Local duo to play in Yankee Stadium
EASTON — They don't swing a bat or pitch a baseball.
But Mars graduate Ryan Gralish and Seneca Valley grad David Miller will be doing something Saturday most amateur ballplayers can only dream about — playing at Yankee Stadium.
Only they will be playing football.
Gralish and Miller are both juniors at Lafayette College and will be suiting up for the 150th rendition of the Lafayette-Lehigh rivalry, the longest of its kind in college football history.
“I'm nervous and excited about this at the same time,” Miller said. “Talk about an opportunity. This is one of those once-in-a-lifetime things.”
Miller is a reserve offensive lineman for the Leopards. He's played in a handful of games this season and figures to see the field Saturday in a back-up role and on the kicking team.
Gralish is the Lafayette kicker. He's hit three of six field goal attempts this season and converted all 11 of his PATs. Last season, Gralish connected on nine field goals and 37 PATs.
Before this season, Gralish — the Leopards' starting kicker since his freshman year — had connected on 15 of 19 field goal efforts and 64 of 69 PATs.
The anticipated crowd Saturday is 50,000-plus. More than 49,000 tickets have been sold and the game will be televised nationally on the CBS Sports Network.
“It's going to be a great experience,” Miller said. “Between the fans and the alumni, the atmosphere will be incredible.
“For a Lehigh-Lafayette game at either school, the crowd is anywhere from 21,000 to 25,000. A typical home game for us is played in front of 4,000 or so. This game Saturday will be something we're not used to at all.”
The two schools are located 15 miles apart in Pennsylvania. They first met in 1884, one year after standardized football rules were instituted in the United States.Lafayette leads the series, 77-67-5, including a 50-28 win last year that led the way to the Patriot League championship and an FCS playoff berth.The Leopards are 4-6 this season. Lehigh is 3-7.The rivalry has been an annual game since 1897, making this year's game the 118th consecutive year the teams will meet. This is only the second time the game will be played at a neutral site.“I've never been around a rivalry as intense as this one,” Miller said. “The entire week is different. Practice is different. Everyone works so much harder.“All anybody is thinking about right now is winning this game.”Among the history associated with the rivalry is Lafayette's George Barclay inventing the football helmet in 1894 and Lehigh coach Howard Reiter being credited with helping to develop the forward pass in the early 1900s.Gralish could not be reached for comment.
