BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Lehigh University’s Mountain Hawks secured a decisive 38-14 victory over arch-rival Lafayette College on Saturday afternoon, clinching the Patriot League’s automatic bid to the FCS playoffs for the first time since 2017.

The 160th meeting between the two teams, whose rivalry dates back to 1884, was marked by Lehigh’s prevailing performance and the unexpected revival of a long-abandoned tradition: the tearing down of the goalposts.

As the final whistle blew at Goodman Stadium, Lehigh students and fans flooded the field. In a scene reminiscent of decades past, they climbed onto and swung from the goalposts with determination.

lehigh students climbing on and hanging from goal post at goodman stadium 11/23/24
Lehigh students climb goalpost at Goodman Stadium / Saed Hindash

The goalpost eventually came down—the first time such an event occurred at the stadium since 1989.

Students carried the metal crossbar in a celebratory procession over South Mountain, through Bethlehem’s South Side, and onto the Fahy Bridge.

There, they tossed the crossbar into the Lehigh River, echoing a tradition that had been dormant for over 30 years.

The removal of the goalpost was once a cherished part of the Lehigh-Lafayette rivalry.

In earlier years, the schools would replace the standard metal goalposts with wooden ones for the rivalry game, allowing students to tear them down and keep pieces as souvenirs, often in a display of honor in fraternity houses.

Archived reports from The Morning Call and Lehigh’s The Brown and White indicate that the tradition ended in 1990 due to safety concerns and escalating rowdiness.

Post-game celebrations sometimes turned aggressive in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Fights broke out as students vied for pieces of the goalposts, leading university officials to reevaluate the practice.

classic photo of lehigh students tearing down goal post at football game circa 1980s
Lehigh students tear down goalpost circa 1980 / Lehigh University

In 1990, Lafayette President Robert Rotberg announced the formation of a joint committee with Lehigh to address concerns over student behavior following their annual matchup.

“After last weekend’s game, which Lehigh won 35-14, the traditional tearing down of the goalposts turned into a free-for-all with drunken students exchanging blows and wrestling for souvenir pieces,” Rotberg said at the time. “I’d like to believe the committee can encourage better ways of the students using their energies.”

Lehigh’s then-President Peter Likins echoed these sentiments, emphasizing the need to balance tradition with safety.

“No one wants an ugly confrontation between students and police, yet we must find an effective way to end the brutality that characterizes the post-game melee, Likins wrote in a 1990 issue of The Brown and White. “We need a solution that respects the rights of the players to complete the contest and one which eliminates physical violence between and among inebriated or overzealous spectators.

In 1991, both schools adopted reinforced steel posts set in concrete to prevent their removal.

Saturday’s revival of the goalpost tradition was notably less tumultuous than in previous decades. Authorities monitored the procession, and police provided an escort to ensure public safety.

Several roads were temporarily closed to accommodate students’ movement through the city.

While many students celebrated the return of a storied tradition, some residents expressed concerns on social media, citing safety issues and potential property damage.

However, many were supportive once they learned of the long-running tradition.

The city removed the goalpost from the River just hours after the celebration.

As the Mountain Hawks prepare for the upcoming FCS playoffs, the community reflects on the balance between honoring long-standing traditions and maintaining safety and respect.