JMUSB Game Preview #7: JMU vs. Villanova
I never really had a dream school when I was applying to college. The closest thing to a dream school for me though, was Villanova University. In my senior year of high school, I pretty much treated as fact that I’d be a Wildcat. I’m not really sure why, but I’m 99% certain it was primarily due to to me being Catholic and my love of college hoops. Then I got accepted and was assigned some sort of student buddy who was supposed to call me, answer my questions, make me feel welcome, and sell me on the school. The first call came on a Friday night while I was hanging out at my parents house with some friends. I don’t remember all the details about my buddy or the call itself. I do recall however, that when I asked the guy what his big plans for the weekend were, he replied “It’s Friday, so we’re having a pillow fight.” And I graduated from JMU four years later. So that’s my Villanova story. Now on to the game.
The Basics
Matchup: #2 JMU Dukes (5-1, 2-0 CAA) at #5 Villanova Wildcats (6-0, 3-0 CAA)
Kickoff: 1:30 PM Saturday, October
Location: Bridgeforth Stadium in the ‘burg.
Weather: Hight os 69 (nice) and a 40% chance of rain
Broadcast: MASN2 for folks in the DMV. FloSports for everyone else.
A Bit About Villanova Football
Villanova is a very good team. The Wildcats are a legit CAA and National Championship contender. The only reason you don’t hear more hype about them is because they have approximately 13 fans and most Villanova students would rather spend their Saturdays stalking Jay Wright than watching a terrific football team.
Despite the lack of consistent fan support, former coach Andy Talley built Nova to be a consistent winner and even won the whole damn thing in 2009. The program hit a bit of a hiccup after he left, which in hindsight seemed more to due with injuries than anything else. Now it’s back. The Cats are good folks. Some people (ok, me) might have underrated transfer QB Daniel Smith based on the fact that he came from Campbell University. Well, thus far he’s accounted for 24 touchdowns, the second most in the whole subdivision. It’s just another example of how I know nothing. You shouldn’t even keep reading.
How the Wildcats Can Win
Attack, attack, attack. Daniel Smith isn’t going to thread the needle or wow anyone with pinpoint accuracy. He’s just going to make plays. To win, Nova will need him to play aggressive and take shots at the Dukes defense. We all saw what Tyquell Fields and Stony Brook did last game. Until the JMU defense rights the ship, that’s the blueprint. Nova’s stud running back Justin Covington got a little banged up last weekend, but is still not ruled out. He’s averaging an eye-popping 8.1 yards per carry. We expect the Cats to go straight at the Dukes. They’ll try to run the ball and also exploit the JMU secondary by hitting crossing routes and hoping guys can break off chunks of yards after the catch.
How the Dukes Can Win
Protect the damn ball and tighten up the D. We have a lot of confidence in the JMU offense. We fully expect the offensive line to have another strong game and think there enough weapons in both the running and passing game, that JMU will find matches to exploit. The Dukes just need to eliminate the turnovers. The playmakers will do the rest.
And the pass D needs to improve. We’re not telling anyone anything they don’t know. Last week the secondary got torched. We’re expecting to see some scheme adjustments this week and more physical play by the corners at the line of scrimmage. If the Dukes can slow down the Wildcat receivers, throw off their timing, and we think the pass rush will eventually rattle Smith. If they can do that and just make better tackles, the Dukes should win.
JMUSB Beer of the Week
Let me say right up front that this one ain’t gonna be for everyone. The JMUSB BOTW is Rosetta by Brewery Ommegang. It’s a blended sour and I dig it. Sour beers are definitely an acquired taste. Same with pretty much any beer, but for some reason lots of folks still shy away from sours. Get over it. Drink them. And give this one a try. It’s tart, but not overly so. And it’s delicious.
Official JMUSB Prediction
Offense finds its stickem and holds onto the ball, pass rush gets to Smith repeatedly, and the pass D starts to turn the corner. Dukes are gonna win this one for the Family Weekend crowd. JMU 31 – Villanova 20.
This is our biggest game of the year thus far, and will potentially determine how the rest of our season will pan out. I’m excited to watch, but also nervous because its a very winnable game for Nova. If you’re prepping to play NDSU, they don’t show too many weaknesses. Teams are not repeatedly moving the ball the length of the field on them and pushing the Bison to overtime. But it doesn’t take a genius to look at the films and see how to score on the Dukes. So expect Villanova to throw, throw, throw at our secondary. An INT or two for us could be the difference in the game, because I hate to see our offense forced into a scoring shootout. Really, it seems like the game hinges on whether our DBs can tighten up.
This might be crazy talk to you college football experts out there, but if I were to make an FBS analogy I might say NDSU is like Alabama and JMU is like Clemson. Bama routinely dominates every weekend and doesn’t look very beatable. Clemson has a lot of talent, but you seem them occasionally tested and pushed to the brink by inferior teams. Clemson, however, has a way of rising to the occasion in matchups with elite teams. I hope JMU does just that against Villanova and earns that #2 ranking.
spread?
CJ, I was literally thinking the exact same comparison. Especially after UNC played Clemson close the other week and Syracuse took them too the wire last year
I’m hoping for the rowdiest family day crowd ever. The new mic they have set up on Madizone/Flo really lets us hear the crowd. I’m excited to finally hear Curt Dudley again and to have a great camera crew on board.
If JMU has 0-1 turnovers, I can see them winning by double digits. Should’ve been a bigger win last week, but those fumbles took points off the board.
Who would have thought that one phone call from Villanova would’ve gotten you prepared for years of JMU MBB CAA tourney experiences…?
Honestly, I’m just happy with the actual variety of beers of the week this year.