Under Pressure

Villanova quarterback Frank Jankowski waited a long time for last weekend. Even though Wildcats coach Andy Talley once labeled Jankowski the best quarterback he had ever recruited, it took the Berwick, Pa., native a long time to prove those words right.

He redshirted the 2003 season and barely played at all last year. But the chance to run the show finally came this year when regular Villanova starter Marvin Burroughs broke his arm in the Wildcats' opening-weekend loss at Rutgers.

It did not take long for the 6-foot-1, 210-pound Jankowski to put Main Line fans' fears at ease, as he completed 17 of 32 passes for 209 yards against the Scarlet Knights.

This past Saturday, he made his first ever collegiate start, and completed 16 of 25 passes for 241 yards in a 38-20 home win over Northeastern.

This might have surprised observers who were not sure what the Wildcats' offense would look like without Burroughs, whose athleticism made him one of the most dangerous players in the Atlantic 10.

Talley knew exactly what was coming, though.

"I think Frank's a real good leader," he said. "Even though this is his first time on the field, he's not a rookie.

Yet the chance to be in the spotlight forced Jankowski to answer the question which seems to always accompany backup quarterbacks -- how to express one's desire to play when the most likely way for that to happen is for the starter to get hurt.

"I came into the season knowing I was only a play away," he said. "You never wish injury upon anyone, but it is something that you have to be prepared for."

That preparation involved plenty of time with the Villanova playbook, which made the transition from Burroughs to Jankowski much easier for the rest of the Wildcats' players and coaching staff to take.

"As far as changes in the offense, we really haven't changed anything at all," Jankowski said

He added that there is "nothing that one [quarterback] brings to the gridiron that the other does not."

Since Burroughs rushed for 115 yards and five touchdowns last season, anyone who thinks that Jankowski won't be running the ball himself might want to think again.

Jankowski said it is "not the case" that he "would have certain plays and [Burroughs] would have certain plays."

Talley, however, admitted that "with Burroughs in there, we would be emphasizing ... more with the quarterback running game."

Penn coach Al Bagnoli said the Quakers are ready for whatever comes at them.

"Obviously there's a little bit of a dropoff because [Burroughs] had a season under his belt, so he probably had 300 throws, " Bagnoli said, whereas Jankowski "has a game and a half under his belt."

But Bagnoli insisted that while Jankowski is "not as elusive as [Burroughs], he can run."

Whether or not Villanova's fans knew what Jankowski would bring, at least the Red and Blue will know what is coming.

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