VILLANOVA, Pa.—A pair of the Wildcats top returners for the 2025 football season were named preseason All-Americans on Tuesday afternoon with the announcement of the Stats Perform FCS Preseason All-America Team. Fifth year offensive lineman Jake Picard (Hope, R.I.) was a first team selection and senior linebacker Shane Hartzell (Perkasie, Pa.) garnered second team recognition. They were among a dozen players from CAA Football who appeared on the preseason All-America squad.
 
This is the first time in Picard's career that he has earned a national honor, but the well-deserved accolade comes after he was named to the CAA Football First Team Offense as a senior last season. Picard has been a steady presence on the Villanova offense line throughout his career and has started 33 of the 39 career games he has played in, including all 13 games he appeared in last year. He was a part of an offensive line which helped the Wildcats average 312.5 yards of total offense per game in 2024, including better than 150 rushing yards (154.3) per contest to go along with 26 rushing touchdowns. Villanova turned the ball over just 14 times all year and finished the season with a plus-five turnover margin.
 
Hartzell has been a mainstay on a stout Wildcats defense over the past three seasons. As a junior in 2024, he was named to the CAA Football First Team Defense and was a Phil Steele second team All-American. Hartzell led Villanova with five sacks during the 2024 campaign and recorded a team-high 67 solo tackles for the year. He wound up second on the team with 121 total tackles and 9.5 tackles for loss. After a career day against New Hampshire in which he recorded 20 total stops, Hartzell was named the Stats Perform FCS Defensive Player of the Week and was also the CAA Football Defensive Player of the Week. Consistency was key for Hartzell, as he reached double digits in tackles four times and was credited with seven or more total stops in 10 of 14 games.
 
Villanova is one of just six FCS teams to have won 10 or more games in at least three of the last four seasons. In the four-year stretch the Wildcats are 36-15 overall and made FCS playoff appearances in 2021, 2023 and 2024. Head coach Mark Ferrante begins his ninth season leading Villanova in 2025 and the season is set to kick off in Week 2 when the Wildcats host Colgate on Saturday, September 6 at 6 p.m.