Delaware vs Villanova, Mr. C's Official Game Thread

[Mr. C]

I finally arrived from my first game of the day Lafayatte at Lehigh (big surprise with Lafayette winning there) and made it in time for the start of the second quarter for the Battle of the Blue.

Delaware scored on its first two drives, the initial one going 94 yards, to take a 14-0. Since then, Villanova has settled down and scored on a field goal and a TD to make it 14-9.

[Mr. C]

Villanova takes over on its own 29 after forcing a couple of quick punts from Delaware on the last two drives, following a John Robertson TD for the Cats.

1st down run to the midfield stripe and Monangai goes for 4 to the Hen 46. Robertson pump fakes on the run and scrambles to the 43. 3rd and 3. 4 minutes left in the half.

[Mr. C]

Robertson hits Poppy Livers on a crossing route for three, but Livers loses the first down trying for more yards. 4th and less than a yard. Time out, first of the half for Villanova.

[Mr. C]

With the developments thus far today around the country, Delaware would probably get into the playoffs with a win.

[Mr. C]

3:17 left in the half. Heavy formation for Nova. Fake of the jet sweep and Robertson finds a crease for the first down with an 8-yard run.

[Mr. C]

Cats at the Hen 33. Slot left, Robertson is sacked by Karon Gibson, shooting through the middle. 2nd down from the Hen 43.

[Mr. C]

Travis Hawkins comes up from the corner, reads a screen to Austin Medley and dumps him for a loss of 3. 3rd and 23.

[Mr. C]

Robertson is contained by Jeff Williams on a scramble of 9 yards to the 37. 4th and 14. Mark Hamilton will punt.

[Mr. C]

High punt by Hamilton is caught by one of Villanova's defenders at the one with 57 seconds left. Delaware will take over from there.

[Mr. C]

Sneak by Trent Hurley to the 2. Don Cherry with the stop, time out No. 2 for Nova. 53 seconds left.

[Mr. C]

Delaware scored on Michael Johnson's 12 yard pass from Hurley and a 13-yard option pass from former HS QB Rob Jones to Hurley. Nova had a second and goal at the Hen three before a 15-yard Monangai personal foul led to Hamilton's 32-yard field goal late in the first quarter. Robertson then scored from 8 yards out early in the second period.

[Mr. C]

False start on Delaware moves the ball to the two again and brings up third and 9. Villanova had to use its final time out.

[Mr. C]

Safe run off-tackle by Andrew Pierce for 3 to the 5. 4th down with the clock winding down.

[Mr. C]

Delaware uses it second time out with three seconds left in the half with the play clock at one.

[Mr. C]

Eric Enderson will punt from his end zone.

[Mr. C]

Enderson's line-drive punt sails over Livers head to run out the clock.

[Mr. C]

Villanova starts the second half at its own 25.

[Mr. C]

Robertson hit hard on a gain of 1 by Patrick Calloway.

[Mr. C]

Sideline route on play action to TE Pettway for 14 at the VU 40.

Robertson scoots for 17 to the Hen 43.

[Mr. C]

Monangai to the 41, 2nd and 8.

[Mr. C]

Interception by Travis Hawkins to the UD 47.

[Mr. C]

Pass to Michael Johnson for 6. 2nd and 4 at the VU 47.

Nice grab by TE Nick Boyle at the VU 26. 21 yards on the play.

[Mr. C]

Hook and ladder to Pierce, who is stopped at the 23. 2nd and 7. Delaware pulling out all the trick plays today.

Play action, Hurley is nearly sacked, escapes and has to throw the ball away. 3rd and 7.

[Mr. C]

Nice little delay route to Boyle, but he is tackled at the 17. 4th and 1. But personal foul for roughing the QB. 1st down at the VU 8.

[Mr. C]

Nice blocking on the jet sweep for a UD TD.

Delaware 21, Villanova 9, 10:54 left in the third period

6 plays, 53 yards, 2:11

[Mr. C]

Monangai for 9 to the 37 on 1st down, Monangai again to the VU 47 for 1st down.

Monangai sweeps to midfield. 2nd and 7.

[Mr. C]

Robertson scrambles after a pump fake and a double move, but holding on the Cats.

[Mr. C]

Nice route by Joe Price and a perfect throw from Robertson to the UD 10.

[Mr. C]

Robertson runs to the 8. 2nd and goal.

Price is playing with three broken vertebra in his final game.

[Mr. C]

Robertson QB draw to the 4. 3rd and goal.

[Mr. C]

Derek Saulsbury with a huge sack at the UD 11. Hamilton on for a 28-yard field goal that is good.

Delawre 21, Villanova 12, 7:36 left in the third period

8 plays, 62 yards, 3:12 on the drive

[Mr. C]

Kickoff sails well out of bounds for VU and Delaware gets the ball at the 35.

[Mr. C]

Hurley to Johnson for 14 yards to the UD 49.

[Mr. C]

Julian Liang spins to the VU 45. 2nd and 4.

[caribbeanhen]

hen fans will say where was this spirit all year

[Mr. C]

Don Cherry makes a great play, shedding a block and dropping Pierce for a loss, but Craig James got called for a face mask away from the play. Delaware first down at the VU 31. Laing runs for 4. 2nd and 6.

[Mr. C]

Laing straight ahead to the 22. 3rd and 1.

[Mr. C]

Time out Delaware No. 1 in the second half with the play clock winding down and the Hens still in the huddle.

[Mr. C]

Flea-flicker from Hurley to Michael Johnson for the TD.

Delaware 28, Villanova 12, 5:16 left in the third period

6 plays, 65 yards, 2:20 on the drive

[Mr. C]

Medley runs to the VU 33, 2nd and 3.

[Mr. C]

Option play for Robertson to the 37. 1st and 10.

[Mr. C]

Robertson throws one away on a pass rush. 2nd and 10.

[Mr. C]

Robertson has to throw away another at the feet of Pettway.

[Mr. C]

Robertson to Gulyas is incomplete on the post. Punt time for VU.

[Mr. C]

Rob Jones makes a dangerous catch and gets to the UD 36 on the punt return.

[Mr. C]

Pierce on the delay to the 40 on a big hit by Antoine Lewis.

[Mr. C]

2 yard run makes it 3rd and 4 for UD.

Johnson beats zone coverage and gets 35 yards to the VU 23.

[Mr. C]

Pierce with a burst to the 19. Laing straight ahead to the 1o. 1st and goal.

[Mr. C]

Pierce up the middle for the TD run.

[Mr. C]

Delaware 34, Villanova 12

PAT is blocked

1:24 left in the third period

[Mr. C]

6 plays, 64 yards, 2:12 on the Delaware drive

[Mr. C]

Villanova at the UD 38 after a UD unsportsmanlike penalty. Medley takes a short pass to the 45, 3rd and 3.

Robertson on the run misses his target. Punt time.

[caribbeanhen]

did delaware get any help today?

[Mr. C]

Sloppy drive for UD and a three and out as we are into the fourth period.

[Mr. C]

did delaware get any help today?
Some. Richmond is beating William & Mary badly, NAU beat SUU, SDSU beat YSU badly, Liberty beat CSU badly. But UNH won and Samford is beating Elon late. Stayed tuned.

[Mr. C]

Robertson with a burst to the VU 42 for 12.

[caribbeanhen]

Some. Richmond is beating William & Mary badly, NAU beat SUU, SDSU beat YSU badly, Liberty beat CSU badly. But UNH won and Samford is beating Elon late. Stayed tuned.

thanks

[Mr. C]

Robertson almost single-handedly sparks a VU TD drive, finishing it with a TD pass to Joe Price.

Delaware 34, Villanova 19

8:01 remaining

10 plays, 74 yards, 4:20 on the drive

[Mr. C]

thanks
Samford has fallen behind Elon now on a safety and a field goal after the free kick midway throught the fourth period.

[Mr. C]

Very nice defensive series for VU to force a 3 and out.

[Mr. C]

Villanova takes over at the 19 after the punt with 5:35 remaining.

[Mr. C]

Robertson to Livers to the VU 34 on the 15-yard play.

[Mr. C]

Robertson races on a rollout to the VU 44.

[Mr. C]

Another first down scramble by Robertson to the UD 44.

Crossing pattern to Gulyas to the UD 30.

[Mr. C]

Robertson to Clay Horne at the 20.

[Mr. C]

Robertson to Price for a TD pass.

[Mr. C]

Delaware 34, Villanova 26

3:17 remaining

[Mr. C]

Could we have another fantastic finish in a series filled with them?

[Mr. C]

With Delaware expecting an onside kick, VU kicks deep and gets a touchback. UD ball at the 25. 3:17 remaining.

[Mr. C]

Play action pass to Harrison, but great coverage by Craig James.

[Mr. C]

Hurley QB draw is stuffed at the 25. Time out Villanova No. 1 of the second half. 3:08 left.

[Mr. C]

Huge third down and 10 play here.

[Mr. C]

Hurley is stormed and sacked by Richie Parris. 4th down, time out No. 2 for Villanova. 3:00 left on 4th and 17.

[Mr. C]

Poppy Livers catches up to a low liner of a punt and returns it to the VU 42. 2:48 left.

[Mr. C]

Robertson keeps to the UD 45 with a brilliant run. Out of bounds with 2:41 left.

[Mr. C]

Zach Kerr down on the play and limps off. That doesn't help UD.

[Mr. C]

Blitz and Robertson throws one away with Jeff Williams coming.

[Mr. C]

Robertson hits Horne on the square in. To the UD 34 on 1st down.

[Mr. C]

Nice read and out to Livers for 9 to the UD 25. 2:06 left. 2nd and 1.

[Mr. C]

Wheel route and Gary Underwood is wide open for the TD pass of 25 yards.

[Mr. C]

Delaware 34, Villanova 32 two point conversion with 1:45 left.

[Mr. C]

Robertson is pressure when the initial play breaks down and a throw to backup TE Doug Turrell falls short.

Delaware 34, Villanova 32

1:45 left

[Mr. C]

Onside kick time

[Mr. C]

Chris Gough dribbles the kick 10 yards, waits for it with a screen and pounces on it himself.

[Mr. C]

Villanova ball at the VU 46 with 1:45 left.

[Mr. C]

Livers out to the UD 44.

[Mr. C]

Same play, Robertson to Livers to the UD 33. 1:35 left.

[Mr. C]

Robertson sees an opening and scrambles to the 27. Clock moving under 1:10

[Mr. C]

Robertson runs for three at the UD 23. 55 seconds left. Measurement is inches short.

[Mr. C]

3rd down and the clock is started.

[Mr. C]

Robertson QB sneak to the 20. Time out No. 2 for Delaware with 48 seconds left.

[Mr. C]

Counter trap for Medley to the 11. 2nd and 1

[Mr. C]

Robertson QB draw to the 7. First down and Villanova calls time out with five seconds left.

[MTfan4life]

Chris Gough dribbles the kick 10 yards, waits for it with a screen and pounces on it himself.

How many successful 4th quarter onside kicks have there been this season in the CAA?!? Madness!

[Mr. C]

24 yard field goal to win for senior Mark Hamilton.

[Mr. C]

How many successful 4th quarter onside kicks have there been this season in the CAA?!? Madness!
Never a dull moment out here.

[Mr. C]

Delaware tries to ice Mark Hamilton with the final time out for the Blue Hens.

[Mr. C]

Snap is a little low, but Cody Pittman with a nice hold and Hamilton fits it inside the left upright.

[Mr. C]

Clutch kick for a senior.

It's a Beautiful Day by U2 blares from the loud speakers with 1 second left.

[dwtime]

YEAH!

[Mr. C]

Delaware tries to set up a rugby play, but Shayne Jones breaks up the pass and ends the game.

Villanova 35, Delaware 34

FINAL

[SingForever]

Nice comeback Villanova!

[dwtime]

W&M losing too, woo hoo!!!!!!

[kdinva]

with Delaware losing, Southern Utah losing, Lehigh losing, W&M losing in the 4th qtr., ................is Chuck South back in the discussion?

[smilo]

^ I don't think Lehigh losing is a good thing. You could throw Montana State and even UT-M on there however.

[VUCats02]

What a comeback!!!! It's a shame Nova had one of the toughest schedule in all of FCS this year. Hopefully next year will be the year.

[Mr. C]

Biggest comeback against Delaware ever in the fourth quarter (22 points), beating the 1999 21-point comeback by Villanova over Delaware and the 2004 21-point comeback by William & Mary in the playoff quarterfinals.

[Mr. C]

^ I don't think Lehigh losing is a good thing. You could throw Montana State and even UT-M on there however.
A five-loss team like Montana State has zero chance of getting in.

[superman7515]

Tough loss. Sat there watching the game with former Villanova standout Deon Jackson (another lower Delaware guy) and he called it when he saw the defense switch up in the 4th quarter. If nothing else, Deon still knows how to talk trash, haha.

[Mr. C]

John Robertson was 11-of-13 for 146 yards and two TDs passing in the fourth quarter. Robertson rushed 13 times for 95 yards in the fourth period. He finished with a 19-of-28 for 252 yards and three TD performance passing and 31 carries for 164 yards and a TD rushing. That's 417 yards of total offense and 241 in the final period alone.

The Wildcats had 250 yards in the fourth quarter and finished overall with 626 yards, the second-highest total in school history (707 in 1949 against North Carolina State is the school record, a 45-21 win at Franklin Field). Villanova's 34 first downs were a school record, breaking the mark of 33 that Brett Gordon and company had established in 2002 against James Madison (a 30-26 nail-biter).

Delaware gave up 600 yards or more for the first time in school history in back-to-back weeks and allowed 600 yards three times this season. The Blue Hens gave up more yards per game than any Delaware defense in school history.


Delaware had no first downs and minus-one total yards in the fourth period.

[HailSzczur]

Wow what a comeback. That 4th quarter might have been the best quarter of football I've ever seen Nova play. 250 yds on offense, -1 on defense not to shabby.
If anyone finds highlights/a video of the onside kick I'd love to see a replay of that. I watched the 2nd half from the balcony in the end zone and had a weird angle from behind. We were all worried it wasn't going to get 10 yds, but it was just simply brilliantly executed with the coverage basically laying down in front of the ball as a wall. Don't think I've ever seen a kicker recover a kick.

Hope all of you there were in your seats for the national anthem. I was pissed our group had such a poor turn out, but atleast the guys we had were good

[caribbeanhen]

did delaware get any help today?

rolf

[superman7515]

Wow what a comeback. That 4th quarter might have been the best quarter of football I've ever seen Nova play. 250 yds on offense, -1 on defense not to shabby.
If anyone finds highlights/a video of the onside kick I'd love to see a replay of that. I watched the 2nd half from the balcony in the end zone and had a weird angle from behind. We were all worried it wasn't going to get 10 yds, but it was just simply brilliantly executed with the coverage basically laying down in front of the ball as a wall. Don't think I've ever seen a kicker recover a kick.

Hope all of you there were in your seats for the national anthem. I was pissed our group had such a poor turn out, but atleast the guys we had were good

The play literally happened right in front of us and I'd like to see a replay as well. It honestly look liked a Villanova player touched the ball prior to it going 10 yards, and then it was recovered beyond the 10. Not taking anything away from the Wildcats, they won, no sour grapes. But at full speed, it looked like it was touched early.

[Mr. C]

Wow what a comeback. That 4th quarter might have been the best quarter of football I've ever seen Nova play. 250 yds on offense, -1 on defense not to shabby.
If anyone finds highlights/a video of the onside kick I'd love to see a replay of that. I watched the 2nd half from the balcony in the end zone and had a weird angle from behind. We were all worried it wasn't going to get 10 yds, but it was just simply brilliantly executed with the coverage basically laying down in front of the ball as a wall. Don't think I've ever seen a kicker recover a kick.

Hope all of you there were in your seats for the national anthem. I was pissed our group had such a poor turn out, but atleast the guys we had were good
From my angle, Chris Gough dribbled the ball softly up the middle and it didn't look at first like it would make it 10 yards. But he put himself as a shield between the ball and the Delaware defenders and waited patiently until it went over the 10-yard mark, then pounced on it and helf on for dear life when he took a pretty good lick. It was great execution. We were talking in the press box that it looked like a floater over the first line of Delaware defenders might have given Villanova a good chance to recover, with Rob Jones some 20 yards deeper.

[Mr. C]

The play literally happened right in front of us and I'd like to see a replay as well. It honestly look liked a Villanova player touched the ball prior to it going 10 yards, and then it was recovered beyond the 10. Not taking anything away from the Wildcats, they won, no sour grapes. But at full speed, it looked like it was touched early.
What I saw was Gough start to reach for it early and then pull his hands back until it went 10 yards.

[Ivytalk]

Hens screwed the pooch today. Total collapse.