Villanova Loses 30 – 14 to the Illinois State Redbirds in FCS Final Four
VILLANOVA, PA. 12/20/2025 –
A storied football season comes to the end of the road for the Villanova Wildcats in the semifinal round of the FCS Playoffs at home.
For Villanova the journey is at an end. But what a journey it was, a season for the ages.
“I’m super proud of this team and the season they put together,” Villanova Coach Mark Ferrante. “When you get into a playoff situation, unless you go all the way, it’s bittersweet because you are going to end with an L. Really proud of how we started to where we ended. These guys gave maximum effort all the time. Showed a lot of resilience. And we just came up short today. Very sweet though.”
The Wildcats won 11 straight games and reached 12 wins for the third time in program-history. It ties the record for most wins in a single-season. An FCS active home winning streak at 23 games also came to an end.
In this game Illinois State won on all sides of the ball.
The Nova Defense on the Field for Two-Thirds of the Game
The Redbirds held the ball for over forty minutes. They gained 426 yards on offense, 175 rushing and 251 passing. Quarterback Tommy Rittenhouse threw for the passing yards going 18 of 38, 1 interception, and 2 touchdowns. Both of the scoring tosses went to Daniel Sobkowicz. Running back Victor Dawson ran for 155 yards and a score. The Redbirds were effective in their offensive execution.
The scoring drives had only one explosion, a 57 second drive that was capped by an 8-yard touchdown pass to Sobkowicz. It was set up by a 68-yard completion to Seth Glatz.
“I think what really got us down was the third downs,” Villanova linebacker Shane Hartzell said. “They converted a lot of those third downs. We shot ourselves in the foot multiple times, some penalties. That’s not winning football.”
On third down the Redbirds were good on 11 of 20. The Wildcats made a first down on 1 of 10 tries, That number did not allow Nova to keep many drives alive.
“We got them in third and long,” said Illinois State Coach Brock Spack. “To do that you have to win on first down.”
And that is what the Redbirds did.
Villanova Offense Limited
The Wildcats were able to post 300 yards of offense, 199 through the air. Most of the yardage were gained in the fourth quarter. Quarterback Pat McQuaide gained 125 passing in the fourth quarter. The Nova touchdown was scored with 18 seconds left in the game on a 16-yard pass from McQuaide to tight end Antonio Johnson. The longest pass completion came in that drive, a 40-yard completion to wide receiver Luke Colella.
The Wildcats running game was limited gaining 101 yards. They could not get that explosive play. The Redbirds defense was effective.
“When we don’t have the ball we’re not going to score any points,” said Ferrante. “I didn’t realize it was that lopsided. They held the ball and didn’t give us opportunities. And when we had opportunities, we didn’t make the most of it.”
Conclusion
A season for the ages is now complete.
“When people ask me who they remind you of, they reminded me of us,” said Ferrante. “We didn’t play as well as we needed to, and they did.”
Illinois State, unseeded in the tournament, will play for the championship against Montana State on January 5, 2026.
Written By: Glenn Papazian
Contact: Glenn@PhillyCollegeSports.com
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