VILLANOVA, Pa.—A spot in the national championship game will be on the line when No. 9/6 Villanova (12-2, #12 seed) hosts No. 17t/17 Illinois State (11-4) in a semifinal playoff matchup at Villanova Stadium on Saturday night. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. on ESPN2 as the Wildcats return home for the second time this postseason. Villanova hosted a first round game against Harvard before playing on the road the last two weeks at #5 seed Lehigh in the second round and at #4 seed Tarleton State in the quarterfinals.
 
Saturday's television broadcast will have Lowell Galindo and Aaron Murray in the booth, with Lauren Sisler on the sidelines. The radio call with the voices of Villanova Football, Ryan Fannon and Steve Pinone, can be heard on the Villanova Sports Radio Network on Fox Sports Radio Philly. Live streaming audio can be found on the iHeart radio app using a mobile device.
 
Visit the Gameday Central page for all the festivities taking place on campus and inside the stadium before and during Saturday's game. The schedule of events includes 10 percent off all food and drink purchases at The Refectory prior to kickoff with a valid game ticket, Mass at the St. Thomas of Villanova Church at 4 p.m., a pregame tailgate reception in the A-2 Lot starting at 5 p.m., Wildcat Walk at 5:30 p.m., and a Christmas Village inside Villanova Stadium with the chance to have photos taken with "Will D. Claws" beginning at 6:45 p.m. Gameday deals inside the stadium also include $2 select beers and $2 hot dogs until the end of the first quarter.
 
About Villanova
Villanova is the #12 seed in the Division I Football Championship and earned an at-large seed to the playoff field after finishing in second place in CAA Football in the regular season. To reach this week's semifinal round the Wildcats tallied consecutive wins over Top 5 ranked opponents, first against No. 4 and #5 seed Lehigh (14-7) in the second round and then at No. 5 and #4 seed Tarleton State (26-21) in last week's quarterfinal. Those games followed a 52-7 win at home over unseeded Harvard in the first round of the playoffs. Villanova is now 12-2 on the season and has won 11 straight games. It is the third season in school history and first since the 2009 national championship season that the team has won 12 or more games in a season. The current winning streak is the fourth in school history of 11+ games but only the second (12 straight in 1997) to occur within a single season. It is the second-longest active winning streak in the FCS behind Montana State's 12 consecutive wins since an 0-2 start this season.
 
About Illinois State
Illinois State has been a team of road warriors over the past two seasons and is 14-1 on the road against FCS opponents in this span. The lone loss was to conference foe and then-No. 2 North Dakota State in September 2024. The Redbirds have won three straight playoff road games to reach this week's semifinal: at #16 seed Southeastern Louisiana (21-3), at #1 seed North Dakota State (29-28) and at #8 seed UC Davis (42-31). Illinois State is led by senior quarterback Tommy Rittenhouse who has thrown for 3,006 yards and 34 touchdowns this season while rushing for a team-high seven scores. The Redbirds average 30.6 points per game — the same as Villanova — and have forced 25 turnovers on defense. Junior linebacker Tye Niekamp leads the team and ranks second nationally with 150 tackles.
 
Villanova-Illinois State Connections
This week will not be the first trip Illinois State has made to Villanova Stadium. Back in 1976, the Redbirds came to the Main Line and tallied a 19-17 win over the Wildcats.
 
Villanova starting tight end Antonio Johnson and Illinois State starting left tackle Jake Pope each played their scholastic football at St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. and both were coached by former Wildcats running back Roger Harriot.
 
Both teams have players on their roster from Houston, Texas: the Wildcats have senior running back Eli Smith and junior defensive lineman Tyler Langin, while Illinois State has redshirt freshman defensive back CJ Richard Jr..
 
Villanova freshman tight end Sean Welde and Illinois State sophomore safety Christian LeBrun are each natives of Cherry Hill, N.J.
 
Villanova does not have any current football student-athletes from the state of Illinois, and Illinois State does not have any members of its current roster from Pennsylvania.
 
Back at Home
Villanova is back in the friendly confines of Villanova Stadium this week where it has the longest active home winning streak in the FCS at 23 straight games. The streak began midway through the 2022 season and includes a 7-0 record at home this season. It is the longest home winning streak in program history.
 
Villanova is the second team in the history of the FCS playoffs to host a semifinal game after playing on the road in each of the previous two rounds. The only other team to do so was Youngstown State in 2016 when the Penguins reached the championship game.
 
Quarterfinal Playoff Recap: Villanova 26, Tarleton State 21
Villanova overcame a 14-0 deficit midway through the first quarter and took its only lead of the game when freshman wide receiver Braden Reed caught a touchdown pass with 12:49 to play in the game. Earlier, Reed became the Wildcats first receiver to throw a touchdown pass since 2019 when he connected with Lucas Kopecky for a 27-yard score.
 
Tarleton State scored an 80-yard touchdown on its first offensive play of the game on a pass play from Victor Gabalis to wide receiver Payton Kramer. After that play, however, the host Texans averaged just 3.5 yards per play on 53 offensive snaps the rest of the game.
 
Tarleton State entered last week's quarterfinal matchup averaging 204.5 rushing yards per game but was held to just 56 yards on 31 carries (1.8 yards per rush) by the stingy Wildcats defense. Villanova also held the Texans to less than half of their season scoring average of 44.1 points per contest entering the game.
 
Villanova was contending with a Tarleton State team that entered the game with a +30 turnover margin and 38 turnovers forced. Both of those statistics were the best in the country this season, and the trend immediately surfaced on the first possession of the game when the Wildcats threw an interception in the end zone. From that point on though, Villanova did not commit another turnover and it evened the turnover margin in the second quarter when redshirt freshman safety Anthony Hawkins recorded his second interception of the season to set up a Wildcats scoring drive.
 
Villanova's defense tied a season high with four sacks and had its second highest total of the season with nine tackles for loss. The nine TFL were for a total loss of 49 yards, the highest recorded by the Wildcats since the team had 12 TFL for a loss of 60 yards against UAlbany on October 22, 2016.
 
Junior running back Ja'briel Mace rushed for 151 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries. It was his third 100-yard game of the season and of his career, all of which have come in his last six outings. He had the most rushing yards in a playoff game by a Villanova player since Matt Szczur rushed for 159 yards in the 2009 national championship game against Montana.
 
Graduate kicker Jack Barnum made field goals from 31 yards and 42 yards to first tie and then break the Villanova single season record for field goals. He is now 15-of-24 on the year and broke the Wildcats previous record of 14 which was held by Joe Marcoux (2008) and Cole Bunce (2021).
 
Villanova tallied its second straight road win against a Top 5 ranked team based on the national media poll. The last time this happened was during the 2010 season when the Wildcats posted three straight road wins against Top 5 teams: at No. 1 Delaware in the regular season finale, at No. 3 Stephen F. Austin in the second round of the playoffs and at No. 1 Appalachian State in a playoff quarterfinal game.
 
Villanova improved to 5-8 in the state of Texas and posted its first win in the state since its 54-24 win at Stephen F. Austin in the second round of the 2010 playoffs. The other wins were in 1949 (Texas A&M), 1951 (Houston) and 1961 (Sun Bowl vs. Wichita State).
 
FCS Playoff History
Villanova is making its 17th appearance in the Division I Football Championship since becoming an FCS program in 1985. This is the third straight playoff berth and fifth in the last seven seasons for the Wildcats, whose only other streak of making three straight playoff appearances came from 2008-10 which encompassed the program's 2009 national championship season and 2010 run to the semifinals.
 
Villanova owns an all-time record of 18-15 in the FCS playoffs. That record looks even better of late considering that the Wildcats lost their first four playoff contests between 1989 and 1996. Beginning in 1997, Villanova has won at least one playoff game in 11 of its last 13 playoff appearances and has reached at least the semifinal round four times.
 
Villanova head coach Mark Ferrante has been a part of all 17 of the program's playoff appearances, including five times as a head coach (2019, 2021, 2023, 2024, 2025) and 12 times as an assistant coach on Andy Talley's staff. This season is Ferrante's 39th overall on the Wildcats staff. He has been a coach at Villanova for 38 percent of the games the program has ever played (467 of 1,230) and has helped lead the Wildcats to eight CAA Football titles, three Lambert Meadowlands Cup and three ECAC Team of the Year awards.
 
Villanova has played almost half (16 of 33) of its FCS playoff games at home and has compiled a 13-3 record in those contests. The Wildcats have hosted at least one game in 10 of their 17 appearances in the FCS playoffs.
 
The 52-7 win over Harvard in the first round was the largest margin of victory in school history in a postseason game, surpassing a 39-point win (46-7) in 2009 in the quarterfinal round against New Hampshire.
 
Postseason History
This is the 22nd season overall in Villanova history in which the Wildcats are playing postseason football. Prior to the FCS era (since 1985), Villanova played in five bowl games from 1937 to 1962 and went 2-2-1 in those contests. The two bowl wins came in the 1949 Harbor Bowl against Nevada (27-7 in San Diego, Calif.) and the 1961 Sun Bowl versus Wichita State (17-9 in El Paso, Texas). The first bowl game in school history was the 1937 Bacardi Bowl in Havana, Cuba, in which the Wildcats and Auburn played to a 7-7 tie.
 
CAA Football in the Playoffs
Villanova is one of three CAA Football teams in the 24-team playoff field this season. The league's automatic bid was awarded to Rhode Island (11-2) after the Rams went a perfect 8-0 in conference play to capture the outright league title. Villanova (10-2) and New Hampshire (8-5) each earned at-large selections to the playoff field. This is the 18th time in the last 20 years that the CAA has had at least three playoff participants. The CAA is one of four leagues this year to have at least three teams selected, along with the Missouri Valley Football Conference (six teams); the Big Sky Conference (three); and the Southland Conference (three).
 
CAA Football has has had at least one team in the FCS quarterfinals in 29 of the past 30 seasons (including Villanova this season) and has had a team advance to the semifinals in 11 of the past 13 years from 2013-25.
 
CAA Football Postseason Honors
Villanova earned its seventh major postseason award in the last eight years when junior running back and kick return specialist Ja'briel Mace was named the Special Teams Player of the Year earlier this week. He is the Wildcats second player ever to win this award, joining Matt Szczur in 2009. Mace ranks second in the country with an average of 32.9 yards per kickoff return and is one of six players nationally to have two kickoff return touchdowns.
 
Villanova has 13 total all-conference selections for the first time since 2010, highlighted by four first team selections in offensive linemen Temi Ajirotutu and Stephane Voltaire, kickoff return man Ja'briel Mace; and senior linebacker Shane Hartzell. The Wildcats had three selections each on the second team, third team and honorable mention lists.
 
This is the first time since 2010 that Villanova has had three members of its offensive line earn all-conference honors, and also the first time since that season that two members of the line have been first team selections. The last teammates before Ajirotutu and Voltaire to be first team selections were Brant Clouser and Ben Ijalana.
 
This is also the first time since 2015 that the Wildcats have had three starting secondary players earn all-conference honors. Sophomore cornerback Zahmir Dawud is a third team selection this year after being an honorable mention choice last season. Second team pick Christian Sapp and honorable mention selection Anthony Hawkins each garnered their first career all-conference selections.
 
Villanova has won 23 major conference awards and earned 364 all-conference accolades since joining what was then the Yankee Conference in 1988.
 
The Streaks
 
Winning Streak: Villanova has won 11 straight games for the first time since the 1997 team compiled an undefeated regular season and was 12-0 before falling in the playoff quarterfinal round. This is the fourth time in school history that the Wildcats have won at least 11 games in a row, but this season and 1997 are the only two streaks that occurred within the same season and did not overlap multiple years. Villanova previously won 11 straight games spanning the 1937-38 and 1986-87 seasons. During the current winning streak, the Wildcats have outscored their opponents 366-164 for an average margin of victory of 18.4 points.
 
Conference Winning Streak: Villanova won its last seven conference games of the season after a loss to Monmouth in the league opener on September 20. It is only the second time ever that the Wildcats have won seven straight league games. The other occasion was a memorable one as it came during Villanova's undefeated regular season in 1997 which included an 8-0 mark in conference games.
 
Home Winning Streak: The win over Harvard was the Wildcats 23rd straight win at Villanova Stadium dating back to the middle of the 2022 season. It is the longest home winning streak in program history and the longest active home winning streak in the FCS. The second longest active home streak in the FCS is 15 games by Rhode Island.
 
Non-Conference Winning Streak: Villanova has not lost a regular season game to an FCS non-conference opponent in the last 10 seasons (2016-25). The win over Sacred Heart was the Wildcats 21st in a row in the regular season against a non-conference FCS foe. The 21 wins have come by an average of 25.0 points per game. Since the start of the 2016 season, Villanova is 28-5 (.848) overall against FCS non-conference competition including the regular season and the playoffs.
 
Undefeated Calendar Months
Villanova went undefeated in October (4-0) and November (4-0). It is the first time the Wildcats have had back-to-back undefeated calendar months since 2009 when the team was 7-0 in November and December during its national championship run. This season is the third time in the last five years that Villanova has gone undefeated in November.
 
Winning When it Counts
One of the keys to Villanova's success in recent years has been its ability to win the most important games of the season late in the year. During the Mark Ferrante head coaching era (since 2017), the Wildcats are 25-11 (.694) in November and December games.
 
Nine Regular Season Wins
Villanova won nine regular season games for the third straight season and the fourth time in the last five years.
 
Conference Success
Villanova wrapped up its CAA Football schedule with a 7-1 record. It is the eighth season since the Wildcats joined the conference in 1988 that the team tallied no more than one loss in league play. Three of those eight seasons have come in the last five years (2021, 2023, 2025).
 
Villanova posted a conference record of 31-9 (.775) over the last five seasons while having at least a .500 record in conference play each year. This is the fourth time in Villanova's league tenure that it has had at least a .500 record in conference games in five straight seasons.
 
Fantastic Five
Villanova has compiled a record of 48-17 (.738) over the last five seasons (2021-25) while making four playoff appearances and winning 10+ games four times. Its 47 wins over the last five years are the most of any CAA Football member, while the .738 winning percentage is the seventh highest among all FCS programs. The Wildcats are one of just four FCS teams with 10+ wins in at least four of the last five years. The other three are North Dakota State, South Dakota State and Montana State.
 
Decade of Dominance
Villanova has won 78 games over the last 10 seasons (2016-25) and is the only CAA team during this stretch with at least 70 wins. In the 10-season run, the Wildcats are 78-39 (.667) overall and compiled a 49-27 (.645) record in regular season conference games while making six playoff appearances (2016, 2019, 2021, 2023, 2024, 2025).
 
Villanova Head Coach Mark Ferrante
Mark Ferrante moved into sole possession of second place on the all-time Villanova wins list with his 66th victory in the Sacred Heart game. He is 69-35 (.663) leading the Wildcats and he passed Harry Stuhldreher (1925-35) for second place in school history. Stuhldreher had a head coaching record of 65-25-9 (.702) at Villanova.
 
Ferrante and his longtime mentor Andy Talley are the only head coaches in Villanova history to reach the 100-game milestone. Talley coached 368 games during his legendary Wildcats career and compiled a record of 230-137-1 (.626).
 
Polling Places
Villanova finished the regular season ranked in the top 10 of the national polls for the fourth consecutive week. The team entered the playoffs ranked No. 9 in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 and is No. 6 in the AFCA FCS Coaches Poll. This is the 157th week that the Wildcats have been ranked in the top 10 nationally since becoming an FCS program in 1985. Villanova's total of 157 weeks in the top 10 is the 11th most all-time.
 
Villanova appears in the national media poll for the 337th time, which is the fourth most weeks being ranked in FCS history (since 1978). Only two current FCS teams have appeared in more national polls than the Wildcats: Montana (453) and Northern Iowa (413). There are 18 FCS programs (current and former) who have been ranked in the polls at least 200 times; all 18 ascended to the No. 1 spot in the rankings at least once.
 
This is the 33rd season out of the last 38 that the Wildcats have been ranked in at least one national poll during the season. Villanova has been ranked a total of 336 times and has appeared in the top 10 for a total of 157 weeks. The team has been ranked in the top five 66 times and has spent 10 weeks ranked at No. 1 in the nation, most recently on September 28, 2010 when the Wildcats were defending national champions.
 
Villanova has the fifth-longest active streak of consecutive weeks in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 at 36 weeks in a row beginning with the October 16, 2023 poll.
 
Veteran Experience
Villanova has 93 players on its 2025 roster and they have played in a combined 1,880 games in their collegiate careers. The roster has been an ideal balance of experience and youth this season, as the Wildcats have 27 active players with 30 or more career games played while also seeing 26 players make their collegiate debut so far this season.
 
50-40-30
Seven members of the Villanova roster have played in at least 50 career college football games, while 13 players have appeared in 40 or more contests and 27 have played in 30 games or more. Junior linebacker Turner Inge can reach 40 games played this week while wide receiver Chris Dobrydney and defensive back Jayvont Williams can each reach 30 career games played.
 
Winning Close Games
Villanova is 11-2 over the last two seasons in games decided by single digits, including a perfect 6-0 mark this year with close wins over Colgate (24-17); William & Mary (31-24); Elon (29-21); Stony Brook (30-27); Lehigh (14-7); and Tarleton State (26-21). Head coach Mark Ferrante is 24-14 (.632) in his career when games are decided by single digits.
 
Turnover Story
Villanova is tied for the fewest turnovers in the country with just six miscues all season. On the defensive side, the Wildcats have forced 17 turnovers by their opponents and have gained six turnovers (three INTs, three fumble recoveries) in the playoffs while committing just one.
 
Putting Up Points
Villanova is averaging 30.6 points per game and had scored 28 points or more in nine straight games before being held to 14 points at Lehigh in the second round of the playoffs. The nine-game streak of scoring at least 28 points was the second in school history and matched the first nine games of the 1991 season.
 
Gaining Ground
Villanova leads CAA Football with an average of 180.7 rushing yards per game. That mark looks even better during the team's 11-game winning streak when the Wildcats have averaged 196.8 yards per game on the ground. Villanova's success running the ball has been an ensemble effort from the running back trio of junior Ja'briel Mace (887 yards), junior Isaiah Ragland (720 yards) and sophomore David Avit (683 yards).
 
Isaiah Ragland had a career-high 152 rushing yards on 17 carries in the first round win over Harvard. He scored the first points of the game on a 45-yard touchdown run on the opening drive and had five rushes for 14 yards or longer in the game.
 
Acting Possessed
Villanova ranks 12th nationally win an average time of possession of 32:08 this season. Last week against a Tarleton State squad which was averaging 31:17 in TOP, the Wildcats set the tone and had possession for 33:33 in the contest, including more than 20 minutes in the first half and 12:12 in the first quarter alone.
 
Villanova had a season high time of possession of 38:14 against Harvard in the first round of the playoffs. It was the second time in the last four games that the Wildcats held the ball for more than 38 minutes (Stony Brook, 38:01).
 
Over the last seven games, Villanova has averaged 33:11 in TOP and during that span has run 54 more offensive plays than its opponent. That averages to over 7.5 additional plays per game over the seven contests. The Wildcats have an average margin of 399.6-283.6 in yards of total offense in the seven games.
 
The only CAA team averaging more TOP than Villanova this season is New Hampshire (33:07). When the teams met head-to-head, VU won the TOP battle 33:46-26:14.
 
Working Overtime
The Stony Brook game was Villanova's first overtime contest since a 40-37 loss to Rhode Island on March 13, 2021 during the Spring 2021 season. The last time the Wildcats won an overtime game was a year earlier, 52-45, at Towson on September 21, 2019. Villanova has played in 19 overtime games since becoming an FCS member in 1985 and has a record of 12-7 (.632) in those 19 games.
 
Defensive Doings
 
Rushing Defense: Over the last seven games the Wildcats defense has given up an average of just 98.0 rushing yards per contest. Of note in that stretch were back to back games in which Villanova held Stony Brook (76 yards) and Sacred Heart (87 yards) to less than half of their average per-game rushing yards for the season. Last week the Wildcats held a Tarleton State squad averaging over 200 yards per game on the ground to just 56 yards on 31 carries (1.8 yards per rush).
 
Story on Sacks: Villanova has recorded 12 sacks in its last four games, including a season high four against Sacred Heart in the regular season finale and at Tarleton State in last week's playoff quarterfinal game. Earlier in the year, the Wildcats had a streak of five straight games recording three or more sacks. That was the longest streak of games with at least three sacks in at least 23 years and possibly more based on easily available statistical records.
 
National Recognition
Senior linebacker Shane Hartzell was named one of 30 national finalists for this year's Buck Buchanan Award which will be presented to the top defensive player in the FCS. The award is in its 31st season and Hartzell was named to the preseason watch list for the top honor earlier this year. He is the unquestionable leader of the Villanova defense and earned his second straight selection to the CAA Football First Team Defense. Hartzell leads the Wildcats with 95 total tackles, 55 solo tackles, 16.5 tackles for loss, 8.5 sacks and eight quarterback hurries this season.
 
This and That
Villanova has won the coin toss in 10 of its 14 games this season and had won the toss in six straight games before Sacred Heart won it in the regular season finale.
 
The overtime game between Villanova and Stony Brook was a rare one even before the teams played an extra period. During regulation, 39 percent of the offensive plays by the two teams (49 of 126) were snapped between the 40-yard lines. The NFL average for such plays is 27 percent, while the college average is 26 percent.
 
Walk-Off Win
Villanova ended its 30-27, overtime thriller against Stony Brook on a 17-yard touchdown pass from Pat McQuaide to tight end Antonio Johnson on the Wildcats first overtime series. It is the first walk-off win for Villanova since September 22, 2022 when a field goal as time expired gave the Wildcats a 31-29 victory over UAlbany. That game was noteworthy for another reason, as it was the first win in Villanova's current 22-game home winning streak.
 
Villanova Football History
Villanova has compiled a 299-172-1 (.635) record in 40 seasons as an FCS member. The program's success includes 17 appearances in the FCS playoffs and appearing in the final national rankings of the season 20 times in the last 37 years.
 
Postseason Success
Villanova is making its 17th playoff appearance this season which is the 10th most in FCS history and ranked sixth among programs who still compete at the FCS level. The Wildcats are 18-15 all-time in the playoffs and have won at least one playoff game in 11 of their last 13 postseason appearances. Villanova has won one national title (2009) and made three semifinal appearances (2002, 2009, 2010), while its 18 playoff wins all-time are tied for the ninth most ever among current FCS programs.
 
Preseason Watch Lists
Sophomore running back David Avit and senior linebacker Shane Hartzell were named to the preseason watch lists for the Walter Payton Award and the Buck Buchanan Award, respectively. These honors are given to the top offensive and defensive players in the FCS at the end of each season. Villanova is one of 10 teams to have at least one player on both watch lists at the start of the season. The others are Harvard, Illinois State, Montana, Montana State, North Dakota State, Rhode Island, Samford, South Dakota State and UIW.
 
Picked Third
Villanova was predicted to finish third in the CAA Football standings this season in a preseason poll of league head coaches. The Wildcats were picked one spot behind Monmouth and then fell to the Hawks in the conference opener on September 20. Villanova went on to win its last seven conference games to finish 7-1 and in sole possession of second place, one spot ahead of Monmouth at 6-2.
 
Offensive Line
Villanova's starting offensive line has played in a combined 193 games in their collegiate careers. That includes graduate left tackle Stephane Voltaire (52 games, 44 starts, 41 consecutive starts) and left guard Temi Ajirotutu (51 games, 44 starts) who were each named first team All-CAA selections this season.
 
Four of the five members of the current starting offensive line — left tackle Stephane Voltaire, left guard Temi Ajirotutu, right guard Chris McCullers and right tackle Kyle Fay — have started all 14 games this season. Center Quin Whalen has started the last nine games.
 
Quarterback Notes
Pat McQuaide has been nothing short of a revelation for the Wildcats this season. He played at Nicholls in 2023 and 2024 before coming to Villanova this year, where he has thrown for 2,937 yards and 24 touchdowns with only three interceptions. McQuaide is 224-of-371 through the air this season. He has completed 60.4 percent of his passes and ranks second in CAA Football in passing yards, passing touchdowns and passing yards per game (209.8). He is also third in the league in passing efficiency (146.6) along with both passing yards per completion (13.11) and yards per attempt (7.92).
 
Including his career at Nicholls and this season with the Wildcats, he is 619-of-1057 (58.6 percent) passing for 7,351 yards with 51 TDs and 25 interceptions. During the Wildcats current 11 game win streak, McQuaide has thrown for 2,278 yards with 21 touchdowns and just two picks.
 
McQuaide is only the third left-handed quarterback to start a game for Villanova in their FCS era. The others are Christian Culicerto (2011) and Zach Bednarczyk (2015-18).
 
Drive For Five
Pat McQuaide threw a career high five touchdowns passes despite only attempting 13 passes in the Hampton game on October 18. He was 10-of-13 through the air for 166 yards and the five scores. His previous career high for touchdown passes in a single contest was four against Southern last season while he was playing for Nicholls. McQuaide's efficiency rating for the game was 311.1 and is only the second game over 300.0 in school history.
 
Record-Seting Debut
No Villanova quarterback has ever thrown for 300 yards in his first start for the team. However, the last two signal callers to debut for the Wildcats have thrown for 298 and 299 yards, respectively. Graduate student Pat McQuaide, a transfer from Nicholls, made his first start for VU against Colgate on September 6 and threw for 299 yards and a score. He surpassed the previous school record for most passing yards in the first start for the team which was held for the past three years by Connor Watkins, the starter from 2022-24 who threw for 298 yards in his first career start against Lehigh to open the 2022 season.
 
Running Back Notes – Ja'briel Mace
 
Ja'briel Mace broke one of the most hallowed offensive records in Villanova history when he rushed for a school record 291 yards in a 28-10 win over Towson. Mace broke the previous single game school record of 287 yards which had been set by Wildcats legend Brian Westbrook on November 10, 2001 against Hofstra.
 
Mace had 28 rushes for his record 291 yards and scored four TDs on runs of eight yards (second quarter), 39 yards (third quarter), 82 yards (fourth quarter) and 22 yards (fourth quarter). His 28 carries are the most by any Wildcats player since Jalen Jackson rushed 28 times (for 187 yards) against Monmouth on September 24, 2022.
 
Some of the numbers for Mace in the Towson game were simply staggering. He rushed for 198 yards in the second half, including 138 in the fourth quarter alone and 124 yards in the final 4:20 of the game. He finished with four more rushing yards (291) than Towson had yards of total offense (287).
 
Mace has seven plays for 45 yards or longer this season and four plays of at least 80 yards. He had an 82-yard rushing touchdown at Towson and an 80-yard run for a score in the Sacred Heart game. Those two plays are tied for ninth and tied for 14th among the longest rushing plays in Villanova history. Six of his 13 offensive touchdowns this season have come on plays of 20 yards or longer.
 
Wide Receiver Notes – Luke Colella
Fifth year collegian Luke Colella has made an instant impact on the Villanova offense in his first year with the team. After playing his undergraduate college ball at Princeton the last four years, Colella is the Wildcats leading receiver this year with 73 catches for 1,026 yards and eight touchdowns. He ranks third in the CAA in receiving touchdowns and receiving yards, as well as ranking fifth in the league in receiving yards per game (73.3) and receptions per game (5.21). His 1,026 yards on the year are the seventh-most in a single season in school history.
 
Colella had a career high 10 receptions for 125 yards and two touchdowns at Elon on October 11. It was the first time a Villanova player reached double digits in receptions in a single game since Matt Szczur had 11 catches against Stephen F. Austin in the 2010 FCS playoffs. Colella has five 100-yard receiving games this season which is one off the single season school record of six that has been accomplished on four occasions. The last player with six 100-yard game in a season was Murle Sango in 1999.
 
Colella topped 2,000 career receiving yards during the regular season finale against Sacred Heart. Including his undergraduate career at Princeton and this season with the Wildcats, Colella has collegiate totals of 166 catches for 2,214 yards and 19 touchdowns.
 
Wide Receiver Notes – Lucas Kopecky
Sixth year collegian Lucas Kopecky has caught at least one pass in all 25 college football games he has played in. The streak of 25 straight games with a reception is the longest by a Villanova player since Poppy Livers had a catch in 29 straight games spanning the 2012 to 2014 seasons.
 
Kopecky continued the streak with a 27-yard touchdown reception for his only catch in the Tarleton State game last week. His career totals in his 25 games played now add up to 57 receptions for 809 yards and six touchdowns. He made his collegiate debut last year when he had 26 catches for 302 yards and two scores, finishing third on the team in receiving.
 
Kopecky played four years of lacrosse for Villanova (2021-24) and appeared in 40 games before walking on to the football team as a graduate student entering the 2024 season. He was a three-year football letterwinner at Montgomery (N.J.) High School in his scholastic career, earning two all-conference honors and two honorable mention all-state accolades.
 
Tight End Notes
All four tight ends on the Villanova roster have seen consistent playing time this season. The group includes veteran Antonio Johnson who is in his fifth year with the Wildcats along with Nolan Clayton (third year), Sean Brodnik (second year) and Sean Welde (first year). The quartet has combined to make 22 receptions for 231 yards and five touchdowns on the year, with at least one of the four making a catch in 11 of the 14 games played.
 
In the Hampton game (Oct. 18), Antonio Johnson had a 10-yard touchdown reception for his third career score and Sean Brodnik caught his first career pass for a four-yard touchdown. It was the first time since November 1, 2003 against Richmond that VU had two tight ends catch a touchdown pass in the same game. In the 2003 game the two tight ends with scores were Anthony Wright and Quinn Matt. Just like Johnson and Brodnik, Wright and Quinn also recorded the third and first touchdowns of their careers that day.
 
Prior to the Hampton game, the last time VU even had two tight ends catch a pass in the same game was on September 16, 2023 against UCF when Johnson and Justin Marcus each had one reception.
 
Defense Notes – Obinna Nwobodo
Prior to the Hampton game on October 18, the Wildcats defense had not recovered a fumble by the opposition this season and had not had a fumble recovery for a touchdown in more than eight years. Those are the kinds of trends that are good to wipe off the board, and it only took one player — fifth year defensive lineman Obinna Nwobodo — to do it. In the second quarter against the Pirates, Nwobodo forced a fumble at the VU 47-yard line, immediately scooped up the ball and then returned it 53 yards for his first career score. It was the second career forced fumble and first recovery for Nwobodo.
 
Nwobodo became the first Villanova defensive lineman to score a touchdown current NFL veteran Tanoh Kpassagnon had a 25-yard fumble recovery for a score against Lafayette in 2016. The Wildcats last player with a fumble return touchdown before Nwobodo was Rob Rolle who went 99 yards for a score against Maine on October 7, 2017.
 
The fumble return touchdown by Obinna Nwobodo against Hampton was the first defensive touchdown of the season for Villanova, but it was also the third non-offensive score in a span of four games. That is thanks to the efforts of junior Ja'briel Mace who registered kickoff returns for touchdowns against William & Mary on September 27 and at Elon on October 11. This is the first time since 2019 that the Wildcats have scored as many as three non-offensive touchdowns in a season. It is the third time during the Mark Ferrante coaching era (since 2017) that Villanova has scored three non-offensive touchdowns in a span of four games.
 
Special Teams Defense
Not only has Villanova been one of the best teams in the country this season when it comes to kickoff returns ad punt returns, they have also done a good job of stopping the opposing team on special teams returns. The Wildcats lead CAA Football in punt return defense (5.89) while ranking third in the league and 26th nationally in kick return defense (18.47).
 
The trio of sophomore Jason Hall, junior Josh Oluremi and senior Julian Glantz has combined to be the top special teams tacklers for the Wildcats this year. Hall leads the team with 13 tackles on special teams (eight kickoff returns, five punt returns) this season, while Oluremi has 10 (seven kickoff returns, tree punt returns) and Glantz has eight (all on kickoff returns).
 
Punt Return Notes – Braden Reed
True freshman Braden Reed ranks sixth in the FCS with an average of 14.9 yards per punt return this season. He has 20 punt returns on the year for a total of 298 yards, including eight returns of 20 yards or longer. Before him, the last Villanova player to even have five punt returns of 20+ yards in a single season was J.J. Outlaw in 2004. Reed's current average of 14.9 yards per return would be the eighth-best mark for a full season in school history.
 
Kickoff Return Notes – Ja'briel Mace
Ja'briel Mace was the first FCS player this season to have two kickoff returns for touchdowns. He had a 100-yard return for a score against William & Mary on September 27, followed by a 97-yard return for a touchdown at Elon two weeks later on October 11. Before Mace, the last Villanova player with a kickoff return for a touchdown was Nowoola Awopetu against Richmond in 2019.
 
Mace is only the fifth player in school history to even have two or more career kickoff returns for touchdowns. The others are Brian Westbrook with five career kickoff return scores; Martin Gibson (three); Angelo Babbaro (three); and Matt Szczur (two).
 
The kickoff return touchdowns by Mace against William & Mary (September 27) and Elon (October 11) mark the first time in Villanova's FCS era (since 1985) that the team scored two special teams touchdowns in the span of three games. Mace becomes the Wildcats third player ever — joining Brian Westbrook and Angelo Babbaro — to have two kickoff return touchdowns in a season.
 
Mace has 22 kickoff returns on the year for 723 yards and an average of 32.86 yards per return. He ranks second in the country in average return, trailing only Javon Ross of Bethune-Cookman whose season is complete after averaging 33.73 yards per return (15 returns, 506 yards, two touchdowns). Mace's 723 kickoff return yards rank second in the country and seventh in a single season in school history.
 
Only one previous player in Villanova history has ever averaged better than 30.0 yards per kickoff return with a minimum of 250 total return yards. That player was Bob Dunn in 1963 when he had 11 returns for 357 yards and an average of 32.5 yards per return.
 
Kicking Notes – Jack Barnum
Villanova kicker Jack Barnum became Villanova's single season record holder with 15 made field goals when he kicked two in the game at Tarleton State last week. He first tied and then broke the mark of 14 field goals in a season held by Joe Marcoux (2008) and Cole Bunce (2021). Barnum is 15-of-24 (62.5%) on the season. His 24 attempts are also a Wildcats single season record, eclipsing the total of 21 attempts by Bill Hoffman (1992).
 
Barnum has made 15 career field goals from 40+ yards, including four this season and a 42-yard field goal in the Tarleton State game last week.
 
Barnum tied a season high with 11 points in the UAlbany game thanks to three made field goals and a pair of PATs. Barnum kicked field goals from 41 yards and 23 yards in the second quarter, followed by a season long 44-yarder in the third period.
 
Barnum started his collegiate career at UAlbany and went on to play at Central Connecticut State before coming to the Main Line. Barnum is 15-of-24 (62.5%) on field goals this season and 47-of-50 on PATs. His career totals are 44-of-63 (69.8%) field goal kicking and 111-of-116 on PATs for a total of 243 points. His 7-of-7 PAT performance in the first round win over Harvard was a new career high for makes and attempts in a game.
 
Punting Notes – Luke Larsen
The oldest active player in Division I college football this season is Villanova punter Luke Larsen who recently turned 33 years old and made his Wildcats debut in the season opener against Colgate. Larsen is a graduate student transfer from East Carolina and a native of Australia who played Australian Rules Football, volleyball, cricket and tennis during his scholastic career prior to coming to the United States.
 
Larsen is having a strong season for Villanova and has punted 44 times in 14 games. He is averaging 40.4 yards per punt with two attempts for over 50 yards and 15 that have been downed inside the opponent's 20-yard line.
 
Larsen played in his 50th career game against UAlbany on October 25 and during that contest surpassed 8,000 career punting yards. His career collegiate totals are 218 punts for 8,876 yards with an average of 40.7 yards per punt.           Larsen punted 174 times at East Carolina while averaging 40.8 yards per punt. He landed 51 punts inside the 20-yard line, booted 19 punts for 50+ yards and had 75 of 174 attempts fair caught.