Villanova’s defense has shown both sides of the coin early this season. The Wildcats opened with a rough outing against William & Mary, then followed it up with a much stronger showing against Bucknell. The common thread has been an aggressive style that can create problems for an offense - and, at times, create problems for itself.
Up front, Ratu Delano Navoti is the player setting the tone on the defensive line from his nose tackle spot. He has already logged two sacks and 14 pressures this season.
Listed at 6-3 and 290 pounds, he’s a little light for the position, but his quickness jumps out when he’s rushing the passer. If the Cards can control the middle of the line, they’ll have a real chance to open lanes in the run game.
Villanova’s defensive ends are also on the smaller side for a 3-3-5 look. The Wildcats don’t have many players above 255 pounds, yet that hasn’t shown up as a major weakness against the run.
They’re giving up just 2.7 yards per carry and haven’t allowed any big explosive runs. Ugo Nwotite is the name to know here, especially as a pass rusher.
He has seven pressures on only 49 snaps.
The centerpiece of the defense is Omari Bursey at linebacker. He leads the team with 29 tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss, and he’s the kind of player who can affect a game in a lot of ways.
Bursey is Villanova’s best downhill defender, but he also has the range to chase plays at the second level. He even picked off Penn State last year, so this stage should not feel too big for him.
The sample is still small, but there’s enough there to think he could end up in the portal and land at the FBS level next season.
The area that looks most vulnerable right now is the secondary. Opposing quarterbacks are completing 65% of their passes, and Villanova’s starting corners have been beaten multiple times already.
Mikey Allen and Newton Essiem should give the Cards a chance to attack through the air early after they had trouble getting the passing game going at the start of the Ole Miss game. So far, that group has been the clear weak spot on this defense.
In Other News...
Former Louisville RB Just Reminded Cardinals Fans What They Lost
Duke Watson did not take long to make his presence felt for UCF, turning the Knights' second play against Bethune-Cookman into a 64-yard touchdown run. The former Louisville back finished with 110 yards on seven carries, a sharp reminder of the burst and big-play ability Cardinals fans saw before he moved on.
UCFs ground game was rolling all afternoon, with Taevion Swint also back in the mix after a meniscus tear and helping add balance to the attack. Swint ran for 48 yards on four carries and found the end zone on a 27-yard burst, as the Knights piled up 360 rushing yards and seven rushing touchdowns in a performance that only underscored how dangerous that backfield can be when it is healthy. [Read more 🡒]
Louisville Gets The Kind Of Week 2 Fans Will Love
Louisvilles Week 2 setting looks tailor-made for fans who want an early-season chance to settle in and see how much the Cardinals can build on their opening stretch. The slate around them is packed with heavyweight matchups and plenty of intrigue across college football, but Louisville itself gets a home date that should draw attention as the season starts to sort itself out.
Villanova arrives with some baggage from an uneven start, having followed a Week 1 setback with a narrow win over Bucknell, and the subplot around its quarterback situation has already added another layer to the opener. For Louisville, it is the kind of early test that can still tell a lot about where a team stands, even before the deeper conference races begin to take shape. [Read more 🡒]
Louisville Is Suddenly At The Center Of A Ranking Debate
After Week 1, Louisville found itself in the middle of an early-season rankings argument after Fox Sports analyst Joel Klatt took aim at the AP Top 25. Klatt said the poll did not do enough to reflect what actually happened on the field, arguing that voters were leaning too heavily on preseason expectations instead of reshuffling teams more aggressively once games began.
His criticism reached beyond one ballot, with Ole Miss, LSU and Miami all part of his case that the AP has been too conservative in its first pass of the season. For Louisville, the point of contention is less about one spot in the rankings and more about whether a close result against a highly regarded opponent should carry more weight when the numbers are set for the next week. [Read more 🡒]