Villanova Quarterback Pat McQuaide’s Eligibility Saga Continues

Villanova quarterback Pat McQuaide’s eligibility battle with the Patriot League isn’t over yet, as the conference filed a motion to stay judgement and suspend injunction pending appeal in the Cuyahoga County (Ohio) Appellate Court. The motion, filed on Wednesday, Sept. 9, states that  the league “hereby moves to stay the trial court’s August 28, 2026 Judgment Entry granting Appellee, Patrick McQuaide’s, Emergency Motion for Temporary Restraining Order and Preliminary Injunction and suspend the trial court’s preliminary injunction,” noting that a stay “is necessary to protect The Patriot League’s constitutional due process rights.”

Conor Smith of The Philadelphia Inquirer was first to report the case update. McQuaide began his college career during the 2021 season, walking on at Kent State before transferring to a junior college, Mississippi Gulf Coast, the following season. He then played two years at Nuckolls State before transferring to Villanova ahead of the 2025 campaign, where he helped the Wildcats to the FCS Semifinals.

How We Got Here

The NCAA implemented a rule change ahead of the 2025 season that made it so seasons spent below Division I wouldn’t count against a player’s eligibility: as such, the Wildcats appealed the league for an extra season for McQuaide. The league denied the appeal, leading McQuaide to file a lawsuit against the NCAA in Cuyahoga County where he resides. Judge Timothy McCormick granted a temporary injunction for the initial suit… at which point the Patriot League stepped in and said that they’d issue Villanova a forfeit for any game McQuaide appeared in.

As the initial suit didn’t name the Patriot League as a defendant, the NCAA backed the conference in the dispute, prompting McQuaide to open a second suit targeting the conference. McCormick, once again, issued a preliminary injunction, granting McQuaide another season of eligibility a mere hour before Villanova’s season opener against William & Mary… but now, the Patriot League will continue the fight through the courts.

McQuaide’s eligibility issue won’t pertain to nonconference games, including upcoming duels at LIU (Sept. 19) and at home against Morgan State (Oct. 3). The initial injunction states that “the Patriot League is enjoined from enforcing or attempting to enforce the NCAA Rule of Restitution or any similar or corresponding rules or bylaws,” which would prevent them from retroactively punishing the Wildcats — for instance, vacating their Sept. 5 win over Bucknell — if the conference’s appeal succeeds.

True freshman Nolan DiLucia earned snaps in the Wildcats’ blowout loss to Louisville as the starters checked out of the game, indicating he could be the next man up if necessary.