.

A strong non-conference slate awaits HC this season, but fans are cautiously optimistic in their chances with road games at Boston College, Yale, and Army, the latter coming the week before its regular season finale versus Georgetown. Road games at Fordham and Lehigh on back to back weekends in late October and early November appear to be the only trap games in league play for the Crusaders. 

The Massey Ratings service gives HC a 97% chance of winning this game with Georgetown,  and the Hoyas have not shown much in the way of late season momentum in recent years. Georgetown has not won a season finale since 2014, where it won at the road at, of all places, Holy Cross, 21-16. The Crusaders have been held to 16 or fewer points just once in the last four seasons and was held to a season low 21 in 2022 by South Dakota State, the eventual FCS national champions.

That same rating service predicts Georgetown to finish... 2-9. Can the Hoyas prove them wrong?

Five Questions, Defense

 

In contrast to a Georgetown offense with lots of questions entering the 2023 season, the defense return experience, even if it was challenged during many of the games last season. 

Past experience suggests the Hoyas can't go very far at all without a skilled defensive set, and experience burnishes that skill. With this, five questions for the 2023 defense:

1.  How do the Hoyas address the run? Georgetown was last in the PL in rush defense in 2022 (187.5 yards/game), whish was statistically better than its 197 yards in 2021. Controlling the run falls to a group of experienced linemen in senior Kwame Achompong, junior VeRon Garrison, and sophomore Mateen Ibrigoba. Of these, Garrison's 29 tackles and four TFL's last season were solid, but Ibrigoba's 22 tackles and four sacks was one off the team lead for a Georgetown  defense which tied for second in the PL last season in sacks. The Hoyas' improvement in the secondary is supported by a stronger approach up front, one which these three can take the lead on. Reducing the average rush allowed under 150 yards would be a sizeable step forward for the Hoyas to contend.

2. Who is the next Justin Fonteneaux? No small shoes to fill after Fonteneaux's 2022 season, where he averaged just short of eight tackles a game and earned second team all-PL honors at linebacker. If Will Kessler and Ibri Harrell continue as outside linebackers, there is a pressing need for a stopgap in the middle. Junior Myles Jones, with 16 tackles last season in spot duty, could be a candidate, along with sophomore Jed Henry.

3. How does the secondary hold up? Despite finishing third in the league in pass defense in 2022, the Hoyas were last in defensive efficiency, which is a function of opponent completion percentage. Put another way, opponents got a lot of completions against the Hoyas defense, from Fordham's Tom DeMorat to Holy Cross' Michael Sluka, the latter competing his first 11 passes.

Sluka returns for the season finale, but the Hoyas must do better on passing sets all season long. 

4. Can Georgetown Hold The Line? The Hoyas were last in the Patriot League (and 118th of 123 teams nationally) in third down conversions allowed,  at a very poor 49 percent. On fourth down, much the same: last in the PL and 108th nationally with a discouraging 60 percent of fourth downs (15 of 25) extending opponent drives.

5. Can the defense win the second half? Georgetown gave up an average of 21 points per game in 2022...in the second half alone. If you've followed this site's "Rule of 22" when it comes to Georgetown's offense, it becomes prohibitive for the Hoyas to win giving up more than 22 points in any game of the Patriot league era because the offense is historically overmatched on its talent. 

The Hoyas gave up 36.5 points per game last season, most in any season since 2009. Without a meaningful reduction in this number, the chances for any winning season is just not happening because the offense is not capable of matching these numbers.

Five Questions, Offense

With two weeks to the 2023 season, the silence is deafening.

Maybe it's the long, endless summer of losses around the Georgetown program that gives reporters little interest to ask why. Others may have simply given up on the idea of progress. Maybe it's a result of how little Georgetown wants to shine a light on where the Hoyas are right now. But in any case, the season is soon upon us, and with it, a lot of questions about a program that looks as much like the 2008 season as 2023.

That 2008 team was coming off two productive seasons by QB Matt Bassuener and some fine individual efforts on both sides of the ball, but the offenses under former coordinator Jim Miceli were inexperienced and lacked direction. From a 2007 team that averaged just 15 points a game on offense, a three quarterback rotation in 2008 managed fewer than 10 points a season later, while its defense allowed nearly 36 minutes of time of possession.

Past need not be prologue. The 2008 Hoyas opened with three consecutive road games en route to a 2-9 finish, while 2023 opens with three very winnable home games before things start to get serious. With this in mind, five questions for the Georgetown offense as the season opener approaches:

1. Who Is The Starting Quarterback? You have to go back, way back, to find a less experienced group of quarterbacks entering the start of a season. Following Bassuener's graduation, the 2008 team rotated through sophomore Keerome Lawrence and freshmen James Brady and Scott Darby, neither of whom had seen time as a college quarterback, and it showed. 

In 2023, fifth year senior Tyler Knoop enters as the favorite until we are told otherwise, in no small part because he is the only quarterback with any prior experience. In two seasons, Knoop threw 12 passes for 136 yards, mainly out of wildcat formations. The challenge for Knoop is to stay in the pocket and throw, and to avoid injury, because it he's not in the game, things will get messy real quick.

The Hoyas have six QB's on the roster. Senior Connor Katz and sophomore Danny Lauter have not seen any game time. Freshmen Jacob Holtschlag and Jordan Holmes are longer term options. Sophomore Dez Thomas played two years at Division III Trinity (TX), but that's a significant jump to Division I FCS.  

Owing to a pass-first philosophy by assistant coach Rob Spence which has been intermittently successful, the eventual signal caller has to learn to stay in the pocket, something Pierce Holley did a good job of last season, and avoid becoming a running QB, because Georgetown hasn't been built for it.

2. Who Steps Up? A heavily senior and grad-level offensive lien gave way to the inevitable: four of five starters from 2022 are gone, and that's a  big step forward for those needed to enter those roles in 2023. 

Grad student Spencer Harris and juniors Luke Popma and Richie Pinomi  need to make the jump to full time starters. With likely 2023 starter Sam Telesa having transferred, grad student Talati Polomalu can't do it alone, and experience is vital in the o-line. This leaves opportunity for a dozen other candidates, including sophomores Joshua Sauickie, Trevor Swan, and Losini Maka, to taken another step forward, while others have to be ready for the call should injuries become a factor. 

The Hoyas' run game won't go far without a line, leading to the next question...

3. Can The Hoyas Run? At 6-0, 225 lbs., grad student Joshua Stakely is the  largest man in the backfield for the 2023 Hoyas. Georgetown has struggled to recruit backs over the years and carry just five other RB's, with an average height of 5-9 and 186 pounds between them. By contrast, Holy Cross averages 213.8 pounds per back and a pair of backs over 230.

Stakely led all rushers in 2022 but with just 34.5 yards per game. Georgetown averaged just 2.6 yards per carry in 2022 and allowed 5.0, so it can't simply give the ball to Stakely 25 times a game. If Naieem Kearney is available in 2023, his high school numbers can't be ignored but they haven't been proven at this level and he could be an option. Sophomore Mason Gudger, known more for special teams in 2022, is another good candidate.

4. What Are the Options For Receiver? Joshua Tomas graduated this spring as a second team All-America, the  first Georgetown offensive player with All-America recognition in 30 years. While Tomas did so many things for the offense in 2022, there are a number of solid returnees for the receiver corps. Three to watch would be Senior Asante Das (36-431, one TD), Brock Biestek (7-100, 1 TD), and Cam Pygatt (7-81, 1 TD).  Freshman Jayvin Pyle-Thompson may be a year away but comes to the Hilltop with some strong numbers behind him, while sophomore Jimmy Kibble could see some action in thee receiver packages.

Overall, the receivers have more depth than the backs, but carry more of the offensive load as a result.

5. Can the Hoyas Control Time Of Possession? It's a little unusual to consider that the team that finished second in the PL in time of possession finished last in the standings, but such was the fate of the 2022 Georgetown Hoyas. Its 22.6 points a game was third best in the PL but when the defense allowed 36.5 points, that's underwater from the start. 

Time of possession starts with the rushing game and that's concerning for Georgetown, who even with three seniors and fifth-years last year, was last in the PL and 119th of 123 nationally on the ground. Georgetown hasn't finished with a rusher with more than 500 yards on the ground in eight years, and just one over 750 yards since 2005. 

The Hoyas were 47th nationally in first downs, much of it on the arm of Holley, whose 2,882 passing yards in 2022 was a school record. Absent a repeat performance by Knoop and Company, time of possession must run on the ground, and the Hoyas are not well suited for that kind of domination.

Next, five questions for the defense.

Cause & Effect

Past is prologue, except when it is not.

Thirty years ago, the television show Star Trek: The Next Generation devoted an episode to the concept of a time loop, where its characters make the same decision over and over again. For those who remember it, the episode opens as the ship emerges from a galactic storm only to find itself on a collision course with another vessel, 36 seconds away.

 What to do?

"We can't afford to start second guessing ourselves," said the captain. "We should stay on this course until we have reason to change it."

The USS Enterprise collides with the vessels and explodes. Again, and again, and again.

The episode ends when enough clues are presented to the officers via deja vu that a second approach is taken, breaking the ship free of a loop which has lasted for 17 days without their knowledge.  The opposing ship is freed as well, except it has been caught in that loop for the past 90 years.

Forgive me if, after 22 seasons of watching the Georgetown Hoyas compete in Patriot League football, I make a similar assumption: this program is caught in a time loop, where the same script follows every year: the early win versus Marist, undermanned versus the Ivy League, the drain of a ineffective Patriot League season, and a deflating late November loss that wraps it all up, at least for another year (the Hoyas haven't won a season finale since 2014). In a larger sense, it's  the story of the last two decades of Georgetown football, echoing Captain Picard's admonition above, "We should stay on this course until we have reason to change it."

When does it change?

In some respects, modern Georgetown football seems to hit one of these crossroads every 30 years or so.

In 1933, Georgetown was suffering through the worst three year run in school history: 5-17-1, not an insignificant sum for a program that had allowed just one losing season in the prior 19 seasons, and punctuated by its most recent finale: a 1-6-1 record, fewest wins in school history to that point. It was also an issue for the basketball and baseball programs as well, the result of a quiet decision by the University to forego scholarship aid during the Depression. At the request of the Jesuit moderator of athletics, the board of directors approved a means by which the school would offer partial scholarships in exchange for what would be called today as need based, or "work-study" programs, beginning in the fall of 1934. Four years later, the Hoyas were undefeated.

In 1963, football was gone altogether, and yet, there needed to be a course correction because the board of directors had no tolerance for additional scholarships; even at a tuition price of $1,100 a year, the University was running a six figure deficit. Students then began what was called "football for fun": no scholarships, volunteer coaches, and few aspirations beyond mere competition. The format saved football, but had run its course by the early 1990s.

Enter Bob Benson. The former Georgetown coach turned the page on "football for fun" in 1993 with his expansive vision for Hoya football: games with peer institutions, including the Ivy and Patriot leagues, a permanent football facility, and football as the driver for school spirit among students, faculty, and the local community each fall. That mix of aspiration, motivation and moxie carried Georgetown over the sunken logs of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference and while GU never became the putative "ninth Ivy", it did allow it to became the seventh member of the Patriot League in 2001, which seemed like the best possible fit upon its entrance.

Thirty years after the debut of "peer football", its shortcomings are now visibly apparent. Georgetown's financial aid model simply does not hold water against the Ivy League, much less the rest of Division I FCS to which scholarship football is a given and, since 2012, the rest of the Patriot League as well.  A decade later, Georgetown remains the only Patriot League school without football scholarships.

The admissions firewall the PL instituted under the guise of "representative" student-athletes has made it more difficult, not less difficult, for Georgetown to recruit to compete in the league. There aren't a lot of impact players in the top 6% of SAT's that define Georgetown range according to PL rules--those that are, well, they are getting more compelling offers elsewhere. For too long and too often, the embarrassment of insufficient facilities was used as an excuse for the lack of talent attracted to GU, and the fan and alumni bases were told on more than one occasion "build it and they will come." It was built, (well, half of it, anyway), and the result was apparent: they still aren't coming.

This has to be taking its toll on the staff. When Rob Sgarlata succeeded Kevin Kelly in 2014, it was felt that a page had been turned from admittedly lackluster football and a drift away from student interest. No one, not even Sgarlata, would have predicted the eight seasons since. Kevin Kelly won 23 games in eight seasons. Entering his ninth season, Sgarlata has won just 24, with one of these being a 69-0 win over a Division III opponent. In the intervening four years, the Hoyas have lost 11 consecutive games at home, 21 of its last 25 overall, and are 3-15 (.167) versus PL teams. 

This is not a winning direction, nor is the lack of compensation and career development bringing in the young, hungry assistants that can elevate a program. The average salary of an assistant coach in FCS football is $43,387 a year, which buys you a 10 minute commute and a parking space in front of the football building at a Delaware or Lafayette. Try raising a family on $43,387 a year inside the Beltway; and as for parking, prepare to ride the GUTS bus from Arlington. 

Because the Patriot League embraced scholarship football, its members enjoy the six figure guarantee check to play major college opponents. That's important because the cost has gone up to run a competitive program. In 2022, Fordham University spent $7.8 million on football, or about five million more than Georgetown did. Even Bucknell, who has often lagged in the league, now outspends Georgetown two to one. As such, Holy Cross will play Boston College next month, Lafayette travels to Duke and Colgate plays Syracuse. Instead, Georgetown welcomes Sacred Heart and Stonehill College. 

This program needs a new operating model for the next thirty years - not to be the next candidate for the Big 12, nor to turn tail and downgrade to the Pioneer League, college football's land of misfit toys. Maybe it's the Patriot League, but maybe it's not. A fresh look at who Georgetown is aligned with, what are its measures of sustained success, and the steps needed to get us there are questions to be addressed in short order.

Until then, there's trouble ahead.