Villanova Wins the Final FCS Battle of the Blue 38 – 28 Over Delaware
November 23, 2024 –
The Battle of the Blue, a classic game between the Villanova Wildcats and the Delaware Blue Hens. This had the added drama of being the last time the teams will meet as FCS opponents. This game has great meaning to Villanova.
“It’s awesome,” Ferrante said. “I wish we could play with the same emotion coming out of the locker room every other week, but it just seems like this one just hits a little different. If we could bottle it up, and then uncork it in the other ten weeks of the season, that would be awesome. But it just seems to be germane to this contest for some reason.”
Momentum can be a fickle thing, and it visited both sidelines. Big Mo was on the Wildcats sideline in the fourth quarter. The result is that the Battle of the Blue Trophy resides on the Main Line as Villanova wins 38 – 28. For the Cats it is an important victory as it could result in their getting an FCS Playoff bid. It is also their 15th straight home victory on Senior Day. For the Blue Hens the game had meaning, but not for post season as they will move up to the FBS level and are not eligible for the playoffs.
With the score tied at 28 in the fourth quarter, Villanova had two plays that resulted in momentum being in their corner along with the margin of victory.
Key Plays that Resulted in Victory
The Blue Hens had the ball at their 40 yard-line. On the first play of the drive Delaware tried a double pass. Quarterback Nick Minicucci had the pass intercepted the Wildcats corner back Ty Trinh at the Villanova 45 yard-line with 10:41 to play. The possession resulted with a 31-yard Field Goal by Nova kicker Ethan Gettman and a 31 – 28 lead. The kick was into a sharp wind, greater than 20 miles per hour at game time, and bent left, but got through the uprights.
On the ensuing drive the snap bounced off Minicucci. The fumble was recovered by Wildcats linebacker Ethan Potter at the Delaware 18 yard-line. Villanova turned this turnover into a touchdown on a 6-yard touchdown run by linebacker Brendan Bell who was playing running back.
Later in the quarter Villanova got the ball back on a punt at the 6:37 mark. The Wildcats held the ball until less than 20 seconds remained. The Hens tried a rugby style last play that was just inside Nova territory.
“We started out with momentum, they went into halftime with momentum,” said Villanova Coach Mark Ferrante. “When you get turnovers with short field, it makes all the difference in the world. We gave up a few big ones, but we made a few of our own. And we made just enough to be able to again to come out on top.”
Early Momentum For Villanova
The first three scores of the game went to Villanova started by a David Avit 1-yard touchdown run. Four plays later Bell intercepted a pass and ran it back 38-yards for a touchdown. The lead increased to 21 – 0 when quarterback Connor Watkins found wide receiver Kenyon Miles with a 36-yard scoring toss. It was his first career touchdown and his longest reception.
Momentum Visits the Blue Hens
In less than 8 minutes Delaware tied the score. The equalizer came with 13 seconds until halftime on a 65-yard run by Marcus Yarns. Earlier Wide receiver Jojo Bermudez crossed the goal line on a run from 14-yards away. That drive started at the Villanova 43 yard-line after Gettman miskicked the ball as the wind played some havoc with the ball on the tee.
Yarns accounted another score. From the Nova 20 yard-line he broke out of a pack at the line of scrimmage and got to the 1 yard-line, then was rewarded on the next play.
The Bell Rings
Bell scored two touchdowns in the game from both sides of the ball, both untouched. It’s not often that a defensive players scores twice, once on offense and once on defense. He did it.
“It’s kind of sweet,” Bell said about this accomplishment. “Five years have accumulated in the biggest game. It paid off. So my emotions are going through the roof right now.”
Bell and fellow linebacker Shane Hartzell recorded a game-high 11 tackles.
Up Next
Villanova wins the last Battle of the Blue and took 16 of the 18 in the series that started in 2007. Will they play again? Time will tell.
The season ends for Delaware.
Villanova awaits the decision of the Selection Committee. The Cats have a strong resume in a tough league to warrant an at-large bid. But that decision will be made tomorrow.
Written By: Glenn Papazian
Contact: Glenn@PhillyCollegeSports.com
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