VILLANOVA, Pa. (AP) Daniel Smith passed for three touchdowns, ran for another and Villanova defeated Bucknell 55-3 on Saturday night, holding the Bison to less than 100 yards of offense.

Villanova out-gained the Bison 378-89.

Smith opened the scoring with a 1-yard keeper, then fired a 21-yard touchdown pass to Jaaron Hayek, a 10-yarder to Jaquan Allen and a 9-yarder to Rayjoun Pringle as the Wildcats (2-0) built a 28-0 lead just five seconds into the second quarter.

Villanova, ranked No. 11 in the FCS coaches poll, had six receivers combine for 145 yards and four touchdowns. The Wildcats gained 233 yards on the ground led by Jalen Jackson's 70 on 11 carries, including a 5-yard touchdown late in the third quarter.

Nick Semptimphelter threw for 32 yards for the Bison (0-2), was intercepted twice and sacked twice for a loss of 18 yards. Bucknell's ground game gained 21 yards on 25 carries.

Villanova out gained Bucknell 129 to minus-3 in the opening quarter. Darius Pickett, Ethan Potter and Jake Green each had four of Villanova's 51 tackles. The Wildcats made 12 tackles for loss.

Bucknell, shut out in its season opener, got on the board with Ryan Schatzel's 35-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter.

---

More AP college football: https://apnews.com/tag/Collegefootball and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25

Copyright 2024 STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited.