VILLANOVA, Pa.—The line of succession at the Villanova quarterback position was in good hands on Saturday evening as graduate student Pat McQuaide (Solon, Ohio) became the Wildcats second straight signal caller to set a record for most passing yards in his team debut. His total of 299 yards and strong play on both sides of the ball led No. 13/12 Villanova (1-0) to a 24-17 victory over Colgate (0-2) at Villanova Stadium. The difference in the game was a 56-yard touchdown pass that McQuaide threw to graduate wide receiver Lucas Kopecky (Rocky Hill, N.J.) in the final minute of the third period.
 
McQuaide finished the night 18-of-28 through the air and had 340 yards of total offense, including one each of passing and rushing touchdowns. His 41 rushing yards were a career high and his 28-yard keeper for a score in the second quarter was the longest career run for only the fifth primary quarterback in the last 13 years to make his starting debut for Villanova. It was three fifth year collegians who made the biggest impact for the Wildcats, with the trio of McQuaide, Kopecky and wide receiver Luke Colella (Wexford, Pa.) all having career days.
 
It was also the Wildcats debut for Colella, who caught five passes for a career-high 124 yards. He previously played at Princeton and amassed 1,188 receiving yards there during his undergraduate career. A 51-yard completion from McQuaide to Colella on Villanova's second drive of the game set a tone for the game, and later in that drive junior running back Isaiah Ragland (Alexandria, Va.) scored the first points of the season on a one-yard run. Kopecky had five catches for a career-high 98 yards and the game-winning score.
 
The last Wildcats quarterback to make his first start for the team was Connor Watkins, the starter for the last three years who had thrown for 298 yards in his first collegiate start against Lehigh to open the 2022 season. That was the previous Villanova mark for most yards in a QB's first start for the team, with McQuaide topping it by a single yard. The only primary quarterbacks the Wildcats have had since 2012 are John Robertson (2012-15); Zach Bednarczyk (2015-18); Daniel Smith (2019-21); Watkins (2022-24); and now McQuaide who also became only the third southpaw to start a game under center for Villanova in the program's FCS era (since 1985).
 
Two other strong debuts for the Wildcat came from special teams, specifically the feet of punter Luke Larsen (Keilor Park, Victoria, Australia) and kicker Jack Barnum (Southington, Conn.). Larsen punted five times and the average starting field position for the Raiders after those five punts was their own 17-yard line. Barnum kicked a 39-yard field goal with 5:28 left in the third quarter; another yard would have made it his 12^th career successful attempt from 40 yards or longer.
 
It was no surprise that the veteran newcomers, adding to a team that brought back 70 players from last year, got off to a fast start. Entering the 2025 season, the 94 members of the Villanova roster had combined to play in 1,103 career college football games.
 
Villanova's defense allowed just one third down conversion after halftime (1-of-5) and totaled eight pass breakups on the night. Junior linebacker JR Strauss (Reading, Pa.) had a career-high eight tackles in his first career start and was one of nine players who had at least four total stops.
 
Next up for the Wildcats is a trip to Penn State next Saturday for a 3:30 p.m. kickoff.