Albany @ JMU Preview

The Albany Great Danes come to Bridgeforth Stadium for Parent’s Weekend tomorrow.  Hoo-boy, what a powerhouse CAA matchup this is, and aren’t we all lucky to be hosting the first of two matchups against SUNY schools!  A matchup like this just screams tradition and up-and-coming and all that other complete and total bullshit Tom Yeager’s always selling!  And on top of that, it’s Parent’s Weekend, the earliest kickoff time and quietest crowd of the year.  Whoa, what the hell is wrong with us and all this message-board style complaining?!  Between the collapse at UD, all the Carr Report overreaction, and the fact one of us is out of work right now and the other is headed that way, I guess it’s safe to say we may need to make a large correction on the old bitterness scale this week.

The Basics

Albany is in its first year in the CAA after previously playing in the limited-schollie NEC (think CCSU!), where they were a minor bit of a big deal.  Despite that recent success, they’re just moving up from a backwater, dirt-floor hut of a conference to one of the nicer shacks on the polluted cesspool of a river. They’re still adding scholarships to get to the full FCS level so the Great Danes simply do not appear ready to compete at this level just yet (losing to Rhode Island doesn’t do you any favors in the respect department).

But….they are coached by the legendary Bob Ford, one of the few coaches to get the field named after him while still active.  Ford’s been there forever and is taking a farewell tour this season as he’ll retire after the season.  According to the writers that cover him, he’s also a great quote.  In that regard he did not disappoint this week, saying that “We’ve seen them play up against Akron, and we’ve seen them play down against Central Connecticut and Saint Francis. When they have to, they play very well. When they don’t have to, they don’t seem to play quite as hard.”

Needless to say, he ain’t wrong. Though this probably isn’t the best quote to throw up on your opponent’s bulletin board when your team is overmatched, it still doesn’t mean we have any reason to think the Dukes won’t make this harder than it has to be.

Beer of the Week

Last week’s second-half fiasco means it’s really liquor time (gin) already with this team, but it’s Family Weekend so we’ll stick with the plan and act like things are normal. Sounds like it’s going to be a great weather weekend and plenty warm enough not to make the switch to fall and winter beers just yet, so this week we’re going with Deviant Dale’s Imperial IPA.  Great brewery, best delivery vessel (tall boy cans), and a very solid example of the Double IPA.

Prediction

JMU 31, Albany 13.  We’d feel a whole lot better if the Dukes could throw up 40+ and dominate this one, but can’t say we’re really hoping for much more than a competent rebound off of the Delaware game.  Also of note, JMU LB Stephon Robertson is leading the nation in tackles and hopefully building a Buck Buchanon worthy resume!

Also, the Carr Report

As most of you know, the report prepared by a sports consulting outfit regarding the future of JMU athletics, in particular the costs and benefits of moving to FBS, will be presented to the Board of Visitors tomorrow and then publicly released following their meeting.  Yes, we are excited to see what’s in there, and yes, we’re very hopeful this is simply the next logical step in a move out of the CAA, and yes, we hope that move comes much sooner than later, but please join us in tamping down your expectations for anything earth-shattering tomorrow.  And assuming there’s nothing beyond the report itself being released to celebrate, let’s all do ourselves the favor of actually reading the report before we renew sparring with each other over the issue. For all of your meltdown needs, please troll your way over to http://csnbbs.com/forumdisplay.php?fid=685 tomorrow.