Villanova Football Throws Penn State’s Offense for a Loop

Facing No. 2 Penn State on their home turf, Villanova Football head coach Mark Ferrante and his staff decided to try something new in a bid to slow the Nittany Lions’ potent offense down… something that, according to Penn State head coach James Franklin, the Wildcats had never done before. Alongside their typical defensive scheme of rushing the passer with three linemen and dropping the rest of their players into coverage, Villanova decided to send an extra rusher after quarterback Drew Allar.

“We knew we were going to get what we got today, which was drop eight, which, drop eight can be challenging,” Franklin said. “They did play significantly more four down defense today than they have ever shown on tape. Early on we had to get an adjustment to that, because we weren’t expecting that.”

After Penn State’s opening drive script went for a touchdown, the Wildcats’ adjustment paid off… and despite a lopsided final score, speaks to the ability of Villanova’s coaching staff. They forced two field goals — one the result of a short field after a shanked punt — and a pair of three-and-outs, keeping their offense in the game until the Nittany Lions shifted to an up-tempo pace in response.

Although Villanova succeeded at the game within the game of sideline adjustments, Ferrante attributed Penn State’s eventual success to their team depth.

“They rotated a boatload of guys in there early… that’s what happens when you play these games,” Ferrante said. “They can keep their people more fresh and one guy looks very much similar to the one he’s replacing.”

Linebacker Shane Hartzell corroborated his head coach’s statement. “I think after that first drive we kinda got settled in and were able to effectively get some stops, Hartzell said. “But they just start to wear you down.”

Buy Game Paying Off

College programs often work out their schedules years in advance — Ferrante said they agreed to this matchup more than four years ago — but while they didn’t know they’d face the No. 2 team in the country this season, they surely knew of Penn State as a perennial powerhouse.

Ferrante said that the Nittany Lions’ close proximity helped Villanova Football choose them as an opponent… as did they payout they received for playing the game, a common feature of games between teams in different tiers of Division I.

“The FCS teams play the FBS games like this because it helps us financially. It helps us stay in good places, it helps us take charter flights. It helps us with our budget and things of that nature to give our guys a great experience at our level,” Ferrante said. “I’d rather play a bus trip because then more of the money can go back into the program. Once you’re getting on flights and all that, you’re spending a lot of the guarantees they’re giving you.”