Davidson football will play a familiar non-conference opponent in its season opener Saturday, visiting the nation’s capital for a showdown with Georgetown.
The Wildcats and Hoyas have faced off 13 times since 1999, but Saturday’s meeting will be the first since 2019.
Georgetown leads the overall series 9-4. Davidson won the most recent showdown, 27-20, scoring a late touchdown to preserve the win. That contest featured a 19-play, 99-yard scoring drive for the Wildcats. Other TD marches covered 91 and 87 yards.
Here are fast facts on Georgetown:
* The Hoyas play in the Patriot League, which has been a full-scholarship FCS conference in football since 2016-17. (Davidson plays in the Pioneer Football League, a non-scholarship conference).
* Georgetown is coached by Rob Sgarlata, who is entering his 10th season and is now the Patriot’s longest tenured head man
* The Hoyas finished 5-6 last season, including a 3-3 mark against Patriot foes. They were voted fifth in the 2024 Patriot League preseason poll, ahead of Lehigh and Bucknell. Defending champion Lafayette took the top spot.
* One of the top players is talented all-purpose threat Nicholas Dunneman, who caught 76 passes for 749 yards and four TDs a year ago. Dunneman also returned 20 punts for 214 yards.
* The team must replace quarterback Tyler Knoop, who transferred to Stony Brook.
Davidson finished 7-4 a year ago and is picked third in the Pioneer Football League heading into this season. The Wildcats have led the FCS in rushing for multiple seasons and return their top two leading running backs, Mari Adams and Mason Sheron.
