Five Villanova football players earned spots on the Patriot League preseason all-league team, the conference announced, as the Wildcats prepare for their first season in the league with a Friday, Aug. 28 home opener against William & Mary.
Junior running back Ja'briel Mace, sophomore wide receiver Braden Reed and junior offensive lineman Chris McCullers were selected on offense. Senior defensive lineman Capri Martin and sophomore linebacker Omari Bursey earned defensive honors. Mace was also named the preseason return specialist.
Villanova was picked first in the coaches' poll with 79 points and seven first-place votes, ahead of defending champion Lehigh's 75 points.
Mace headlines the group
Mace is the headliner. He rushed for 946 yards and 11 touchdowns on 128 carries last season, averaging 7.4 yards per carry. On Nov. 8, 2025, he broke Brian Westbrook's Villanova single-game rushing record with 291 yards and four touchdowns on 28 carries against Towson. He was the 2025 CAA Special Teams Player of the Year and has since been named to the Walter Payton Award preseason watchlist and the 2027 East-West Shrine Bowl 1000, an NFL Draft prospect list.
Mace briefly entered the transfer portal after the 2025 season but returned to Villanova for 2026.
Reed caught 34 passes for 518 yards and three touchdowns, averaging 15.2 yards per reception across 15 games. His biggest moment: a 28-yard game-winning touchdown catch against Lehigh in the second round of the FCS playoffs on Dec. 6, 2025.
Defensive punch
Martin, a senior from Harlem, N.Y., recorded 33 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks in 14 games last season, according to Villanova's official stats. Bursey was a force in the 2025 playoffs, recording 4.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks in three postseason games, according to ESPN's FCS semifinals preview. In the regular season, the sophomore posted 50 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks and one interception in 15 games.
Head coach Mark Ferrante praised Bursey's rapid development after the Wildcats' Sept. 13, 2025 game at Penn State: "He's physically gifted to compete at a young age. It's just a matter of learning the system."
McCullers, who started 14 games on the offensive line in 2025, represented Villanova at Patriot League Media Day on July 30. He spoke about filling the void left by three graduated starters.
"Our offensive line coach, Coach Devine, always talks about the next man up mentality," McCullers said at Media Day. "The guys before us, Stephane Voltaire, Temi, Jake, they set the standard. So these guys have really done a good job following in their shoes."
The big picture
The Wildcats went 12-3 last season and 7-1 in the CAA, averaging 29.5 points and 390.9 yards per game. They beat Lehigh 14-7 in the FCS playoff second round and Tarleton State in the quarterfinals before falling to Illinois State 30-14 in the semifinals.
Villanova left the CAA after 19 seasons. The Patriot League expanded to 10 football-playing members for 2026, with Villanova and William & Mary joining Richmond, which entered the league a year earlier.
One cloud hangs over the roster: a court denied graduate quarterback Pat McQuaide's eligibility waiver, and Villanova said Aug. 1 it is working with the league and McQuaide to determine next steps.
The Wildcats open at home against William & Mary on Friday, Aug. 28 at 6 p.m. at Villanova Stadium, streaming on ESPN+. They travel to Bucknell on Saturday, Sept. 5, then visit Louisville on Friday, Sept. 11 in a non-conference matchup.
