The Brown and White

12/10/2025

Lehigh football’s coach Kevin Cahill has signed a multi-year contract extension to stay with the Mountain Hawks, according to an announcement from Murray H. Goodman ’48 Dean of Athletics Jeremy Gibson.

The timeframe on the contract extension is undisclosed.

In his three seasons at Lehigh, Cahill has compiled a 23-14 record. He orchestrated a turnaround from his debut 2-9 season in 2023, leading Lehigh to two consecutive Patriot League titles.

Link in bio for more.
Photo by Olivia Link/B&W Staff

12/09/2025

After two decades of serving as the unofficial guide to teenage life, Teen Vogue is shutting down.

I picked up my first Teen Vogue print copy at 11 years old in 2014, giddily hiding under my covers at summer camp past lights out. I perused through pages full of the hottest reality TV shows and best-dressed pop stars.

During my teenage years, I watched the magazine begin to expand its coverage on politics and identity, especially during Donald Trump’s first presidential campaign in 2016.

The politics section gave a voice to outspoken Gen Z teenagers, while the identity section explored a wide range of subjects — from conversations on s*x and relationships to physical and mental wellness.

These sections were officially established in 2017, when Teen Vogue transitioned to a fully online publication.

I often used Teen Vogue as inspiration when I wrote for The Teen Magazine in 2021. I admired how seamlessly it integrated politics with pop culture, and I tried to mirror that balance in my own articles.

https://thebrownandwhite.com/2025/12/08/edit-desk-teen-vogue-is-irreplaceable-so-are-student-voices/

12/08/2025

When I was a one-year-old, my mom was pushing me in a stroller on the Santa Monica Pier. A man approached her, looked at me, and asked, “Is she Mayan? I can tell by her nose.”

My mom, who’d only had me for four months at that point, awkwardly smiled and walked away.

On my 18th birthday, I took a DNA test. I did it largely because of a question that appeared on nearly every college application: “Are you African American/Black, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, Caucasian/White, Native-Hawaiian/Pacific Islander or prefer not to answer?”

Whenever I was asked about my background before college, I would simply say I’m Hispanic or Latino. It never occurred to me that I’d also be expected to specify a race.

That question left me stumped — but also curious. My mother would never let me select “prefer not to answer” because she wanted people to know who I am, especially since my Irish last name might confuse them.

Eight weeks later, my results arrived: 99% Indigenous to the Yucatán Peninsula and 1% Basque. Technically, that meant I fit under the “American Indian/Alaska Native” box.

But knowing what box to check didn’t make my identity feel any clearer.
https://thebrownandwhite.com/2025/12/05/edit-desk-too-white-to-be-hispanic/

12/08/2025

It’s 7 a.m. on a Saturday, five hours before his broadcast begins, and Matthew Korp has already started his day.

He’s holding a manila folder in one hand and a red marker in the other. Inside the folder are what will become his position spotting chart and game notes, which will serve as an aid for the day’s football broadcast.

He’s familiar with this process. After all, he’s done this more than 300 times.

In his 29 years at Lehigh, Korp has only missed four games: three for family weddings and one for his son’s football senior day.

He starts his game prep on Monday, but he still has some last-minute notes to add before he leaves his house for Lehigh’s Goodman Stadium.

He’ll be at the field by 10 a.m., and by 11 a.m., with his headset in place, he’ll transport into a rhythm he’s lived through hundreds of times before — shedding Matthew Korp to become the on-air voice of Matt Kerr.

https://thebrownandwhite.com/2025/12/05/29-years-4-missed-games-and-countless-calls-lehighs-longest-running-voice-of-matt-kerr/
Photo by Ellis Krusch/B&W Staff

It’s 7 a.m. on a Saturday, five hours before his broadcast begins, and Matthew Korp has already started his day.

12/07/2025

The Brown and White took a stroll around the neighborhood and spoke to community members about what brings them joy during the colder months in South Bethlehem.

Quintin Fernandez

Fernandez has been managing Homebase Skateshop at 29 W. Fourth St. for four years.

Q: What range of clientele come into your shop?

QF: We get all kinds of people. We have people who like vintage clothing, who are into Pokémon, Lehigh students and kind of everything in between. We see skateboarders every day, but I think the cool thing is the variety of people we see.

Q: How often do you engage with community members?

QF: Our motto for the store is “creating community since 2002,” so I’d say the community is something that we’re the biggest on. We’re partnering up with other local businesses like Action Wheels, Apotheca Salon, Bonn Place Brewing Company and Paranormal Pizza to do a food drive called Neighbors Feeding Neighbors.

Q: What’s your favorite memory of running the shop?

QF: A lot of my favorite memories have to do with the after-school skateboarding program that we do. At the end of the session, we’re able to give the kids who took our classes skateboards. One of my favorite memories is always seeing a young elementary school student get their first skateboard, just because I remember what it was like to get my first skateboard. I know that’s something that they’ll never forget. Giving back to the next generation has been some of my favorite memories.

Link for more in bio. Photos by Luke Kaiser/B&W Staff.

12/07/2025

After years of public backlash and policy changes, the implementation of Name, Image and Likeness deals in 2021 meant student athletes across the country were able to profit from their own branding.

While institutions around the country are navigating multi-million dollar deals, the culture on Lehigh’s campus functions under a different philosophy.

The court-case House v. NCAA, which was settled in June, requires schools to adhere to regulations including limited roster construction requirements, back pay for student athletes, and direct revenue sharing between institutions and athletes.

Lehigh Athletics, however, chose not to opt-in to the revenue sharing program, along with the rest of the Patriot League.

Dean of Athletics Jeremy Gibson said there were different components to the decision, but choosing to opt out cements Lehigh’s commitment to athletic participation across its 26 varsity sports and over 700 athletes.

He said that could've been jeopardized by the roster limits included in the settlement.

“I think there’s a lot of different components to it,” Gibson said. “We felt that we have the ability to not just compete, but compete even better, and have an element of it that is true to what, historically, intercollegiate athletics has been about.

He also said the opt-out status, which Lehigh shares with the Ivy League, displays the university’s commitment to emphasizing academics.

https://thebrownandwhite.com/2025/12/07/lehigh-opts-out-of-revenue-sharing-nil-program/
Photo courtesy of Laurie Monteforte

Lehigh Athletics chose not to opt-in to the revenue sharing NIL program, along with the rest of the Patriot League.

12/07/2025

For the first time since 2004, Goodman Stadium hosted an FCS playoff game. Bethlehem delivered, packing 8,848 fans into the stands. But after 60 minutes, No. 5 Lehigh football’s season fell short, losing 14-7 to No. 12 Villanova University.

Lehigh entered the showcase undefeated at 12-0 with a 17-game regular-season win streak. But Villanova, riding a nine-game win streak of its own, outlasted the Mountain Hawks in a defensive battle with fumbles and two late Wildcat touchdowns.

Sophomore quarterback Hayden Johnson threw for 161 yards, and running backs Luke Yoder and Aaron Crossley combined for 124 yards on the ground. But Lehigh’s offense struggled to finish drives, and for the first time all season, turnovers decided the outcome.

Villanova’s graduate student quarterback Pat McQuaide threw for 208 yards, while graduate student wide receiver Luke Colella tallied 71 yards. The Wildcats capitalized on both of Lehigh’s fumbles, the program’s first lost offensive fumbles of the entire year.

The first quarter was a stalemate, as neither team reached the endzone, and Lehigh’s early fake-field-goal attempt fell inches short when Crossley was tackled shy of the goal line, resulting in a turnover.

The second quarter brought more of the same: defensive stands, deep passes out of reach, and a halftime score of 0-0 that held tension in the air inside Goodman Stadium.

Lehigh received at the start of the second half, and came out swinging.

Johnson passed deep to the left for 36 yards to sophomore wide receiver Matt D’Avino to advance to the Villanova 39-yard line. Yoder broke loose for 31 yards, and Crossley took control once more, rushing five yards into the Villanova endzone to claim a Mountain Hawk lead that brought Goodman to its feet, 7-0.

“I'm just focusing on the same thing every week, just week in, week out,” Crossley said. “There's no set carries, no set receptions, no set anything, just whatever happens, happens.”

https://thebrownandwhite.com/2025/12/06/no-5-lehigh-falls-to-no-12-villanova-14-7-in-fcs-second-round-matchup/
Photo by Olivia Link/B&W Staff

No. 5 Lehigh hosted an FCS playoff game at Goodman Stadium for the first time since 2004, and Bethlehem did not disappoint, with 8,848 fans in attendance. The Mountain Hawks couldn’t slow the No. 12 Villanova University Wildcats, as they fell 14-7 on Saturday afternoon.

12/06/2025

The hum of tattoo machines and chatter fills the vibrant space of Double Dare Tattoo, where every inch of the walls is covered with art.

Above Kai Mellman’s workstation hangs sketches of pieces they’ve done as a reminder of their memories at Double Dare Tattoo over the years.

Mellman has been tattooing for almost nine years. They said working at Double Dare Tattoo has been grounding.

“It’s unique,” they said. “It’s very art focused and it’s also very community based, which is something I really enjoy.”

At 821 E. Fourth St., the South Side shop has become a place where art and community thrive together.

Double Dare began as a one-woman studio in 2023. Today, the shop is home to four artists, an apprentice and a shop assistant. The team is primarily run by women and members of the LGBTQ+ community.

Link for more in bio. Photo by Ellie Sileo/B&W Staff.

12/06/2025

When junior Rylan Rogers steps onto the mat, his focus on his competition is clear. Known by his coach for his discipline and strong work ethic, Rogers has stood out on the men’s wrestling team since transferring from the University of Michigan in 2024.

Originally from Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, Rogers’ wrestling journey started early.

His cousins wrestled at Oklahoma State University, and he grew up attending their matches. He said it was natural to get into wrestling after watching them and following their example.

By middle school, the sport became a priority for Rogers instead of just an extracurricular activity.

He began traveling across the country for competitions and training. But he said wrestling wasn’t very popular in Idaho, and the same opportunities weren’t offered as what was on the East Coast.

For high school, Rogers attended Blair Academy in New Jersey, which hosts one of the nation's top wrestling programs.

“It was a big move, leaving home as a (first-year) in high school, but it gave me some of the best partners and coaches in the country,” Rogers said. “That's when my wrestling career really jumped levels.”

Rogers was a two-time state champion and received the National Prep title in 2020 for Blair Academy. He became a sought-after recruit for college.

When narrowing down his offers, his final list included the University of Michigan, The Ohio State University, North Carolina State, the University of Oklahoma and the University of Pennsylvania. He chose Michigan, his dream Big Ten school for both its elite academics and athletics.

But after two years in Michigan, Rogers felt the school was more transactional than he expected.

He said it was important to him to have a coach that cared about him as a person, whether he won or lost. That desire led him to join the transfer portal.

https://thebrownandwhite.com/2025/12/06/from-big-ten-to-bethlehem-rylan-rogers-rewrites-his-wrestling-story/
Photo courtesy of Lehigh Athletics

Known by his coach for his discipline and strong work ethic, junior Rylan Rogers has stood out on the men’s wrestling team since transferring from the University of Michigan in 2024.

12/05/2025

Cano is a tenant advocate who works for Community Action Lehigh Valley in Bethlehem. He assists families facing housing struggles daily amid a citywide housing crisis.

In Bethlehem, 11.3% of residents live below the poverty line. 97% of housing units are occupied compared to Pennsylvania’s 91% average, according to Census data. Additionally, the city’s median gross rent is $1,520 — higher than the state’s estimated median rent of $1,252, according to Census data.

The City of Bethlehem is seeking to expand accessible and affordable housing options to address the crisis Cano helps to fix.

Kerry Wrobel, the president of the real estate developer Lehigh Valley Industrial Park, said the city recently received $16 million in funding from the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency to begin constructing The Gateway, an affordable housing development planned for the South Side.

Link for more in bio. Photo: Courtesy of WRT | Plan and Design

12/05/2025

When Brett Reed took over the Lehigh men's basketball program, he brought more than just drawing X’s and O’s on a whiteboard.

Since being named head coach in 2007, Reed has become the fastest coach to reach 100 wins in Patriot League history during the 2012-13 season and has established himself as Lehigh's all-time-winningest coach. He's also maintained nearly a 70% winning percentage at Stabler Arena.

But these numbers only tell part of the story.

Reed said he loves Lehigh because it gives him the opportunity to work with bright young people. He said there’s been tremendous alignment with the university over his tenure, especially regarding the student athlete experience.

“This place stands for excellence, and it stands for academic greatness,” Reed said. “The fact that we have a mutual connection with basketball just makes the (coach-athlete) relationship great.”

Reed said his coaching approach emphasizes character development rather than perfection.

His son, Brendan Reed, is a senior guard on the team and has experienced this firsthand.

He said his father stresses that it’s not about the mistakes you make, but how you respond to them.

“His coaching style has been rooted in the idea of grace, knowing that we all will make mistakes,” Brendan Reed said. “I think everyone has a great idea of what it means to be part of a team, and how we should strive for greatness while encouraging each other along the way.”

https://thebrownandwhite.com/2025/12/05/sportsphilemonreed111725/
Photo by Olivia Link/B&W Staff

When Brett Reed took over the Lehigh men's basketball program, he brought more than just drawing X’s and O’s on a whiteboard.

12/04/2025

“I owe nothing to anyone” is making us all lonelier.

When that sentence appeared on my Instagram feed, it made me stop scrolling. Most of the time, I swipe past the occasional cheesy post with an inspirational quote overlaying a perfectly aesthetic photo.

But when this message popped up, I paused.

I realized the concept was the most simple, yet accurate, encapsulation of my college experience.

As I reflect on my time at Lehigh, I’ve learned the moments I was happiest weren’t when I adopted an individualistic mindset. Instead, they were the moments I did the opposite: when I listened and gave more than expected to connect to a community bigger than myself.
https://thebrownandwhite.com/2025/12/04/edit-desk-letting-the-world-in-one-line-at-a-time/