Monmouth hangs on to beat Lehigh 23-21

BETHLEHEM, Pa. (AP) Levon Chaney ran for 115 yards and two touchdowns and added 75 yards receiving to help Monmouth beat Lehigh 23-21 in a season opener for both teams.

Zach Welch finished with 75 yards rushing and a touchdown, and Cody Williams threw for 198 yards for the Hawks, who won just their third season opener on the road in program history.

GET READY TO COMPETE

Pick your champion (you can change it later). We’ll email you when brackets open.

No purchase necessary. 50 U.S./D.C. 18+. Entry opens 3PM ET Dec 6, 2026 and closes 8PM ET Dec 18, 2026. Void where prohibited.See for complete details. The College Football Playoff (CFP) is not a sponsor or administrator of this contest.

Monmouth dominated in both total yardage (413-239) and time of possession (37:38-22:22). However a Nick Shafnisky 26-yard TD strike to Sasha Kelsey cut Lehigh's deficit to 23-21 with 4:09 to play. But the Mountain Hawks never regained possession, as Monmouth ran out the remaining time.

Shafnisky finished with 159 yards passing and Kelsey led Lehigh with 48 yards receiving.

It was the fourth opening-week meeting between the two teams and the first Hawks win.

Add us as a preferred source on Google