1. John Robertson continues to throw the ball well
Since his cameo against Temple, Robertson has steadily improved each week through the air:
- 8-17, 78 yds, 1 TD vs. Fordham
- 14-27, 171 yds, 0 TD vs. Rhode Island
- 13-20, 213 yds, 1 TD vs. Penn
The weather forecast doesn't look great, and Villanova's bread and butter will continue to be the run (and Robertson is a big part of that) but if he can keep Maine honest through the air and pick some spots for big gains downfield to Norman White and Joe Price, expect the Villanova offense to continue to produce behind the young QB.
2. Win the turnover battle
John Robertson has yet to turn the ball over, and his one fumble was picked up by Clay Horne and carried in for a touchdown. While that's down to mainly luck, Robertson has been very good about not making poor decisions with the ball.
On top of that, the Villanova defense looks to be the staple of this team once more. They are +4 in the turnover column in the last 3 games and if they can win that battle again it will help to keep the pressure off their offense and maybe even give them a short field a couple of times.
3. Start fast, finish strong
We discussed it in the game primer, but for whatever reason when Villanova travels north to play, they seem to struggle. Currently the weather forecast looks to be cold and rainy on Saturday in Maine, so it'll be important that 'Nova comes out of the gate fast and ready to play. Hit Maine in the mouth early and then control the game with the run from there. More importantly, finish this one out. I expect this to be a close hard fought game and the 'Cats will need to be focused for 60 minutes. This isn't going to be and easy 2nd half like the past few have been.