Villanova football returned to its home turf on Saturday, Oct. 26, after nearly a month-long hiatus. Following up a disappointing 35-7 loss to Maine last week, the Wildcats were happy to return to Villanova Stadium, where they are riding a 13-game winning streak.
They took on the other Wildcats from the University of New Hampshire (4-4, 2-2 CAA), who sat only one game behind Villanova (6-2, 3-1 CAA) coming into the matchup. Villanova claimed a 14-6 victory to continue its hot streak at home.
The Wildcats posed an early threat when they recovered a fumble for an instant redzone opportunity. But the Wildcats gave the ball right back when New Hampshire recovered by a fumble by graduate quarterback Connor Watkins on the next drive.
New Hampshire had the chance to score first, with a 21-yard field goal after a strong Villanova defensive stand with the ball on the three-yard line. The ‘Cats answered with a touchdown on the next drive on a 25-yard pass from Watkins to fellow graduate receiver Lucas Kopecky.
Villanova nearly added to its lead when the defense forced an interception in the opposing end zone that graduate defensive back Tyrell Mims returned for 100 yards for a pick-six. Unfortunately, the touchdown was called back due to a roughing the passer penalty, giving New Hampshire a first down.
The defense stayed strong again to force a turnover on downs with the ball on the one yard line. The Villanova defense was strong all game, preventing multiple would-be scores with New Hampshire within five yards.
Junior linebacker Shane Hartzell led the way for the defense, recording a career-best 20 tackles
“We have that mentality that no one will score on us,” Hartzell said. “We have a bend-don’t-break mentality. They might get into the redzone, but we’ll hold them on the three or stop them on fourth down.”
The score was 7-3 at halftime, and it remained that way until the middle of the fourth quarter when the Wildcats got back on the board. Watkins threw a 19-yard touchdown pass to graduate receiver Devin Smith who made a ridiculous catch for the score. Villanova then limited UNH to just a field goal in the fourth quarter to secure the 14-6 win.
“Every week we go into the game, our emphasis is on stopping the run,” Hartzell said. “I give credit to the D-Line for taking on blocks. Those guys aren’t getting the stats, but it’s the stats that don’t show up on paper.”
On the offensive end, Watkins earned the win despite losing two fumbles. He finished with 112 passing yards, 30 rushing yards and two passing touchdowns.
It was a balanced attack for Villanova, which totaled 257 yards. Devin Smith led the team in receiving with three catches for 60 yards and a score. Freshman running back David Avit spearheaded the ground game with 59 yards on 14 carries.
The Wildcats controlled the game, despite spending more time on defense. They ran 47 plays with 24:22 time of possession, in contrast to UNH’s 65 plays and 35:38 time of possession. The ‘Cats chewed up the clock well, especially during the fourth-quarter scoring drive that put the game away.
Something to keep an eye on was the team’s struggles with penalties, yet again. The Wildcats committed nine penalties for a total loss of 74 yards.
“We got to be more focused and disciplined,” head coach Mark Ferrante said. “Those false starts on the opening drive where you go backwards before the ball is even snapped. That’s what we need to clean up.”
Regardless of some sloppy play, this was a much-needed bounceback win that moved Villanova up to fourth in the conference, only one game behind Rhode Island in first.
Villanova will travel to Virginia next weekend to take on Hampton University on Saturday, Nov. 2.
