# 2023 Villanova Wildcats football team

The 2023 Villanova Wildcats football team represented Villanova University as a member of the Coastal Athletic Association Football Conference (CAA) during the 2023 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Wildcats were led by seventh-year head coach Mark Ferrante and played home games at Villanova Stadium in Villanova, Pennsylvania.
The CAA, formerly known as the Colonial Athletic Association from 2007 through 2022, changed its name in July 2023 to accommodate future membership expansion outside of the Thirteen Colonies.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 2 | 12:00 p.m. | at Lehigh* | | Goodman StadiumBethlehem, PA | ESPN+ | W 38–10 | 4,360 |
| September 9 | 6:00 p.m. | Colgate* | | Villanova StadiumVillanova, PA | FloSports | W 42–19 | 5,101 |
| September 16 | 6:30 p.m. | at UCF* | No. 24 | FBC Mortgage StadiumOrlando, FL | ESPN+ | L 14–48 | 44,206 |
| September 23 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 17 Rhode Island | No. 25 | Villanova StadiumVillanova, PA | FloSports | W 35–9 | 5,913 |
| September 30 | 3:30 p.m. | at Albany | No. 16 | Bob Ford FieldAlbany, NY | FloSports | L 10–31 | 7,071 |
| October 7 | 4:00 p.m. | at North Carolina A&T | | Truist StadiumGreensboro, NC | FloSports | W 37–14 | 8,098 |
| October 14 | 1:00 p.m. | Elon | | Villanova StadiumVillanova, PA | FloSports | W 21–0 | 2,429 |
| October 28 | 2:00 p.m. | Stony Brook | No. 19 | Villanova StadiumVillanova, PA | FloSports | W 48–13 | 5,119 |
| November 4 | 1:00 p.m. | at New Hampshire | No. 17 | Wildcat StadiumDurham, NH | FloSports | W 45–33 | 6,633 |
| November 11 | 1:00 p.m. | Towson | No. 13 | Villanova StadiumVillanova, PA | FloSports | W 33–10 | 4,819 |
| November 18 | 1:00 p.m. | at No. 7 Delaware | No. 10 | Delaware StadiumNewark, DE (Battle of the Blue) | FloSports, NBC Sports Philadelphia | W 35–7 | 17,718 |
| December 2 | 12:00 p.m. | No. 21 Youngstown State* | No. 6 | Villanova StadiumVillanova, PA (NCAA Division I Second Round) | ESPN+ | W 45–28 | 2,015 |
| December 9 | 12:00 p.m. | at No. 1 South Dakota State* | No. 6 | Dana J. Dykhouse StadiumBrookings, SD (NCAA Division I Quarterfinal) | ESPN | L 12–23 | 10,216 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from STATS Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Eastern time ||||||||

## Game summaries
### at UCF (FBS)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 24 (FCS) Wildcats | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 14 |
| Knights | 17 | 17 | 7 | 7 | 48 |
at FBC Mortgage Stadium, Orlando, FL
* Date: September 16, 2023
* Game time: 6:30 pm EDT
* Game attendance: 44,206
* TV announcers (ESPN+): Drew Fellios and Forrest Conoly
* Gamecast
Game information :
First Quarter
UCF: Colton Boomer 26-yard field goal, 9:21
UCF: Jordan McDonald 1-yard touchdown run (Colton Boomer kick), 4:51
UCF: Jordan McDonald 1-yard touchdown run (Colton Boomer kick), 1:01
Second Quarter
UCF: R.J. Harvey 5-yard touchdown run (Colton Boomer kick), 7:47
UCF: Javon Baker 25 Yd pass from Timmy McClain (Colton Boomer kick), 5:04
UCF: Colton Boomer 41-yard field goal, 0:25
Third Quarter
UCF: R.J. Harvey 24-yard touchdown run (Colton Boomer kick), 5:12
Fourth Quarter
Villanova: Connor Watkins 3-yard touchdown run (Matthew Mercurio kick), 13:42
UCF: Jaylon Griffin 36-yard touchdown pass from Timmy McClain (Colton Boomer kick), 11:22
Villanova: T.D. Ayo-Durojaiye 11-yard touchdown run (Matthew Mercurio kick), 4:44
Win Probability
UCF 95.9%
Line
N/A
Over/Under
N/A :
| Statistics | NOVA | UCF |
| First downs | 11 | 31 |
| Total yards | 228 | 600 |
| Rushing yards | 84 | 251 |
| Passing yards | 144 | 349 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 0 |
| Time of possession | 27:08 | 32:52 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Villanova | Passing | Connor Watkins | 9-23, 144 yards, 1 INT |
| Villanova | Rushing | Deewil Barlee | 7 carries, 39 yards |
| Villanova | Receiving | Jaylan Sanchez | 1 receptions, 45 yards |
| UCF | Passing | Timmy McClain | 20-28, 321 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT |
| UCF | Rushing | R. J. Harvey | 14 carries, 85 yards, 2 TD |
| UCF | Receiving | Kobe Hudson | 6 receptions, 147 yards |