Game Preview: JMU vs. Lehigh

After further consideration the New Era will start this week. At least we hope it will. Coming off a disappointing loss to Maryland, JMU travels 271 miles north to take on Lehigh from the Patriot League this Saturday. It’s a chance to right the ship and get to .500 for the Dukes, and the season opener for the Mountain Hawks.

The Facts

Match-up: JMU Dukes (0-1, 0-0 CAA) vs. Lehigh Mountain Hawks (0-0)

Kickoff: 12:30 PM at Lehigh’s Goodman Stadium

Weather: High of 88 with 80% of thunderstorms

Broadcast: Streamed (for free) here. JMU audio available via Madizone.

Let’s Learn About Lehigh

Lehigh was established way back in 1865 with a founding gift of $500,000 from Asa Packer. Packer also provided for the first structure ever to be built on the young campus, which was subsequently named Packer Hall in his honor. After Asa died, the building’s name was changed to University Center. The lesson of course is that Lehigh people are ungrateful bastards.

Lehigh is situated in the lovely town of Bethlehem, best known as the birth place of Jesus. Actually, it’s been brought to my attention that it’s not that Bethlehem. It’s just some other one in Pennsylvania. The Son of God wasn’t born near Lehigh, but Jonathan Taylor Thomas of Home Improvement fame was, which is nearly as impressive not even remotely close to the same thing.

Lehigh plays its football in the Patriot League, a conference made up of some great schools that strive to find a balance between rigorous academics and athletics. But don’t assume that means it’s a league of pushovers. It’s not. And Lehigh is consistently near the top of the league. In fact, the Mountain Hawks have a number of high profile wins against CAA teams including a victory over a powerful New Hampshire team last year and a defeat of Towson in the 2011 playoffs. Lehigh did lose to JMU in the 2004 playoffs though. That was fun.

Now About Lehigh Football This Year

It’s tough to tell really. Saturday’s game is the season opener for the Mountain Hawks. Last year, the team finished 8-3 but missed out on a playoff bid. Arch rival Lafayette took the Patriot League title and the playoff bid that went along with it, after beating Lehigh in the season finale in one of  college football’s oldest and best rivalries. Lehigh also dropped games to an average Bucknell team from the Patriot League, and a powerful Fordham team that was kinda sorta in the Patriot League.

In 2013 Lehigh struggled defensively. The unit gave up an average of 31.1 points and over 200 rushing yards a game. It only created 11 turnovers. As a result, the coaching staff was shuffled around and Joe Bottiglieri took over as defensive coordinator. Lehigh will supposedly be running a defensive scheme similar to the one it ran last year, but it still might take time to adjust. And there will be new personnel all over the field, particularly in the secondary where Lehigh has no returning starters.

Lehigh has a new coordinator on offense as well. Drew Folmar took the reigns after Dave Cecchini gave up the offensive coordinator position to become head coach at Valparaiso. Folmar will be in charge of an offense that lost almost all of its skill players and will be relying on young QB, Nick Shafnisky. Shafnisky saw some playing time last year as the back-up after starter Brandon Bialkowski went down with an injury late in the season. The Mountain Hawks will also be attempting to replace their top running back and receiver. Nobody on the roster rushed for more than 100 yards all last season. Help came in the form of University of Miami transfer Branda Rosha though, won the starting running back position.

In summary, Lehigh was a good, but not great, team last year. The Mountain Hawks proved they could beat top teams, but lacked consistency and had a porous defense. With only 8 returning starters and new coordinators on both sides of the ball, they enter 2014 as a bit of a question mark.

How Lehigh Can Win

Prevent big plays and capitalize on mistakes. Look, we really don’t know what to expect from this Lehigh team. On paper however, it appears like it might be a challenge for the Mountain Hawks to match up with JMU playmakers. While it might not have been evident during JMU’s loss to Maryland, the Dukes have a number of players on offense who are gifted enough to create mismatches at the FCS level. Abdullah, Hill, Brown, Tapley, Ravenel, etc. They’re all talented. And we haven’t even mentioned Vad Lee who despite a rough JMU debut, still has a ton of athletic ability and a high ceiling. If Lehigh can contain those guys and prevent big plays, it’s anyone’s ball game.

JMU’s season opening loss was chock full of dumb mistakes. Maryland took advantage of them and turned the game into a blowout real quick. In doing so, the Terps laid out a pretty reliable blueprint for success. If the Mountain Hawks are gifted hundreds of penalty yards and short fields, they’ve got to translate them into points.

How JMU Can Win

Tackle, stop beating themselves, and exploit match-up advantages. The Dukes need to tackle better than they did against Maryland. They simply can’t give up so many yards after contact and second chance yards. And they need to stop the boneheaded mistakes. Maryland was the better team last week. There’s no arguing that. But the Dukes let the Terps run out to an early lead with dumb penalties and careless mistakes. They’re not going to win a lot of ballgames if they can’t eliminate (or at least minimize) these mental breakdowns.

As mentioned above, JMU has a number of dangerous playmakers on offense. The Dukes should be able to create favorable match-ups against an inexperienced defense. Additionally, JMU has a size advantage in the trenches both offensively and defensively. Bigger doesn’t always mean better, but if it’s a wet track due to the expected rain, brawn and brute force might have a leg up on finesse. In particular,  JMU’s D-line might be able to exploit its size advantage over a Lehigh offensive line that attempts to utilize quickness in zone blocking schemes.

JMUSB Beer of the Week

East West India Pale Lager. This is a collaboration brew from Devil’s Backbone Brewing and Green Flash Brewing. It’s also a collaboration of beer styles, blending the hop forward nature of an IPA with a lager’s crisp finish. It was one of my favorite beers that I tried this summer. Unlike a lot of West Coast IPAs that hit you with piney or citrus aromas, it has a more floral scent. It’s got some citrus hop flavors, but with a clean finish. Definitely worth picking up as it’s a beer with subtle touches geeks will appreciate, yet it’s balanced enough that everyday beer drinkers will dig it. It’s available in four packs of 16 ounce cans.

JMUSB Prediction

The CAA is no longer the dominant league in the FCS. And the Patriot League is no joke. But on paper, it sure looks like JMU has a ton of advantages. JMU runs the ball effectively, spreads it around in the air, and gets to Lehigh’s young QB. Dukes head home at .500 with a 27-17 win.