Year makes a big difference for Villanova's Robertson

A year ago on Villanova's media day, quarterback John Robertson, then a redshirt freshman, was an afterthought. Robertson commanded little attention because he entered the season as the backup to Chris Polony.

But when Polony struggled in the opener, a 41-10 loss to Temple, Robertson came in in relief and became the starter the next week. That was the beginning of a dramatic turnaround for the Wildcats.

With Robertson at quarterback, Villanova, which was 2-9 in 2011, returned to prominence.

Picked to finish eighth last season in the Colonial Athletic Association, the Wildcats went 8-4 overall and won a share of the CAA title with a 6-2 mark. Villanova also earned its fourth NCAA Football Championship Subdivision playoff appearance in the last five years, losing, 20-10, at Stony Brook in the first round.

All that success assured that this year's media day would be drastically different for Robertson.

So it was no surprise that the 6-foot-1, 210-pounder was in the spotlight Tuesday at Villanova.

"Last year there weren't any calls coming in asking about the season," Robertson said with a laugh. "The only question I got is how is your backup role."

Now he's being asked questions such as whether Villanova can win a national championship. Or if the Wildcats could be competitive in their opener Aug. 31 at Atlantic Coast Conference opponent Boston College.

"It is different now and I love being the leader of the team," he said. "My teammates helped me out a lot with this and I am looking forward to this year."

Robertson completed 153 of 252 passes for 1,965 yards, 14 touchdowns, and seven interceptions. He ran for 1,021 yards and 14 more scores.

Robertson is among 16 returning starters and a major reason Villanova was the pick in the preseason CAA poll. In addition, the Wildcats are ranked No. 5 nationally in the Sports Network preseason FCS poll.

A major reason the expectations are high is Robertson, who earned the Jerry Rice Award as the top FCS freshman last season.

After that rare losing season in 2011, few could envision such rapid improvement for the Wildcats, including veteran coach Andy Talley.

"We had hoped we could get back quickly, and I wasn't sure we could get back as quick as we did," said Talley, who guided the Wildcats to the 2009 FCS national title. "I think the advancement of John Robertson at quarterback allowed us."

Robertson is still considered a more dangerous runner than passer, and in Villanova's spread offense the run will be emphasized.

He was most dangerous when having to improvise, and as the season progressed so did his passing ability.

"When things broke down he was able to find receivers on the run and that was very important to his success," Talley said.

Robertson, who took his share of hits while running the ball, has added 10 pounds of muscle.

Last season he was just looking to find a way to get on the field. The difference this year is now he knows he belongs.

"I felt I kept getting better and better every week," Robertson said. "The game speed began slowing down a lot."

Now the difficult task for Wildcats opponents is trying to slow down the sophomore quarterback.

"He is brimming with confidence and is really perceived as the leader of the team," Talley said. "The team pretty much knows we are going to hang our hat on him."