Football
The Wildcats compete in the Colonial Athletic Association and are coached by Andy Talley who is the winningest football coach in school history with a 190-117-1 (.617) record. Since moving to I-AA, Villanova has made 9 appearances in the I-AA/FCS playoffs making trips to the NCAA Semifinal in 2002 and 2010 and winning the 2009 FCS National Championship. The Wildcats played in the NCAA Division I Football Championship game on December 18, 2009 against the University of Montana Grizzlies. The Wildcats beat the Grizzlies 23–21 to win their first NCAA Division I-AA National Championship.
Villanova played in bowl games following the 1936, 1947, 1948, 1961, and 1962 college football seasons. After 87 seasons, the Board of Trustees voted to drop Football in April 1981 due to financial losses and poor attendance. In April, 1984, the Board of Trustess agreed to reinstate Football at a lower level and Villanova began playing football again in Fall of 1985 under Head Coach Andy Talley. The program began competing in Division I-AA (now Division I FCS) level during the 1988 season.
Villanova football has sent 36 players to the NFL over the years including Hall of Fame defensive end Howie Long, formerly of the Oakland Raiders and All-Pro running back Brian Westbrook of the Philadelphia Eagles.
Villanova plays the University of Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens in the "Battle of the Blue". Villanova leads the all-time series which was first played in 1895 by the margin of 23-21-1. The Wildcats have a current four-year series where they will play Temple University Owls for the Philadelphia "Mayor's Cup". Villanova won the inaugural game in September 2009 but dropped the next two games to the FBS school. Villanova still leads the all-time series that started in 1928 by the margin of 16-14-2. The Wildcats also play University of Pennsylvania Quakers in most recent seasons with many of the games held at historic Franklin Field. The series was first played in 1905 and Villanova has a 11-5 lead.
There has been some discussion regarding a potential promotion to the Football Bowl Subdivision and into the Big East in which they already participate for all other Sports. In September 2010, the Big East informally spoke with Villanova about joining for football. The school conducted several feasibility studies but a scheduled April 12, 2011 Board of Trustees vote was never taken after several Big East Football schools objected to their use of PPL Park as an unacceptable venue for future games. The stadium currently holds only 18,500 but is expandable at the discretion of the Philadelphia Union soccer organization.
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Famous quotes containing the word football:
“People stress the violence. That’s the smallest part of it. Football is brutal only from a distance. In the middle of it there’s a calm, a tranquility. The players accept pain. There’s a sense of order even at the end of a running play with bodies stewn everywhere. When the systems interlock, there’s a satisfaction to the game that can’t be duplicated. There’s a harmony.”
—Don Delillo (b. 1926)
“... in the minds of search committees there is the lingering question: Can she manage the football coach?”
—Donna E. Shalala (b. 1941)
“You can’t be a Real Country unless you have A BEER and an airline—it helps if you have some kind of a football team, or some nuclear weapons, but at the very least you need a BEER.”
—Frank Zappa (1940–1993)