Dukes Suffer Disappointing Loss to Richmond – Updated
Update: Mickey announced that Birdsong is starting. Go get ’em kid. Carry on folks.
We usually hold off on writing our post game thoughts until we have a chance to let thing sink in. Well, it’s been over 24 hours and thinks have sunk in quite a bit. The sting of yesterday’s loss still hasn’t worn off though and I’m still not quite sure what to make of JMU’s 35-29 defeat at the hands of Richmond. Rather than just mindlessly blubbering and complaining about things, we’ll attempt go through things “Good, Bad, and Ugly” style.
The Good
Top of everyone’s mind here, is Michael Birdsong. We’d be crazy to argue that the kid didn’t look good. He did. He provided a much needed spark for the offense and almost helped the Dukes steal a game they had no business winning. He’s a big kid and showed that he can sling the ball around yesterday. He’s also a pretty effective runner when he starts going downhill. Let’s hold off on the coronation and keep things in perspective though. He was facing some pretty soft coverages and had the good fortune to have Mickey go for broke and open things up once he came in. However, we seem to remember a lot of folks reading way too much into a near comeback performance by Drew Dudzik in relief of Rodney Landers against Montana in 2008. Look how that turned out. Birdsong took advantage of the opportunity though and played very well in relief of Justin Thorpe. The future looks bright for the Ginger Giant, but let’s not go crazy yet.
Dae’Quan Scott wasn’t as good as we’ve seen him at his peak, but I still thought he played better than he has in weeks. He was more decisive and turned up field quicker. As a result, he got going North-South and was able to break a few. Maybe he’s turning the corner after his injury and ready to go on a roll. And DeAndre Smith continues to progress as a receiver. He’s young, but he’s already showing that he’s got the potential to be a game-breaker.
The Bad
When Todd and I started this blog, we said we’d never rip a JMU student athlete for poor play. If they do something to embarrass the school, all bets are off. We’re not going to crush a college kid who puts on the uniform and gives it his all though. Even if we didn’t abide by that, we still wouldn’t categorize JT’s game as anything worse than bad. Yes, he had a rough game, but it wasn’t nearly as terrible as some folks are making it out to be. The two picks he threw were costly, but the Spiders secondary has been picking off every QB they face. And the coaching staff did him no favors with the playcalling (more on that later). We were as excited as anyone when Birdsong got the nod, because we thought the team needed a spark. Not because we thought JT’s time has passed. JT made a couple bad throws that he’d like back. We can’t hang the loss on him alone though.
The Ugly
Let’s just go ahead and say it, the playcalling was atrocious. You want to know why they pulled Thorpe in the 3rd quarter? Because it’s easier to replace a QB mid-game than to replace an entire offensive philosophy. Is JMU an option team? A balanced offense? A power rushing attack? I have no clue. I do know that when JMU came out of gates mixing the run and the pass, they easily marched down the field and scored. When things got tough though, Matthews reverted to his ultra-conservative self. Except of course in 4th in 1 situations, where he continues to put the team in shot-gun formation and run the option. Seriously, WTF was that? And running outside again on a botched 2 point conversion attempt (which wasn’t necessary btw) was equally bad. JMU needs to fix the offense and fix it fast if they want to live up to expectations.
And perhaps even uglier then the playcalling, was the lack of discipline by the defense. There has been no pass rush to speak of this year (which might merit an “ugly” of its own), so the D seemed to make up for it with hits after the whistle. Poor discipline and unsportsmanlike conduct penalties extended drives and led to Richmond points. Just as we said you can’t hang this one on Thorpe, you can’t hang it on any one single defensive player. You could probably make an argument though, that the 3 unsportsmanlike penalties on Stephon Robertson (who’s probably one of my top-5 favorite Dukes ever) were at least as damaging as JT’s 2 picks. Missed tackles, dumb mistakes, and ridiculously large cushions for the receivers and the end result was that the Dukes got lit up by a second string QB making his first start. And I know that the kid transferred from UVA. I just don’t think it matters. Sure he’s talented, but he’s a back-up and he destroyed a supposedly dominant defense.
What Next?
The Dukes need to regroup and move on. This was a bad loss, but give Richmond credit. They’re a solid team. The CAA is too tough for JMU to expect to win when its off it’s A-game. Villanova, Maine, and ODU will do exactly what Richmond did to the Dukes if JMU can’t step it up in the coming weeks. JMU has a home game against an awful Georgia State team this Saturday. We expect Thorpe to start at QB and are optimistic that he’ll respond well to prove the doubters wrong. From there it’s a brutal homestretch with a couple of road games before the regular season finale against ODU. JMU probably wasn’t the 2nd best team in the country despite what the ranking said. They’re better than they showed though and could make a deep run in the playoffs if they get it together.
What’s more troubling than his poor play was how JT pouted on the sideline after he was benched. JT is a fifth year player and team captain and he doesn’t support his teammates in a possible comeback??? Why was he not helping out from the sideline? This combined with his suspension last season clearly shows that JT is just not mature enough to lead this team. We have seen JT’s ceiling and while he is a very talented football player, he is not a passer or a leader and should not be qb1. MM has stuck with JT for far too long and frankly i was shocked MM pulled him. But it’s time for a change, whether its Birdsong or Thourogood (assuming he is healthy enough to play).
And the complete and total mental lapses on defense is a big red flag on the mental state of this team. Hopefully this loss will serve as a wake up call.
Let’s also not forget some freak single play situations. 1. That crossing receiver that Robertson hit and got a 15-yder was BS – that was a clean hit and shouldn’t have been called.
2. That fluke TD from Richmond off the tipped ball to the TE for the TD
Those were both key plays (I believe one or both happened on 3rd down). Had they not gone the way they had those drives may have ended differently.
Birdsong provided a spark that JT may not necessarily have or can provide. Why not give him a week to prepare in practice and have his 1st start at home with an easy team to get his a little seasoned for the rest of the schedule?
2 Days later and I’m still in shock. But I feel like the refs were against us (a common complaint of a losing team). Some of those penalties looked clean to me; and I do try to be as unbiased as I can to avoid getting unfairly frustrated. Still, a good team can win despite the poor calls and I’m just not sure this is a good team.
For some reason I keep replacing “Birdsong” with “Birdman” in my mind. I blame this guy:
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_d2iKygABqpE/S72F34ZC0sI/AAAAAAAAAjI/Mku31Vrt79E/s1600/birdman.jpg
My biggest concern is with JT’s lack of leadership as well. Any player can have a bad day, but if you are selected by your coaches as a Team Captain, you should be engaged, offering whatever wisdom you have to Birdsong and the rest of the offense (and defense for that matter) until the final whistle. Watching him on the sideline, it was very clear that he had quit on the team once he was removed from the game. Continue to start him if you think he offers us the best chance for victory, but pull the “C” from his jersey.
I was shocked that they benched Thorpe. To be honest, I didn’t think he played poorly. I thought he played the same as he always does (take that how you will). I also didn’t think the playcalling was any worse than it has been for the last 4 years.
In my opinion, this loss gets hung 100% on the defense. ZERO pass rush. Our DB’s couldn’t cover my grandma. They give up the one-on-one jump ball every single time. I don’t know if we have stopped an opponent on 3rd down all season.
I don’t think we can give Birdsong enough credit, though. You’ve got to understand, as a QB2, the kid *might* get to run 10 plays in a practice. All you do is watch film, sit in on meetings, and watch the QB1 run the offense in practice. The fact you can come off the bench with that lack of preparation and light it up is a really big deal.
Justin Rascati and Rodney Landers both had the ability to read coverages and effectively pass the ball. Thorpe does not, and never has. Unless he is scrambling (and usually runs it), he usually stares down one receiver as soon as he begins his drop back. Additionally, he does not appear to have an understanding of the offense. Both Landers and Rascati would regularly read the defense and check to a new (better) play at the line of scrimmage. Thorpe has not done that ever- probably b/c MM and Durden won’t let him, and they probably won’t let him because he doesn’t understand the game on that level. I’m not trying to pile on the kid (although I’ve been on his case since he was a Freshman), but you’ve got to call it what it is.
If we ever get rid of Thorpe (after his 8th year of eligibility?), we are going to be forced to go back to having an actual offensive gameplan, b/c Birdsong isn’t really an true option QB. We might have to (*gasp*) go back to a power running/drop back passing attack with a little option sprinkled in like we had in 2004-2008 (when we were good). God Forbid.
You hit the nail on the head this team has no identity on offense. I think JMU has the talent to be a wide open-spread-shotgun offense or a ground and pound power attack. But please make up your mind and pick one. I said it 3 years ago, please drop that awful pistol attack look, it has not worked since day one.
Everyone seems to be talking about Thorpe- mistakes, attitude, understanding of the game- and Birdsong’s failed comeback. To my mind, either guy can lead this offense to score enough points on any FCS opponent to win most any game.
Most any game where the defense isn’t outplayed, anyway. In each of the last two weeks, there have been multiple opportunities for the defense to make plays that would have put W&M away earlier or kept U of R within closer reach. Whether it’s bad gameplanning, poor tackling, no pass rush, or just average athletes, the defense is not capable of defeating quality CAA opponents, and after this weekend JMU has three in a row.
Heck JT is not even a good scrambler….for someone who is supposed to have such great athletic ability he gets sacked all the time at the worst possible times and when he does scramble seems to run right into a defensive lineman or bee-lines for the sideline or fumbles. I have seen him for what seems like 8 years already and the movie is the same everytime. And oh yeah he always overthrows the deep ball, when we are open, by 5-10 yards.
It is time to turn the page on the JT show and move on at QB1.
I hate to say it, but I told you last week that this team has a limited ceiling with JT at QB. I have just seen too much of him dropping back on pass plays and then taking off running the ball without surveying all of the options. I was thrilled to see Birdsong get a shot on Saturday as it showed just what our potential “can be”. He’s big, strong, can throw, and was a more than capable runner when needed. Maybe he’s the next guy, maybe he’s not…but it demonstrates what could happen if we have a change at that position. I don’t know how much of JT’s temper explosion they showed on the TV broadcast, but seeing it in person I can tell you it was not pretty. He just plain threw a tantrum (after throwing his helmet) and he never engaged in the game after that point. I think that shows the same immaturity that he showed in his actions last year that led to his suspension. He’s too far along for us to still be having to deal with these types of issues. I know these are college “kids” and it’s true we should not dump on them too much, but it’s also true that tenure should not guarantee holding onto your starting position if there are more promising options available. I was very pleased to see the Dukes continue to scrap to the end. At least it allowed us to walk out of the stadium with our heads held a little bit higher.
I want to give kudos to all of the JMU fans that showed up to the game. The parking lot where we tailgated was nothing but purple. It was a great atmosphere. Well done to the fans!!!
I was very surprise at how well Birdsong played when he came in. I think there are several reason why MM has to consider starting Birdsong this week against GA State:
1. GA State is a good opportunity to give Birdsong to quality PT in case he needs to become the permanent QB1.
2. Send a message loud and clear to JT that there are other options and that you will not put up with loafing, not supporting your team.
3. By starting Birdsong against GA State, this would force Maine, Nova, and ODO to prepare two defensive game plans because they would not be sure who you might throw that them.
Anyone know what the situation with Thourogood is? Is he still having issues with his hamstring? A year and a half ago he was in an intense recruiting battle between Vanderbilt, Va Tech and a few other BCS schools so I got to think he must be pretty good. why is he not in the mix for qb1?
TOUGH LOST to watch on TV but you could see the last three weeks JMU was playing poorly but why does MM keep shooting himself in the foot. Why does he out think himself when your number #2 in the country you don’t have to pull the surprises, play it by the book let your team win the game not the Coach lose??? When he went for the 4-1 in the third quarter instead of punting to the 5 yard line he gave up 7 points by that decision especially the lousy play and JT should have pitched…#2 you just scored a touchdown on two plays and why go for two points, your team is psyched jumping up and down and why do you need that extra point don’t you realize you demoralize your team and everyone starting looking at the scoreboard to see what missing two meant. My Dad was a Head Coach and he said you never go for two unless you need to tie on the very last drive…period!!! JT hasn’t impressed me the last 4 games there is no spark and for him to sulk when your #2 and 5-1 and playing your rival thats BS he should have been screaming for Birdsong and helping…I start Birdsong Sorry JT but because you didn’t get involved your benched I would bring you in at some point and see if you want to play. The Defense was suspect but they were on the field a long time and the hit over the middle was not A PF it was a beautiful hit like we were taught since we were in Pee Wee chest to chest…I didn’t see the late hits on QB so I don’t know…Villanova and Maine are going to be tough and I hope we get ODU in a important game for both and send them off to their new conference with a crushing lost, can’t stand ODU arrogance to leave our confrence after two years…I hope they fail playing non rivals schools after the QB graduates you watch they will be on everyones homecoming…or at least I’m hoping…but Villanova and Maine will be in the way first…
At least we don’t have Richmond’s kicker. That dude was terrible.
The 2pt wasn’t a bad decision (the play was). Getting it put you within 10, missing kept you within 2 TDs. Going for it early is controversial, but your going to need to do so at some point, why not know early if you can settle for a FG on a future drive? I don’t blame him for that call. I just prefer the 2pt either come from the FG formation (so they don’t know its coming) or from the regular offense.
During this weeks Fan & Press Lunch at O’Neils, Mickey announced that Birdsong WILL start this saturday vs. Georgia St.
If this is true, then it’s good news. Who says Mickey isn’t flexible? We have to temper expectations, but this is the best window this year to try this experiment.
The coach’s biggest challenge may be to keep JT’s head into it because I’m sure we WILL probably still need him at some point.
Go Dukes!
While I respect your policy about commenting on players, I am not sure how you can mention Stephon’s 3 unsportsmanlike penalties against UR without mentioning JT’s massive unsportsmanlike penalty against his own team.
Primarily because we didn’t see JT’s behavior on the sideline. We’ve heard a lot about it, but didn’t see it on the television broadcast. We trust folks who saw it with their own two eyes and said it was bad. Without seeing it ourselves though, it would be unfair to comment.
MRD2012, I hope you are right!
I think we have seen the best that JT can give us and it just isn’t enough at this point. When Birdsong first came in and made that first drive, I turned to my wife (who is also a JMU alum) and said, “That is the difference between having an athelete play QB and a real QB play QB!!”.
“That is the difference between having an athelete play QB and a real QB play QB!!”.
BINGO. Buh-bye Thorpe. If a 5th year senior CAPTAIN (who has already been suspended once) throws his helmet on the sideline and disengages, I’d give him 24 hours to pull his crap together or kick him off the team. Not only would he deserve it, but it sends the right message to your other players.
Can someone who actually saw it, please explain what JT did on the sideline after he was pulled? It was described as “pouting” on Twitter during the game. Now it sounds like it was something worse.
I am not even sure how a player much less QB1 gets suspended and gets to be a captain again anyway…..can someone explain to me how that spells dependable, team player?
Oh, and can someone get word to MM asking him if we can put that darn End Around play on the shelf for at least one game! I think it could be a good play when run on ocassion where you can take the defense by surprise I’m pretty sure the defenses are not being caught off guard with that play.
I was at the game and on the JMU side. JT threw his helmet and stomped around a little. He didn’t want to be consoled or told it would be alright. He acted EXACTLY how a team leader and star player should react…the problem is he kept acting that way the rest of the game. I thought eventually he would come back to the team huddles etc but he didn’t and that’s really where the problem lies. You can throw your helmet, scream, fight etc because you are passionate about being the starter. What you can’t do is maintain that for another quarter and a half. And if Mickey is the same guy he was in 1999 he won’t tolerate from any starter and we may see Birdsong sooner rather than later.
Since you asked for it: I was at the game sitting on the same sideline as the team and my attention was first drawn to JT when I glanced down at the sideline as the offense came off the field midway thru 3rd quarter after yet another fruitless series and I saw him literally throw his helmet at the bench seats along the back edge of the sideline area. He then proceeded to basically walk or storm down to the opposite end of the sideline from the action on the field and you could see a few different players trying to talk to him or console him and it was almost as if they had to hold him back. I’m not sure if he was trying to pull away or if there were disagreements…I took it as them trying to control him so they could talk to him to keep his head into it and he wasn’t wanting to hear it. I pointed this out to my friends and it was at that same time that they noted Birdsong was warming up on the sideline. It became pretty apparent to us what was transpiring at that point. I didn’t focus too much on JT after that as the game suddenly changed when Birdsong came in and suddenly we had more important things on which to focus on the field. I did notice JT a couple times during the 4th quarter and he did not seem to be engaged at all. Maybe others can offer their accounts as well.
“He acted EXACTLY how a team leader and star player should react…”
Peyton Manning wouldn’t pull that crap at all. Not at first, not for the rest of the game, not ever. Rather than acting like a baby, he should have been apologizing to his teammates for sucking.
2004Duke you must write political ads because you sure know how to take part of a sentence, use it as you see fit and then ignore the rest. That’s why I included the “he problem is he kept acting that way the rest of the game.” I didn’t support it and I do think it was poor sportsmanship. Pretty sure JT would appreciate you comparing him to Manning though.
79- I’m not discounting the rest of what you said. You said “the” problem was that he acted like that “for the rest of the game”… I’m saying the problem is that he acted like that AT ALL.
I was pointing out that Peyton Manning, the universally accepted textbook example of a team leader, would never, ever act like an immature child even for the 5 seconds after he was informed that he sucked and is getting benched.
This “kids” are 21-24 years old. I’m just saying I have no patience for a 20-something year old that doesn’t act like a man. I work with guys younger than that who come home from work in coffins with flags draped on them.
Heck I coach little league and if I take a kid out and he acts like that he is out for the next game…..but you know what I have never had a 7-12 year old kid act like that.
Birdsong announced as the starter for GSU game Saturday….nice
I was benched in HS for reasons outside my ability to play (missed practice for family obligations), I was unhappy and pouted (17 at the time). I wouldn’t do that now (36), but for someone who has never been benched (which I’m guessing JT has never been benched or ever been anything but *the* star) it would be very hard to take. He is a competitor. That’s how he became a great athlete in the first place (and natural ability which I never had). I’m not saying he did the right thing, but I can accept that behavior as that of a competitor. I can’t in the least condone his lack of leadership or camaraderie afterwords.
keep waiting to get real confirmation on Birdsong’s start this week. Here is the closest I’ve found so far:
http://www.nbc29.com/story/19885164/jmu-making-change-at-quarterback
and again:
http://jamesmadison.rivals.com/barrier_noentry.asp?ReturnTo=&sid=&script=content.asp&cid=1425793&fid=&tid=&mid=&rid=
I will confirm it for you. Birdsong is starting.
@Cory79 The official JMUsports.com twitter posted it earlier today. Birdsong is the guy.
Glad someone finally found a reputable site to prove it. Then again its MM we’re talking about so I’ll believe it when I see it Saturday
I am truly tired of the Justin Thorpe bashing that has been and continues to be a constant on this site. I think his record speaks for itself. JMU is something like 17-3 with him as the starter. Not bad. Instead of harping on Thorpe, how about address the defense (or lack thereof) displayed against Richmond. That was pathetic! And what is even more pathetic is MM spoke about it at halftime and the defense came out the same way in the 2nd half. Yes, Thorpe is an athlete but he is also a true QB. He has played QB since he was in elementary school. He is also seasoned. Let him lead, and he will lead. The play calling is always passive until a new QB comes in. Example: thru 3 quarters, the ball was thrown 13 times. Then a new QB comes in and the ball is thrown 22 times. Seriously! This has been a set up from day 1. You can talk about his behavior all you want. His numbers don’t lie.He was voted captain by his teammates as well as offensive MVP last year. Glad they could see what, obviously, most of you cannot or don’t want to see. I wish Thorpe much success. In fact, I hope he is inspired by Russell Wilson, and goes to a different program for his sixth year-and comes back to haunt his naysayers.
Ronnie, please point out a single post in which we bashed Justin Thorpe. I don’t think you’ll find one, and I believe we’ve been very supportive of JT for his entire time with the Dukes. It’s not really fair to say that their has been constant bashing of Justin here. There hasn’t.
You can’t deny his behavior after being benched was inappropriate. Yeah, the play calling isn’t great sometimes, but Mickey didn’t throw 2 interceptions or not pitch the ball. Those were JT’s. He does have a pretty good record as a starter and I agree that he probably should have another shot. Let’s see if the play calling goes differently with Birdsong. I am not convinced it will. Then we can compare actual play of the two QBs.
JT not being given a chance and being bashed…..get REAL. While we all get frustrated by Mickey’s play-calling at times, he has stood by JT to a fault for now 5 years. He gave JT a chance to be the clear-cut QB1 when Drew Dudzik probably should have gotten the job. Dudzik could throw better, more accurate and ran just as effectively. Dudzik got yanked around constantly b/c of JT raw athleticism. And please don’t throw the defense under the bus b/c of one bad game in Richmond. JT got the benefit of a lot of wins b/c the defense covered up his erratic, inconsistent play. I think the defense has been much more consistent than JT (when is the last time he has ot over-thrown a wide open receiver on a long ball by 5-10 yards or out of bounds). I see it every week by whatever QB JMU plays against throw long balls that recievers have a chance to go after, something JT has not been able to do ever.. Oh and let’s not forget JT letting the team and all of JMU_Nation down last year when he got suspended for 5 games in the middle of the season (b/c he could not exercise self-control). I personally would have ended his time at QB1 right then and there. JT has been given more chances to stake his claim as QB1 than anyone I can ever recall at JMU b/c of his raw athleticism……but the truth is you don’t need an athletic freak to play QB, you need a QB. I am sorry JT seems like a nice enough guy but he has had his shot(s) over 5 years and simply has not gotten it done in my opinion.
Shady-
+100.
“He gave JT a chance to be the clear-cut QB1 when Drew Dudzik probably should have gotten the job. Dudzik could throw better, more accurate and ran just as effectively. Dudzik got yanked around constantly b/c of JT raw athleticism. And please don’t throw the defense under the bus b/c of one bad game in Richmond. JT got the benefit of a lot of wins b/c the defense covered up his erratic, inconsistent play.”
Exactly.