Villanova Basketball 2021 Player Recaps: The Bench Mob

The Breakdown

Had to do a double take, because there was surprisingly no Bench Mob minutes this season.

Maybe the lack of a true offseason and limited preseason, plus a couple of COVID pauses, meant that Jay Wright wanted to squeeze out every minute of game time for his rotational pieces, so that meant the Bench Mob didn’t get to go in.

Also, senior Kevin Hoehn was unfortunately sidelined all season long due to an Achilles injury he sustained in October. He was honored as part of Senior Night and got some recognition, although Jay Wright had mentioned that maybe he can bring this current group of seniors back next season for a proper sendoff in front of a full arena — if things are back to normal by then.

Kevin Voigt was a new addition to the team for this season. The 6-foot-5 Massapequa, N.Y. native previously spent last season as a practice squad member, before getting promoted full-time as a walk-on for his junior year.

Unfortunately, he’ll have to wait until next season for a chance to make his debut.

Plus, with the bench configuration for this season — socially distanced and spread out in rows off the court — didn’t make for much camera time for the Bench Mob.

Looking ahead

Voigt will be back in the fold next season for his senior year, and will likely be joined by another walk-on.

Will the Bench Mob get a chance to shine next year?

It’s been a while since a walk-on had last played in a game, not since a Nov. 21 blowout of Middle Tennessee State in the 2019 Myrtle Beach Invitational.

Maybe that will get to change next season, especially since the expectations are already high, once again.