Matchup: The Leopards return to Fisher Stadium on Saturday for a 12:30 p.m. matchup and inaugural Patriot League meeting with new conference foe Villanova. Fans can catch all of the action on ESPN+, NBC Sports Philadelphia and Astound TV Network presented by the Lafayette Sports Network (LSN).

Player of the Week!: Senior K Jack Simonetta was named the Patriot League's Special Teams Player of the Week for the second week running following his performance at Fordham (10/24). The Economics major went 4-for-4 on his PAT attempts and tacked on a 26-yard field goal late into the fourth quater that sealed the Leopards' second conference win of the season. Simonetta is perfect on PATs this season (19-for-19) and his 90 percent field-goal conversion rate (9-for-10) paces his conference foes.

CP Catching Up: Senior WR Carson Persing continues to ascend the career receiving lists, making two catches for 89 yards at Fordham to move to 169 catches for his career. His second catch against the Rams moved him into a tie for third in career receptions with Matt Mrazek '18. He needs 29 more grabs to become the program's all-time leader (Mark Ross '14). Persing also moved into ninth for career receving yards (1,813) and requires 47 more yards to jump Mrazek in eighth place (1,860).  

6 TDs for 5: Junior RB Jakyre Henley continues to impress on the gridiron, notching his third straight week with two rushing TDs. The King William, Va. native found the end zone twice at Fordham (10/24) on 11 carries and rushed for 62 yards in the victory. He also caught two passes for a season-high 16 receving yards. Henley's two scores against the Rams come following back-to-back games with 100+ rushing yards. The Ecomonics major ran for a career-high 152 yards and two scores vs. then No. 17 Richmond (10/3) and followed up with a career-high 22-carry outing with 121 yards and a pair of TDs at Bucknell (10/17).

Career Day for Jordan at Fordham: Rookie QB Eddie Jordan put together a career peformance in the second start of his career at Fordham. The Waldorf, Md. native's perfect passing performance of 13-for-13 for 199 yards and a touchdown set a new program record for completion percentage in a single game. The previous record was held by Drew Reed '16, who went 21-for-22 at Holy Cross in 2013. Jordan's six-yard strike to Mason Kuehner in the second quarter marked his first career passing TD. His 16-yard rushing TD in the fourth quarter was also his first in Maroon and White.

Simonetta Getting His Kicks: The Gotha, Fla. native made a pair of field goals at Columbia, booting the Leopards' first (40-yarder in the first quarter) and last scores of the game (31-yarder with 1:03 left to send the contest to overtime). He holds Lafayette's career PAT record (156) and the single-season mark (53 in 2025). Last season he was 6-for-6 in field goal tries and booted a 49-yard field goal against Colgate (the longest of his career and the fourth-longest in school history). 

With a Win on Saturday, Lafayette would: 

• notch program win No. 718

• snap a two-game losing streak against Villanova that dates back to 2016

• win three-straight games for the first time since the end of the 2025

campaign (Holy Cross, Colgate, Richmond).

Big Boot: Christian Bush's career-long 70-yard punt against Richmond was the first 70-yard plus punt for the Leopards since 2008 (Tom Kondash, 2008).  

Return Game Staples: The Leopards currently have two of the top kick returners in the Patriot League. Sophomore WR Zane Wooldridge ranks third in the conference, averaging 22.2 yards per return. During the team's latest game at Fordham, the Austin, Texas native posted returns of 34 (career-long) and 28 yards and had two returns for 49 yards against Richmond. Rookie Kameron Vance averages 14.0 yards per return which ranks 13th in the Patriot League.

Last Time Out: Lafayette shut out Fordham in the second half Saturday at Moglia Stadium at Jack Coffey Field en route to its second straight victory of the season (31-17).

Freshman quarterback Eddie Jordan threw a perfect 13-for-13 against the Rams which set a new a program record for completion percentage in a single game. The previous mark was held by Drew Reed '16, who went 21-for-22 at Holy Cross during the 2013 campaign.

The record book needed additional adjusting as senior wide receiver Carson Persing climbed the ladder in career receptions and receiving yards. His second reception of the day moved him up to third all-time in receptions (169), now tied with Matt Mrazek '18. Persing ended the day with 89 yards on just two catches to jump Mark Layton '10 in ninth place with 1,813 career receiving yards.

All-Time Series: Lafayette holds the all-time series lead over Villanova with a 4-2 record. The Wildcats have taken the last two matchups against the Leopards, which took place in the 2016 & 2017 seasons. Prior to that, the Maroon and White enjoyed victories in the first four matchups of the series and outscored the visitors 77-3 over that stretch. Lafayette is 4-1 at Fisher Stadium and the first matchup dates back to October, 1, 1898 (W, 16-0). 

Last Time They Met | Sept. 16, 2017: Then No. 7 Villanova lived up to its national ranking, handing Lafayette a 59-0 loss on Saturday night at Villanova Stadium. The Wildcats led 49-0 at halftime. They scored on the opening drive of the game, as a 59-yard Zach Bednarczyk to Ryan Bell pass set up a four-yard touchdown run for Bednarczyk. Bell was a frequent recipient of the football in the first half. The tight end reeled in touchdown catches of four and 37 yards to finish the half with five catches for 119 yards.

Scoop and Score: In the fourth quarter at Columbia, the defense snatched the momentum when Joey Shimko sacked the QB and Sean Curtis was on hand to scoop and score on a 23-yard fumble return that tied the game at 31-31. It was the Leopards' first fumble return for a touchdown since Nov. 23, 2013, when James Coscia ran back a 40-yard score. That score helped pushed the Leopards to a 50-28 victory over No. 15/17 Lehigh in Rivalry 149 and handed the Leopards a Patriot League title.  

Running The Ball?: With the departure of a 1,000-yard rusher, opportunities have emerged in the run game. Junior Jakyre Henley had 49 carries for 194 yards and two touchdowns in 2025, making two starts and playing in all 12 games. Henley has handled the bulk of the carries as the starter through five games, running for 379 yards on 57 carries with three touchdowns. 

Senior Ethan Weber is the most experienced of the running backs, having played in 29 games with two starts over three seasons. He finished 2025 with 107 carries for 570 yards and eight TDs before a knee injury ended his season in week 10. He made his 2026 season debut with two carries vs. Marist and added five each vs. Columbia and Holy Cross. Rookie Malachi Gamble is pushing for more carries after leading the team in rushing at Connecticut. He had four carries for 25 yards at Columbia and seven for 61 vs. Richmond. Soph. Koven Smith is also vying for carries after playing in four games (primarily on special teams) in 2025 without a carry. He had three carries for 17 yards against Marist and five for 15 at Columbia.

D Was the Key: Lafayette's defense came through when it was needed most in the win over Marist (9/12), shutting out the visitors in the second half. Despite allowing 359 total yards, Lafayette limited the Red Foxes to just nine points on five red-zone possessions and stopped them on 4-of-5 fourth downs..

On the Sideline: John Troxell '94 is in his fifth season at the helm, a tenure that includes a Patriot League title and an NCAA playoff berth in his second season and the best three-year run for the program since 1901-03. Lafayette finished 8-4 overall in 2025, and won a program-record six conference games. In 2023, Lafayette posted the most wins in a campaign in more than 40 years (9), winning the conference championship and advancing to the NCAA Playoffs. The team went from 4-7 (3-3) in 2022 to 9-3 (5-1) in year two (2023). Both seasons were capped by wins over archrival Lehigh. During his time on College Hill, Troxell's teams have finished .500 or better in four of five seasons. Troxell was named the Patriot League Coach of the Year in 2023 and was a finalist for Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year honors. 

Mother Nature 1, Lafayette and Georgetown 0: Lafayette and Georgetown tried to kick off the 2026 season on Thursday, Aug. 27. The teams played 30 minutes before Mother Nature delivered continuous lightning strikes in and around the Washington, D.C. campus. After several hours waiting out the weather, the game was declared a no-contest by Patriot League officials who had consulted with game officials and institutional representatives. The game does not count toward the Patriot League standings nor do the statistics. 

The scheduled season opener was slated to be the earliest in program history. It was also the first season opener since 2010 (excluding the 2021 pandemic spring season) that was also the conference lid-lifter (when Lafayette and Georgetown met). 

Good Things in Threes: Over the last three seasons, Lafayette has won 23 games, going 9-3 in 2023, 6-6 in 2024 and 8-4 in 2025. It's the most wins in a three-year span since 1901-03 when Lafayette was 9-3, 8-3 and 7-3 for 24 victories. Lafayette began two of its last three seasons with a 3-1 mark, with the loss in each of those campaigns (2023, 2025) coming at the hands of an FBS foe.

The Opponent: Villanova enters the week 4-4 overall, boasting a 3-2 Patriot League record in its inaugural season in the conference. The Wildcats have earned wins over Bucknell (17-16), LIU (20-16), Fordham (38-17) and most recently, Lehigh (24-18).

Graduate student Pat McQuaide stands as the Wildcats' starting quarterback, completing 135-of-209 for 1,771 yards with nine touchdowns and six interceptions. On the receiving end, three players have eclipsed 250 receiving yards, led by sophomore WR Braden Reed's 474 yards, 36 catches and four TDs.

On the ground, juniors Ja'briel Mace and Isaiah Ragland have taken the bulk of the carries, rushing 100 times for 559 yards and 89 times for 483 yards, respectively.

Defensively, sophomore LB Omari Bursey has 55 solo tackles to lead the team as well as 3.5 sacks.

Mark Ferrante (St. Lawrence '83) is in the midst of his 10th year as head coach and 40th overall with the Villanova football program. His time at the helm includes five playoff appearances and two conference titles.