# 2021 Villanova Wildcats football team

The 2021 Villanova Wildcats football team represented Villanova University in the 2021 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by fifth-year head coach Mark Ferrante and played their home games at Villanova Stadium. They competed as a member of the Colonial Athletic Association.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 4 | 12:00 p.m. | at Lehigh* | No. 16 | Goodman StadiumBethlehem, PA | ESPN+ | W 47–3 | 4,101 |
| September 11 | 6:00 p.m. | Bucknell* | No. 12 | Villanova StadiumVillanova, PA | FloFootball | W 55–3 | 8,219 |
| September 18 | 3:30 p.m. | No. 21 Richmond | No. 12 | Villanova StadiumVillanova, PA | FloFootball | W 34–27 | 12,001 |
| September 25 | 12:00 p.m. | at No. 6 (FBS) Penn State* | No. 11 | Beaver StadiumUniversity Park, PA | BTN | L 17–38 | 105,790 |
| October 9 | 2:00 p.m. | at No. 3 James Madison | No. 11 | Bridgeforth StadiumHarrisonburg, VA | FloFootball | W 28–27 | 25,035 |
| October 16 | 3:30 p.m. | at Albany | No. 6 | Bob Ford Field at Tom & Mary Casey StadiumAlbany, NY | FloFootball | W 17–10 | 7,121 |
| October 23 | 3:30 p.m. | No. 18 Rhode Island | No. 5 | Villanova StadiumVillanova, PA | FloFootball | W 44–0 | 7,341 |
| October 30 | 1:00 p.m. | William & Mary | No. 4 | Villanova StadiumVillanova, PA | FloFootball | L 18–31 | 5,101 |
| November 6 | 2:00 p.m. | at Elon | No. 10 | Rhodes StadiumElon, NC | FloFootball | W 35–0 | 8,865 |
| November 13 | 1:00 p.m. | Stony Brook | No. 8 | Villanova StadiumVillanova, PA | FloFootball | W 33–14 | 4,421 |
| November 20 | 1:00 p.m. | at Delaware | No. 6 | Delaware StadiumNewark, DE (Battle of the Blue) | FloFootball | W 21–13 | 11,437 |
| December 3 | 7:00 p.m. | No. 24 Holy Cross* | No. 6 | Villanova StadiumVillanova, PA (NCAA Division Second Round) | ESPN+ | W 21–16 | 5,109 |
| December 11 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 11 South Dakota State* | No. 6 | Villanova StadiumVillanova, PA (NCAA Division Quarterfinal) | ESPN+ | L 21–35 | 3,401 |
| *Non-conference gameRankings from STATS Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Eastern time ||||||||

## Game summaries
### at No. 6 (FBS) Penn State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 11 Villanova | 3 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 17 |
| No. 6 (FBS) Penn State | 7 | 10 | 14 | 7 | 38 |
at Beaver Stadium, University Park, Pennsylvania
* Date: September 25
* Game time: 12:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: 70 °F (21 °C); sunny
* Game attendance: 105,790
* Referee: Jerry McGinn
* TV announcers (BTN): Mark Followill (play-by-play), Matt Millen (analyst), and Elise Menaker (sideline)
* Pregame line: None (due to Villanova's FCS status) • Odds to win: Penn State 96.8% • ESPN box score
| Statistics | VU | PSU |
| First downs | 15 | 20 |
| Plays–yards | 60–280 | 65–509 |
| Rushes–yards | 26–58 | 34–80 |
| Passing yards | 222 | 429 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 20–34–1 | 22–31–1 |
| Time of possession | 31:15 | 28:45 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Villanova | Passing | Daniel Smith | 20/34, 222 yards, 2 TD, INT |
| Villanova | Rushing | Jalen Jackson | 7 carries, 58 yards |
| Villanova | Receiving | Rayjoun Pringle | 4 receptions, 107 yards, 2 TD |
| Penn State | Passing | Sean Clifford | 19/26, 401 yards, 4 TD, INT |
| Penn State | Rushing | John Lovett | 11 carries, 45 yards |
| Penn State | Receiving | Parker Washington | 5 receptions, 148 yards, 2 TD |