NOVA (-18) VS PENN AT PALESTRA, TEMPLE (-7) AT HOME VS. LA SALLE!
By Skip Charles in Vegas It’s a Big 5 battle tonight as No. 6 Villanova heads to the palestra to…
WHY NOVA’S JAY WRIGHT WILL NEVER LEAVE FOR THE NBA!
By Sally Fahey So, Villanova is far and away the best hoops school in Philly, the East Coast and a…
NOVA MOVES UP TO NO. 6 IN AP AND COACHES TOP 25
AP Top 25 RK TEAM REC PTS TREND 1 Duke(51) 7-0 1513 4 2 Purdue(9) 6-0 1442 1 3 Gonzaga(1)…
NOVA BURIES LA SALLE IN 1ST BIG 5 PALESTRA GAME IN 22 MONTHS!
By Annie Ross It was the first Big 5 game at the Palestra since Penn’s 66-59 win over Temple on…
NOVA STICKS AT 7 IN TOP 25 EVEN WITH 2 LOSSES!
By Harry Allison Villanova dropped only to seventh thanks to beating then-No. 12 Tennessee before losing to Purdue. AP Top…
NOVA BUMPED OFF BY PURDUE, ANOTHER NATIONALLY RANKED TEAM
By Harry Allison You can’t say that Villanova is playing a cupcake early season schedule. They lost yesterday to nationally…
NO. 9 NOVA KNOCKS OFF DELAWARE TO WIN THE CAA!
By Harry Allison Daniel Smith and Jaaron Hayek stepped up Villanova rallied for a 21-13 victory over Delaware. Two Ryan Coe field…
NO. 5 NOVA’S GILLESPIE, SAMUELS TRASH NO. 17 TENNESSEE!
By Harvey Hoffman Jermaine Samuels had 14 points and 11 rebounds, Collin Gillespie chipped in 14 points and No. 5…
BLUE BLOOD NOVA BEAT HOWARD, BUT GOT A SCARE FOR A HALF!
By Mark Donovan It’s a long way from Pauley Pavilion and UCLA on Friday night to Howard at the Fin…
NOVA ONLY DROPS FROM 4 TO 5 AFTER OVERTIME LOSS AT UCLA!
By Harry Allison Gonzaga, UCLA and Kansas stay at the top, but Michigan moved ahead of Villanova to No. 4.…
Villanova Football Blog
Villanova Football News
For Villanova, it was a moral victory but a gut-wrenching defeat.
Punter Riley Dixon threw a 1-yard touchdown pass to Kendall Moore on a fake field goal in the second overtime, and Syracuse stopped a 2-point try to beat Villanova 27-26 on Friday night.
Villanova’s John Robertson connected with tailback Gary Underwood for a 9-yard touchdown strike to pull the Wildcats within one in sweltering conditions in the Carrier Dome. Villanova coach Andy Talley, who has made two decades of Philly sports news, rumors and blogs, went for the victory with the 2-point conversion attempt, and defensive end Robert Welch stopped Robertson at the 4.
The teams traded field goals in the first overtime.
Villanova’s Chris Gough kicked a 25-yard field goal to tie it at 17 with 7:14 left in the fourth quarter, then missed a 25-yarder with 12 seconds left in regulation in the opener for both teams.
Syracuse quarterback Terrel Hunt was ejected for punching linebacker Dillon Lucas after a 6-yard gain late in the first half.
Hunt was 10 of 17 for 94 yards and ran for 25 yards. Austin Wilson, a sophomore playing his first game for the Orange, was 11 of 17 for 89 yards in relief of Hunt.
Robertson, the Colonial Athletic Association preseason player of the year who is making lots of Philly sports news, rumors and blogs, was 16 of 27 for 199 yards. He ran 34 times for another 115 yards, accounting for 314 yards of total offense.
He eluded Syracuse defenders all night, almost singlehandedly leading the Wildcats to what would have been Syracuse’s first loss to an FCS team. Syracuse was the lone FBS team to not allow a 100-yard rusher last season.
Wilson led Syracuse on a 13-play, 87-yard touchdown drive at the start of the second half, with Adonis Ameen-Moore scoring from the 2 for a 17-7 lead. Safety Cameron McCurry was called for pass interference on the drive.
Villanova’s Poppy Livers, easily the best name in 2014 Phills sports news, rumors and blogs, returned a punt 67 yards for touchdown, zigzagging across the field and down the right sideline, to cut it to 17-14 late in the third quarter.
Syracuse’s Prince Tyson-Gulley opened the scoring midway through the first quarter with a 65-yard run. Tyson-Gulley had 100 yards on 11 carries.
Villanova tied on Kevin Monangai’s 5-yard run in the second, and Syracuse made it 10-7 with 6:49 left in the half on Ryan Norton’s 38-yard field goal.