Next Saturday, Oct. 5, Villanova (4-1, 1-0 Colonial Athletic Association) will travel north to take on Stony Brook (4-1, 1-0 Colonial Athletic Association) at Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium in Stony Brook, N.Y. Kickoff is at 3:40 p.m.
The Wildcats will hit the road again following a convincing home triumph over LIU, in which Villanova never trailed. The ‘Cats won, 24-10, after the Sharks put up 10 points in the fourth quarter.
Following the win, Villanova stayed at No. 6 in the FCS Stats Perform Poll.
This matchup will be Villanova’s second conference game of the season. In the only other CAA contest that the ‘Cats have taken part in this season, they defeated Towson, 14-13, in a sloppy game.
Graduate quarterback Connor Watkins pushed his turnover-less start to the season to five consecutive games after the win over LIU. He continues to make smart plays with the football to protect against giveaways.
Watkins has 687 passing yards and five passing touchdowns so far this season.
Redshirt freshman Isaiah Ragland remains Villanova’s leading rusher, with 330 yards on 55 carries (6.0 YPC). Ragland ran in two more touchdowns against LIU, taking over the team lead in rushing scores, with four.
The Wildcats have found the most success leaning on their ground game, winning several games in the trenches this season. Against LIU, the ‘Cats thrashed the Sharks for 266 ground yards on 51 totes to go along with three rushing scores.
Look for Villanova to continue to run the ball with frequency and efficiency to keep its winning formula against Stony Brook.
Freshman signal caller Malachi Marshall leads Stony Brook’s passing offense with his 814 yards, but Marshall has only one passing touchdown this season and two interceptions. Stony Brook, like Villanova, leans on its rushing attack. The Seawolves’ ground game is spearheaded by leading rusher Roland Dempster, a senior running back who paces the team with 585 rushing yards on 109 carries (5.4 YPC) to go along with an astounding nine rushing scores.
Villanova and Stony Brook have faced off seven times in history with Villanova leading the all-time series, 4-3.
The ‘Cats have won three straight against the Seawolves with the most recent victory coming in a 48-13 thrashing at Villanova Stadium on October 28, 2023.
Villanova will look to make it four straight victories against Stony Brook this Saturday. The game will be streamed on FloSports.
