Turnovers down No. 16 Villanova in a 31-10 road loss to conference foe Albany

After cruising past a ranked team in Rhode Island last week, No. 16 Villanova expected to have similar success at Albany on Saturday.

The Great Danes posed a much tougher task than expected.

Villanova fell 31-10 to Albany, losing its first FCS game of the season. The Wildcats were doomed by a negative-five turnover differential, as they lost three fumbles and threw two interceptions.

“When you lose the turnover battle five to zero, regardless of where you’re playing, you’re probably going to come up on the short end of the stick,” Villanova coach Mark Ferrante said. “And that’s exactly what happened today.”

Going into the game, the Wildcats were among the leaders in the FCS in passing yards per completion, averaging 18.41 yards. Villanova (3-2, 1-1 CAA) had just two completions of that length against Albany (3-2, 1-0 CAA).

Graduate quarterback Connor Watkins was 17 of 31 for 194 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions. Graduate running back DeeWil Barlee had nine carries for 77 yards. Sophomore receiver Jaylen Sanchez had four catches for 50 yards and a touchdown, his first touchdown catch as a Wildcat.

The Albany defensive line entered Saturday leading the CAA in sacks per game, and Villanova’s offensive line quickly found that was no fluke as the Great Danes sacked Watkins seven times. Success for the Wildcats usually depends on effectiveness running the ball, but Albany held Villanova’s ground game in check. Albany’s line was especially dominant in the second half when the Great Danes played with the lead.

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“Once the game got out of hand, now they’re just pinning their ears back and getting up the field,” Ferrante said. “And our [linemen] are gonna be on their heels a little bit because we’re in pass protection the whole time. So, but they’re really good. They definitely played today as advertised.”

Defensively, the Wildcats did little to bother Albany quarterback Reese Poffenbarger. He was 20 of 31 for 244 yards and three touchdowns. Albany running back Griffin Woodell had 16 rushes for 107 yards and a touchdown. He also caught a touchdown pass.

While the lack of big plays hurts, the loss can be simplified by turnovers. Villanova lost three fumbles. Albany lost none. Watkins threw two interceptions. Poffenbarger threw none.

The first fumble set the tone for the rest of the game. Villanova graduate running back TD Ayo-Durojaiye received the ball in the backfield and tried to turn up the sideline. An Albany defender got in front of him, and instead of running around or through contact, Ayo-Durojaiye tried to hurdle the defender. Instead, the defender rose with him, forcing out the ball with his helmet. Albany took advantage of the short field and scored a touchdown, going ahead 10-3.

The latter two fumbles came in the second half. The Wildcats were held scoreless after halftime, as the Great Danes scored 21 consecutive points.

While the turnovers are already a devastating tally, it could have been even worse. The Wildcats had three more fumbles for a total of six on the day, but they recovered three of their own fumbles.

While the game was a struggle, there were positives. Sanchez stepped up earlier this season when Jaaron Hayek was sidelined, and although he’d had opportunities, he hadn’t scored. He finally grabbed his first collegiate touchdown early in the second quarter.

“It was a really awesome catch,” Ferrante said. “He extended for it and landed in the corner of the end zone. So to see Jaylen have that opportunity to get his first collegiate touchdown, that’s awesome.”

The Wildcats will look to rebound at North Carolina A&T (1-3, 0-1 CAA) next Saturday (4 p.m., FloSports). It will be the first meeting between the two programs, as the Aggies joined the CAA in July.