COMPLETE COVERAGE OF SATURDAY AFTERNOON'S HOME OPENER VERSUS DELAWARE

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VILLANOVA, Pa.--The first home game of the season will also be the conference opener for No. 6 Villanova (1-1, 0-0 CAA Football), which takes on rival Delaware (1-1, 0-0 CAA Football) in the ninth annual Battle of the Blue contest on Saturday afternoon. The game kicks off at 12:00 p.m. and will air live on Comcast SportsNet in the Philadelphia and Delaware markets, as well as on several regional networks, including SNY throughout New York. Fans can also tune in to the action on 610 SPORTS (WTEL-AM), hear live streaming audio of the radio broadcast online at Villanova.com, or access live audio by using the TuneIn app.

Villanova has won the Battle of the Blue Trophy in seven of the eight years that it has been presented, including last year when the Wildcats tallied a 35-28 victory at Delaware Stadium. Dating back to the 2006 campaign, Villanova has won eight of the past nine meetings against Delaware to lead the all-time series by a 26-21-1 (.552) margin. The two schools first played in 1895 and Saturday afternoon's contest will be the 49th matchup between the two longtime rivals.

In their last outing, the Wildcats produced a 14-7 win over No. 16 Fordham in a game played last Saturday evening in the Bronx. Senior quarterback John Robertson (Paramus, N.J.) had both a passing touchdown and a rushing touchdown for the second straight game and Villanova opened a 14-0 lead early in the second quarter. From that point on, the Wildcats were held scoreless for the final 42:28 of the game. The only points Villanova allowed however, came on a Fordham touchdown with 3:52 to play before halftime.

Junior running back Javon White (Telford, Pa.) led the Wildcats in the win with a career performance. White carried a career-high 23 times for a career-best 143 yards. Robertson finished the game completing 12-of-18 passes for 161 yards and a touchdown to go with 49 yards rushing. Wide receiver Aaron Wells (Ellicott City, Md.) posted four receptions for a career-high 87 yards.

Robertson, White and sophomore running back Matt Gudzak (Toms River, N.J.) put the game away with a series of key plays in the closing minutes. Robertson ran for three yards on 4th-and-2 from the Rams 36-yard line to give the Wildcats a first down with 2:32 left in the game. White ran for 17 yards on the next play and added eight more yards on another carry before Gudzak broke away for a 23-yard gain on 2nd-and-12 from the Fordham 35-yard line. Villanova had gotten the ball with 3:41 remaining on the clock and had possession for the rest of the game.

The Wildcats defense held the high powered Fordham offense to 182 total yards and just 12 first downs. Junior linebacker Austin Calitro (Danbury, Conn.) led the strong defensive effort with a career-high 10 total tackles, including eight solo stops. He also had a career-best four tackles for loss, including a sack. Senior linebacker Don Cherry (Trumbull, Conn.) added nine tackles, including two tackles for loss and a sack. All told, the Wildcats linebackers combined for 28 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss and a forced fumble during the game. Junior Corey Majors (Levittown, Pa.) had five tackles and sophomore Ed Shockley (Millville, N.J.) chipped in with four tackles and half a tackle for loss.

After two games in 2015, Villanova is averaging 14.5 points per game and giving up 13.5 points per contest. The Wildcats have tallied 353 yards rushing and 350 yards passing and are 14-of-31 on third down (45.1%). Robertson has completed 29-of-50 passes for 314 yards to go with two touchdowns and one interception. White leads the Wildcats ground attack with 31 carries for 168 yards (5.4 avg.), while Wells, sophomore wide receiver Taurus Phillips (Beacon, N.Y.) and senior wide receiver Kevin Gulyas (Allentown, Pa.) all have a team-high five receptions.

On defense, Calitro and Cherry have made a team-high 16 tackles with Calitro registering 13 solo stops. Calitro also leads the team in tackles for loss with four. Senior safety Cameron McCurry (Orange Park, Fla.) has chipped in with 14 tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss.

Delaware earned a 19-9 home win last Saturday over visiting Lafayette. After the Leopards took an early 3-0 lead, the Blue Hens scored 13 straight points in the second quarter to lead 13-3 at the intermission. Lafayette scored all six of the game's third quarter points to pull to within 13-9 before the Blue Hens' Frank Raggo connected on two fourth quarter field goals. Raggo was a perfect 4-of-4 in field goal attempts for the game.

Delaware amassed 315 yards of total offense in the win, including 257 yards rushing and 58 yards passing. Kareem Williams highlighted the Blue Hens ground attack with 14 carries for 93 yards, while quarterback Joe Walker had 11 rushes for 68 yards and a score. Through the air, Walker completed 4-of-15 for 58 yards. Defensively, Bilal Nichols and Charles Bell had eight tackles each. Bell also added an interception. Delaware was also credited with four quarterback sacks in the victory.

The Blue Hens average 16.5 points per game and allow 14.5 points per contest. In the first two games, Delaware has registered 612 yards of total offense (420 yards rushing; 192 yards passing) and has given up 609 yards of offense (484 yards passing; 125 yards rushing). Walker has completed 7-of-24 passes for 110 yards and he has rushed for 82 yards on 17 carries and a touchdown.

The Blue Hens defense is led by Bell who has a team-high 15 stops. Senior defensive lineman David Tinsley has 10 tackles, a team-high four tackles for loss and a team-best three sacks.