Villanova Welcomes Albany to Main Line Saturday
By Matt Leon
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) --- It is the final home game of the regular season on Saturday for the Villanova Wildcats as they welcome Albany to the Main Line in Colonial Athletic Association action.
Villanova is ranked 6th in the country in FCS with an 8-2 record (5-1) after beating Towson last week at Villanova Stadium, 42-14.
"It was a very competitive game and we were deep into the third quarter and up by only 7 points," Villanova head coach Andy Talley tells KYW Newsradio. "And it was kind of what I thought, they were in the national championship last year and still had great pedigree coming into the game. But we took control of the game, kept our poise, which I was most pleased with, and put the game away."
A big play in the game was a 48-yard interception return for a touchdown by Villanova senior defensive back Joe Sarnese early in the 4th quarter. That made it 35-14 and Towson didn't really threaten again. The pick was the third of the season for Sarnese and it helped earn him CAA Defensive Player of the Week honors.
"Joe's a four year starter and he's done such a great job for us over these four years," Talley says. "He knows our coverages well, he makes all the calls in the secondary and he is a terrific tackler. He makes a ton of tackles. So he's been playing better and better and better in his senior year here, and a guy that we really count on."
Listen to Villanova head coach Andy Talley with KYW's Matt Leon:
Sarnese and the rest of the Villanova defense will be trying to stop an Albany offense that is averaging 26.2 points per game.
"They have a lot of talent and they throw the ball around," Talley says. "Very, very good quarterback and a defense that comes after you. So I think they're going to be excited to be playing here at Villanova, we're going to be excited to play them and it's another step on our way to try and be a playoff team."
Albany is 6-4 this season (2-4 in the CAA). Last week they battled Delaware before falling, 31-28.
This will be the first ever meeting between these two programs
Saturday's game at Villanova Stadium will kickoff at 7:00pm.
You can follow Matt on Twitter @mattleonkyw.
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