1976 Villanova Wildcats football team

1976 Villanova Wildcats football
Conference	Independent
Record	6–4–1
Head coach	Dick Bedesem (2nd season)
Captain	David Graziano, Joseph Mack, William Olsen, Joseph Sopcznski
Home stadium	Villanova Stadium

1976 NCAA Division I independents football records

	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 1 Pittsburgh			–					12	–	0	–	0
No. 17 Rutgers			–					11	–	0	–	0
San Diego State			–					10	–	1	–	0
No. 12 Notre Dame			–					9	–	3	–	0
Colgate			–					8	–	2	–	0
Boston College			–					8	–	3	–	0
Cincinnati			–					8	–	3	–	0
Memphis State			–					7	–	4	–	0
North Texas State *			–					7	–	4	–	0
Southern Illinois			–					7	–	4	–	0
Penn State			–					7	–	5	–	0
Villanova			–					6	–	4	–	1
South Carolina			–					6	–	5	–	0
Virginia Tech			–					6	–	5	–	0
Army			–					5	–	6	–	0
Florida State			–					5	–	6	–	0
Illinois State			–					5	–	6	–	0
Richmond			–					5	–	6	–	0
West Virginia			–					5	–	6	–	0
Georgia Tech			–					4	–	6	–	1
Temple			–					4	–	6	–	0
Air Force			–					4	–	7	–	0
Dayton			–					4	–	7	–	0
Louisville			–					4	–	7	–	0
Marshall			–					4	–	7	–	0
Navy			–					4	–	7	–	0
Indiana State			–					3	–	7	–	0
Hawaii			–					3	–	8	–	0
Holy Cross			–					3	–	8	–	0
Miami (FL)			–					3	–	8	–	0
Syracuse			–					3	–	8	–	0
Utah State			–					3	–	8	–	0
Northeast Louisiana			–					2	–	9	–	0
Southern Miss			–					2	–	9	–	0
Tulane			–					2	–	9	–	0
North Texas State (originally 6–5) was awarded a forfeit win after Mississippi State was found to be using an ineligible player. Rankings from AP Poll

The 1976 Villanova Wildcats football team represented the Villanova University during the 1976 NCAA Division I football season. Head coach Dick Bedesem, coaching his second season with the Wildcats, installed a "wishbone" offense featuring fullback Vince Thompson. After an adjustment period, the offense clicked and Villanova won its final five games, upsetting 13th ranked Boston College. The team played their home games at Villanova Stadium in Villanova, Pennsylvania.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 11	at West Virginia	Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV	L 7–28	33,784
September 18	at Dayton	Welcome Stadium Dayton, OH	W 31–30	8,500
September 20	Illinois State	Villanova Stadium Villanova, PA	L 17–19	7,000
October 2	at No. 7 Maryland	Byrd Stadium College Park, MD	L 9–20	38,131
October 9	at Richmond	Villanova Stadium Villanova, PA	L 7–24	6,500
October 16	at No. 2 (D-II) Delaware	Delaware Stadium Newark, DE (rivalry)	T 24–24	20,528
October 23	Youngstown State	Villanova Stadium Villanova, PA	W 34–14	9,300
October 30	Boston College	Villanova Stadium Villanova, PA	W 22–3	8,200
November 6	at Marshall	Fairfield Stadium Huntington, WV	W 23–10	13,000
November 13	Holy Cross	Villanova Stadium Villanova, PA	W 56–21	5,782
November 20	at Temple	Veterans Stadium Philadelphia, PA (Mayor's Cup)	W 24–7	17,436
Homecoming Rankings from Coaches' Poll released prior to the game