Villanova extends its season courtesy of an FCS playoff date against Eastern Kentucky
Starting the FCS playoffs at Villanova Stadium will be one advantage for the 11th-seeded Wildcats, who ride a 15-game winning streak at home dating to 2022.
Villanova clinched an at-large bid in the FCS playoffs following a 38-28 win over longtime rival Delaware in the “Battle of the Blue” on Saturday.
The 11th-seeded Wildcats will look to keep the energy going with another game on their home turf. Villanova will host Eastern Kentucky (8-4, 6-2 United Athletic Conference) on Saturday (2 p.m., ESPN+). Starting the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs at Villanova Stadium will be one advantage for the Wildcats, who ride a 15-game winning streak at home dating to 2022.
First meeting
Eastern Kentucky will compete in the FCS playoffs for the first time since 2022 and will arrive at Villanova Stadium on the momentum of a five-game winning streak. The Colonels are led by quarterback Matt Morrissey, a Western Illinois transfer who averages 167.8 passing yards and 21.9 rushing yards per game.
Saturday will be the first meeting between Villanova (9-3, 6-2 Coastal Athletic Association) and Eastern Kentucky.
Postseason experience
This season will mark Villanova’s third playoff appearance in four years. Last year, the Wildcats entered as the No. 8 seed and received an automatic bid by winning a share of the CAA championship. They ultimately fell in the quarterfinals to top-seeded South Dakota State.
Villanova is led by graduate quarterback Connor Watkins, who has been on the team for six years and started the last three seasons.
Coach Mark Ferrante is especially confident in the leadership of the team’s seasoned defensive players, who have several years of postseason experience under their belts. The starting defense is entirely made up of seniors and graduate players.
“The fact that we have a lot of older guys, especially on [the defensive] side of the ball, that have been in a playoff situation before definitely helps,” Ferrante said Monday.
Graduate linebacker Brendan Bell will be coming off one of the best performances of his career as he helped deliver a victory over the Blue Hens on both sides of the ball, scoring two touchdowns and leading the defense with 11 tackles — alongside linebacker Shane Hartzell.
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Offense finding consistency
The Wildcats’ offensive performance in recent games puts them in a position to be a threat against Eastern Kentucky.
The victory over Delaware was Villanova’s second-highest-scoring game of the season, behind a 42-24 win over Stony Brook on Oct. 5. The Wildcats have been surging, scoring over 30 points in their last three games.
It took until the latter part of the season for Villanova to find an offensive groove, with a young group of running backs and an almost entirely new starting wide receiver corps.
Watkins tied his career high for completions on Nov. 9 against North Carolina A&T with 18. He beat that number in the ensuing game against Monmouth on Nov. 16, completing 20 passes. Watkins also has scored at least one rushing touchdown in the last three games.
“Our freshmen are no longer freshmen, and our redshirt freshmen have a lot more experience now, so we’re starting to have more consistency and [fewer] mistakes,” Ferrante said.
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