JMUSB Game #4 Preview: JMU vs. SMU

The JMU Dukes are off to a hot 3-0 start. But they face their toughest test of this young season, with a trip to Texas to take on the SMU Mustangs from the Football Bowl Subdivision this Saturday.

The Basics

Match-up: #9 JMU (3-0, 1-0 CAA) vs. SMU (1-2, 0-0 AAC)

Kick-off: 7:00 PM on Saturday, September 26 in SMU’s Gerald J. Ford Stadium

Weather: Sunny with a high of 92

Broadcast: ESPN3

How We Got Here

JMU opened up against Morehead State, an over-matched out of conference opponent. The Dukes put up over 700 yards of total offense and cruised to a 56-7 victory. They followed it up with a game against an over-matched Lehigh team from the Patriot League. Again, they cruised to an easy 55-17 win, compiling over 600 yards of total offense in the process. Last week, the Dukes struggled in the first half, turned the ball over 6 times, yet still managed to eclipse 600 yards of total offense on their way to beating Albany 42-28.

SMU faced some tougher competition than the Dukes. The Mustangs opened 2015 against Baylor, one of the most prolific offensive teams in all of FBS. They gave up over 700 yards of offense in a 56-21 loss. the Mustangs bounced back with a 31-13 blowout win over North Texas. QB Matt Davis threw for 171 yards and 2 TDs in addition to running for 125 yards and 2 more scores. In the third game of the season, SMU went up another prolific offense in TCU. The Mustangs hung in there for a while, before eventually falling 56-37.

What to Expect from SMU

With games against TCU and Baylor under their belts, the Mustangs have experience playing against fast paced attacks. As such, we shouldn’t expect them to be a little more well prepared to slow down the Dukes than any of JMU’s previous opponents. That doesn’t mean SMU wants to get into a shootout however.

SMU has a very balanced attack, which it will use to control the tempo and try to keep Vad Lee and the JMU offense on the sidelines. Thus far, the Mustangs are averaging 222 yards/game in the air and 218 yards/game on the ground. Like we said, balanced.

QB Matt Davis is an efficient passer, completing 64% of his passes, and effective rushing the ball as well. The junior transferred from Texas A&M and is one of the most talented signal callers the Dukes will face this year. As a dual-threat QB, he can run for the chains or buy team with his feet before hitting a receiver down field.

Davis is the Mustangs leading rusher, but like JMU’s Vad Lee, he has a pair of dangerous running backs behind him. Both Xavier Jones and Braeden West have rushed for over 4 yards a carry this young season. Courtland Sutton is the big play threat on offense. The receiver has 4 TDs already and is averaging 21 yards/catch. Look for the Mustangs to try to go over the top to Sutton if JMU stacks the box in an attempt to slow down Davis and the rushing attack.

The SMU defense will have respect for the Dukes, but definitely won’t be intimidated. Vad Lee and the JMU offense are tough to prepare for. There are few things that can prepare a team more, than playing against Baylor and TCU. Justin Lawler anchors a d-line that will try to get to Lee early and often. They’ll need to, because when they gave the Baylor and TCU QBs time to pass, they were burned for multiple big plays.

Mustang X Factor

One of SMU’s more notable alums is the one and only “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan. He played football for the Mustangs back in the day. The Dukes are in trouble if the Mustang players take a page out of Hacksaw’s playbook, and start hitting guys with 2x4s just at precisely the moment the ref turns around.

What to Expect from JMU

These aren’t your father’s Dukes. Everett Withers isn’t flying the team all the way to Texas to run some vanilla offense, get back on the bus, and cash the FBS check. The Dukes are going to give SMU everything they’ve got. And they’ll do it by playing the exact style of football that got them to 3-0. The Dukes will attempt to utilize all their weapons to keep the SMU defense on its heals. Look for Lee to utilize all of his receiving weapons to open things up and create space for Khalid Abdullah and Cardon Johnson to run through.

Defensively, with Simeyon Rice still out, JMU will need to stunt on the defensive line and dial up some blitzes to pressure Davis. They’ll try to turn SMU’s offense one-dimensional and force the Mustangs to beat them with their running backs. If they let Davis improvise, extend plays, and run for first downs, they’ll be in trouble.

FCS vs. FBS games often come down to depth. With more scholarships on the roster, FBS teams can run fresh guys out there and eventually break through or wear their opponents out. In FCS games, JMU is used to wearing its opponent out with its fast pace. It will be even more critical that the Dukes keep the chains moving and play fast enough to prevent SMU from substituting and leveraging its deeper player pool.

Interlude

SMU’s first president made the school’s colors Harvard crimson and Yale blue in an attempt to create an association between his school and the academic standards of the Ivy League. Dallas Hall, one of the campus’ signature buildings, was designed to look like the Rotunda at UVA. The streets in SMU’s surrounding neighborhoods were named after prominent colleges and universities like Dartmouth, Amherst, Stanford, and Princeton. This is a school that has gone way out of its way to create an aura of academic superiority. And yet the school was given the Death Penalty for running one of the most corrupt college athletic programs of all time and also enrolled a Kardashian. Good job, good effort SMU.

JMUSB Beer of the Week

Molotov Lite by Evil Twin Brewing. This is an Imperial IPA that I’ve fallen in love with lately. It’s aggressively hopped, but has a slight sweet honey-like finish that cuts the bitterness. Plus, it comes in 16 oz tall boys which we dig.

For those who might be interested, Evil Twin is based out of Brooklyn, but as a gypsy brewer it actually just creates the recipes and then contracts with various breweries for the production. The name Evil Twin comes from the fact that the man behind the company has an identical twin, who he doesn’t speak to, who’s also a talented gypsy brewer. It’s a sad, yet fascinating story.

Official JMUSB Prediction

FCS teams are at a disadvantage going on the road to play FBS teams. SMU was terrible last year, but is much improved in 2015. With the schedule they’ve had, they’re probably assuming that JMU isn’t nearly as good as Baylor and TCU. They might be right. But JMU is good enough to beat them. In fact, JMU will beat them. Dukes 35 – SMU 24. Keep Rootin’.