UNH wins 'Cat fight

Roger Brown
nhfootballreport.com

UNH logo.jpg DURHAM -- Villanova coach Andy Talley wasn't happy, and University of New Hampshire coach Sean McDonnell couldn't have been happier.

The emotions in the postgame press conference told the story following fifth-ranked UNH's 28-24 victory over second-ranked Villanova on Saturday.

On a day when the teams battled the wind in addition to each other, the Wildcats trailed 24-22 after three quarters but received two fourth-quarter field goals from Tom Manning (both with the wind) and raised their record to 5-0 overall and 2-0 in the Colonial Athletic Conference.

"They do a great job protecting their home turf," Talley said. "I felt like we did not get off the bus ready to play the kind of football we needed to play to win the game. We gave them two easy strikes. We had busted coverages.

"Then in the second half we had opportunities offensively that we wasted. We had plenty of chances to win this game. Plenty.

"I am very upset with this football team because we had a great situation for ourselves. We're ranked high in the country, No. 2, and we don't get off the bus ready to play. I'll take half the responsibility for that, but they're going to get the other half of the responsibility."

The loss dropped Villanova's record to 5-1 overall and 2-1 in the CAA.

"I thought we did a lot of things well in a lot of different areas in some tough conditions," McDonnell said. "That wind was pretty tough, and I thought we handled that pretty well."

UNH quarterback R.J. Toman tossed a 32-yard touchdown pass to tight end Scott Sicko, and also ran for a 1-yard touchdown. UNH's other TD came on running back Chad Kackert's 12-yard run, which capped UNH's first offensive possession.

"I think we did a great job of showing the country what we're capable of doing," UNH linebacker Sean Ware said.

Villanova used three quarterbacks if you include junior wide receiver Matt Szczur, who took some direct snaps from the Wildcat formation. Szczur scored two touchdowns in the loss. He caught a 26-yard pass from junior quarterback Chris Whitney, and helped Villanova take a 24-22 lead when he scored on a 58-yard run with 10:58 left in the third quarter.

Whitney completed 10 of 18 passes for 109 yards. Senior Antwon Young completed 7 of 15 passes for 69 yards. He was intercepted once.

"We did an awfully bad job from a quarterback standpoint of recognizing the blitz and going to people that were open" Talley said. "In terms of executing our offense I think both quarterbacks had below-average days really. I'm talking about our two quarterbacks."

Young was in the game for Villanova's final drive, which ended when Terrence Klein deflected a fourth-down pass that fell incomplete.

"Defensively I thought we played really well, especially after that score (Szczur's TD run)," McDonnell said. "We talked all week long about having to respond to some adversity, especially (Friday night) in our pregame meeting, and our defense did. After Szczur hit that long run our kids buckled it up. Really, really proud of the way they played.

"Obviously Manning's two (fourth-quarter) kicks were real big for us."

The UNH defense may have been at its best after a blocked punt gave Villanova the ball on UNH's 11-yard line midway through the third quarter. Villanova came up empty when Nick Yako missed a 23-yard field goal that preserved UNH's 22-17 lead.

"That's a killer, because what it does is give them all kinds of motivation," Talley said. "They've kept their finger in the dike to get to the fourth quarter a little longer. I'm not sure that was the turning point in the game, but it certainly hurt not to score there.

"We had the wind in the third quarter. We knew we would be in good position to score, and we didn't. We sat around and let the game go into the fourth quarter with the wind in our face. There wasn't going to be a lot of scoring in the fourth quarter with the wind in your face."

Manning's final field goal came after defensive back Hugo Souza tipped Young's pass, and Klein came up with an interception that gave UNH possession on Villanova's 6-yard line.

After Yako's missed field goal, Villanova's next six possessions ended with three punts, an interception and two failed attempts to convert on fourth down.

"As I told the kids, it's your stage. It's your opportunity to do something," McDonnell said. "There's a lot of doubters still, I believe, (about) how good we can be. Again, I was very proud of the way they stood up in this game and bounced back and came back and won one in our house, in our home place, so everybody could see. Especially our home fans."

Extra Points

Saturday's attendance was 14, 811.
Villanova entered Saturday's game having won six of its last seven games against CAA North Division opponents.
UNH was held to 76 yards rushing on 41 carries.
Toman coompleted 15 of 28 passes for 292 yards. Sicko made three catches for 135 yards.
Ware, defensive back Dino Vasso and safety Ryan McGuinness each made a team-high 10 tackles.
All but 13 of the game's 52 points were scored at the end of the field with the wind.
UNH will play at the University of Massachusetts on Saturday (3:30 p.m.). That game can be seen on Comcast Sports.

Scoring Summary

First Quarter

UNH--Kackert 12 run (Manning kick), 10:45.
UNH--Manning FG 27 (5:24)
Vil--Young 18 run (Yako kick), 2:19
UNH--Sicko 32 pass from Toman (kick failed), 2:06.

Second Quarter

UNH--Toman 1 run (pass failed), 12:35.
Vil--Szczur--26 pass from Whitney (Yako kick), 10:12.
Vil--Yako FG 37 (0:00)

Third Quarter

Vil--Szczur 58 run (Yako kick), 10:58.

Fourth Quarter

UNH--Manning FG 35, 11:49.
UNH--Manning FG 22, 4:11.