VILLANOVA, Pa.—In its 2021 home opener and second straight game against a Patriot League opponent No. 12 Villanova (2-0) raced out of the gates with three touchdowns in the first quarter and went on to a 55-3 win over Bucknell (0-2) in front of an announced crowd of 8,219 at Villanova Stadium on Saturday night. Graduate student quarterback Daniel Smith (Leesburg, Va.) threw for three touchdowns and rushed for another score despite playing only the first six offensive series. The score was 45-0 at halftime and the Wildcats used all 75 available players before the night was out.
 
"Similar to last week I am really excited about the fast start we were able to get," Villanova head coach Mark Ferrante said. "The offense was moving the ball, the defense was getting turnovers and getting us great field position, and then obviously special teams with that blocked punt got momentum going in the right direction and gave us great field position as well. When the defense scores, that's always nice to put points on the board when the offense is on the sideline. Overall, it was just another good team win where the offense, defense and special teams all contributed really well. That was exciting to see and I thought we played with great effort and enthusiasm."
 
Senior cornerback Christian Benford (Randallstown, Md.) had one of the first half highlights for the Wildcats when he returned an interception 19 yards for a touchdown to make the score 38-0 with 9:19 to play in the second quarter. It was already the second interception of the game and the fourth of the season for Benford, who has picked off 11 passes in his career but scored his first career touchdown on tonight's return for a score. He had an interception in the first quarter which set up the first Villanova scoring drive of the night, a one-yard touchdown run by Smith just over four minutes into the contest.
 
Through the first two games of the season the Wildcats defense has forced more turnovers (eight) than it has allowed points (six). Villanova has outscored its first two opponents 38-3 in points off turnovers, including 14-0 in tonight's contest. Benford is the Wildcats first player since Joe Sarnese (2011-14) to reach double digits in career interceptions.
 
Smith finished the night being responsible for four touchdowns on just 11 offensive plays. He was 6-of-9 passing for 66 yards and three scores while rushing twice for eights yards a his first touchdown of the season. Junior wide receiver Rayjoun Pringle (Dumfries, Va.) caught a nine-yard touchdown pass from Smith in the opening seconds of the second quarter and later hauled in a 49-yard pass for a touchdown from sophomore Connor Watkins (Williamsport, Pa.) who threw his first career touchdown pass.
 
Junior wide receiver Jaaron Hayek (Wayne, N.J.) scored for the second straight game on a 21-yard touchdown reception with 8:27 to play in the first quarter, while sophomore Jaquan Allen (East Hartford, Conn.) scored his first career touchdown on a 10-yard pass from Smith later in the opening period. Senior running back Jalen Jackson (Richmond, Va.) led Villanova with 70 rushing yards and scored on a five-yard run in the third quarter. Seven different ball carriers for the Wildcats combined to run for 233 yards while averaging 5.5 yards per carry.
 
The point production was rounded out by sophomore kicker William Bartel (Providence, R.I.) and senior punter Nathan Fondacaro (Sewell, N.J.). Bartel was 7-of-7 on extra points and made a 22-yard field goal in the second quarter, while Fondacaro kicked a 26-yard field goal in the fourth period to close the scoring for the night.
 
Villanova completely stifled the visiting Bison in the early going. Bucknell had a net total of minus-one yard of total offense after its first six possessions ended in two interceptions, three punts and a turnover on downs. Junior safety Darius Pickett (Nottingham, Md.) blocked a punt for the second time in his career late in the first quarter to set up the touchdown pass from Smith to Pringle on the first offensive play of the second period. Pickett also matched redshirt freshman safety Ethan Potter (Chesapeake City, Md.) and redshirt freshman defensive lineman Jake Green (Ashland, Pa.) with a team-high four tackles on the night. The cadre of players who got in the game for the Wildcats led to an incredible 27 different players recording at least one tackle on the night.
 
Despite seeing limited action, graduate student running back Justin Covington (Bronx, N.Y.) nevertheless surpassed 1,800 career rushing yards during the game. He ran eight times for 59 yards and moved up one spot into 15^th place on the all-time Villanova rushing list with 1,802 career yards. Other milestones on the night came from Watkins and junior quarterback Matt O'Connor (Ardmore, Pa.). Watkins was 3-of-4 for 62 yards and his first career touchdown pass while O'Connor went 2-of-2 for 17 yards in his first career game action.
 
After playing two straight non-conference contests to begin the 2021 season the Wildcats will open their CAA Football schedule next week when they host Richmond for a 3:30 p.m. kickoff. The Spiders are also 2-0 to open the year and were ranked in both national polls this week.