Football Defeated 14-6 at No. 13 Villanova

Saturday, October 26

Villanova, Pa.

3:30 PM

University of New Hampshire

4-4 , 2-2

Villanova

6-2 , 3-1

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

New Hampshire

Villanova

Myles Thomason set career highs with 20 rushes for 79 yards

10/26/2024 6:49:00 PM | Football

Box Score

Thomason rushes for career-high 79 yards in return to action

VILLANOVA, Pa. – The 13^th-ranked Villanova Wildcats defeated the UNH Wildcats, 14-6, on Saturday at Villanova Stadium. The home Wildcats (6-2, 3-1 CAA) registered a pair of goal-line stands to win the defensive battle and hand the visiting Wildcats (4-4, 2-2 CAA) their first setback on the Main Line since 2009.

Seeing his first game action since sustaining an injury Aug. 29 at Central Florida, junior running back Myles Thomason (Montclair, N.J.) established career highs with 20 rushes for 79 yards. He tacked on four receptions for 39 yards.

In his first career start, sophomore quarterback Barry Kleinpeter (Savannah, Ga.) completed 14 of 22 passes for 125 yards and rushed 19 times for 42 yards.

Graduate student Logan Tomlinson (Manchester, Conn.) paced the receivers with 56 yards on four receptions.

Senior defensive end Josiah Silver (Hampton, Va.) posted eight tackles, including 2.5 tackles for loss (2.0 sacks) and a forced fumble. Senior safety Duncan Moreland (Beverly, Mass.) set a career high with eight tackles and a forced fumble and fumble recovery on the same play.

Villanova quarterback Connor Watkins went 7-for-13 for 112 yards and two TD passes. Devin Smith was VU's leading receiver with three catches for 60 yards and a touchdown.

VU linebacker Shane Hartzell notched a game-high 20 tackles.

UP NEXT
•UNH visits UAlbany on Saturday, Nov. 2, in a 1 p.m. game at Tom and Mary Casey Stadium.

NEXT HOME GAME
•The Wildcats play host to Monmouth on Saturday, Nov. 9, in a 1 p.m. game for Community Heroes Day, presented by Milton CAT. The first 1,000 fans in attendance receive a red, white and blue UNH Football t-shirt, and the 2025 New Hampshire Teacher of the Year will be honored as part of the Celebration of Education. Fans are asked to bring a new or lightly used coat to donate as part of UNH's Basic Needs Support Coat Drive. Tickets are available at UNHWildcats.com or by calling 603-862-4000.

HOW IT HAPPENED

FIRST QUARTER
•Villanova registered the game's first turnover deep in UNH territory at 9:52 of the first. On 3rd-and-7 from the UNH 25-yard line, Villanova linebacker Brendan Bell (nine tackles) jarred the ball loose from Kleinpeter on a sack and recovered the subsequent fumble at the Wildcats' 10.
•Three plays later, with the ball still at UNH's 10, Silver strip-sacked Watkins, and graduate student linebacker Ryan Toscano (Bedford, N.H./six tackles) recovered the fumble at UNH's 19.
•UNH then embarked on a 7:21 drive, its longest of the season, that took 12 plays and 78 yards before junior Nick Mazzie (Boxford, Mass.) connected for a 21-yard field goal and a 3-0 lead at 1:09.
•Facing a 2^nd-and-15 from his own 14, Kleinpeter hit Tomlinson on a 25-yard back-shoulder pass down the left sideline to spot the ball at UNH's 39.
•Thomason gained 11 yards on a rush to the 50 and was on the receiving end of a 10-yard pass from Kleinpeter on a 3^rd-and-7 play that moved the ball from the 'Nova 47 to its 37.
•Kleinpeter scampered for a career-long 26 yards on a QB draw to give UNH 1^st-and-goal at the Villanova 5 to set up Mazzie's field goal.

SECOND QUARTER
•Villanova took the lead, 7-3, at 11:27 of the second. The home team converted a 4^th-and-7 from UNH's 25 when Watkins located wide receiver Lucas Kopecky on a deep TD throw down the right sideline.
•Villanova had an apparent 100-yard interception return for a TD by cornerback Tyrell Mims negated by a roughing-the-passer penalty against defensive end Ayden Howard at 5:39.
•UNH was unable to capitalize on the resulting 1^st-and-goal from the VU 7, as Kleinpeter carried four times but was stopped short on 4^th-and-goal from the 1 by Hartzell and Jalen Goodman at 3:26
•UNH outgained Villanova 132 yards to 124 yards and ran 32 plays to VU's 24 in the first half.
•New Hampshire held the ball for 19:04 of the first half and limited Villanova to 10:56 of possession time.

THIRD QUARTER
•On its initial drive of the third quarter, UNH put together a 12-play, 58-yard drive to Villanova's 21-yard line, but Mazzie's 38-yard field goal try went wide left to keep it a 7-3 game at 4:16.
•On Villanova's next play from scrimmage, Moreland ripped the ball out of Watkins' arms and pounced on the loose ball for a fumble recovery at VU's 30.

FOURTH QUARTER
•Villanova's defense stopped UNH at the 1-yard line for the second time in the game and preserved its four-point lead at 13:45 of the fourth.
•Kleinpeter called his own number on 4^th-and-goal from the 3 and rushed for two yards to the right before he was tackled by cornerback Isas Waxter one yard shy of giving UNH the lead.
•Villanova then marched 99 yards on nine plays, capped by Watkins' 25-yard TD pass to Smith for a 14-3 advantage with 8:21 remaining.
•UNH went into hurry-up mode and drew within 14-6 on Mazzie's 40-yard field goal with 1:01 left. The 11-play, 57-yard drive took only 1:13 and made it a one-possession game.
•UNH was offside on its onside-kick attempt, and Villanova ran out the clock to earn the win.

GAME NOTEBOOK
•UNH won the time of possession (35:38-24:22).
•Total offense was virtually even. UNH ran 65 plays for 254 yards and Villanova ran 47 plays for 257 yards.
•UNH still leads the all-time series with Villanova, 14-13.
•Villanova's last home win against UNH was Dec. 5, 2009, in an NCAA FCS quarterfinal game.
•Villanova's last regular-season home victory against UNH was Nov. 8, 2008.
•This is the first time Villanova has won back-to-back games in the series since 2002-03.

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