Villanova Football Comes Out Flat in Semifinal Loss to Illinois State

VILLANOVA, Pa.— Villanova Football saw their magical playoff run come to an end on Saturday, Dec. 20, falling 30-14 at home to the unseeded Illinois State Redbirds in the semifinal round of the FCS playoffs. The loss ends a 23 game home winning streak for the Wildcats, the best mark in college football.

Villanova converted just one of nine third downs; the Redbirds converted at an 11-of-20 clip and managed to pick up the first on their lone fourth down attempt, dominating the time of possession 39:34-20:26. While the Wildcats averaged five yards per carry, quarterback Pat McQuaide completed just 13 of 30 passes (six of those completions coming in the final six minutes), struggling to find a rhythm with his receivers on the way to a series of near misses. One deep shot attempt in the first quarter turned into a Redbirds’ interception, and the Wildcats got away from the run as Illinois State pulled away.

After the Redbirds opened the scoring on a 53-yard deep shot from Tommy Rittenhouse to Daniel Sobkowicz, Villanova seemed poised to snap out of their funk when McQuaide found Lucas Kopecky for a toe-dragging 37-yard completion on third-and-10. That set the Wildcats up in the red zone, but Illinois State bottled McQuaide up on a keeper from the 5-yard line to force a field goal.

Illinois State Piles On

Penalties (and a lack thereof) helped the Redbirds push their lead to 14-3 on the ensuing drive. Rittenhouse threw the ball in the turf under heavy pressure from Shane Hartzell but didn’t incur an intentional grounding penalty, which drew the ire of the home crowd. The veteran signal caller made the most of the lucky break, throwing for a first down on the following play.

The Wildcats held Illinois State on third-and-goal from the 4-yard line, but a facemask gave them a new set of downs. Tailback Victor Dawson immediately found pay dirt.

Ja’briel Mace helped the Wildcats march downfield in response, but another stalled drive turned into a Jack Barnum field goal. The Redbirds needed just three plays to pull ahead 21-6, as a 68-yard screen pass set up another receiving touchdown from Sobkowicz.

After dropping an interception earlier in the drive, Zahmir Dawud picked off Rittenhouse with 12 seconds remaining in the half, keeping the Redbirds from adding to the lead.

Illinois State took command in the third quarter, knocking in two field goals and holding possession for all but two minutes and 38 seconds. Villanova drove to the Redbirds’ 25-yard line early in the fourth quarter, but a fourth down sack kept them off the board.

McQuaide found Antonio Johnson for a 16-yard touchdown with 3:16 to play, but the Wildcats couldn’t corral the onside kick that followed.