Food For Thought
As we work our way through the summer offseason, it’s clear that us fanatics that care enough to discuss JMU sports this time of year still really only have one topic on our minds: the conference/FBS v. FCS issue. Usually this time of year we’re all excited about the prospect of the upcoming season and how the Dukes are gonna look, but this year a perfect storm of events seems to have that on the far backburner. Even with Stephon Robertson clearly on the early radar for the Buck Buchanon award, the toxic combination of mediocre seasons piling up since ’08, a relatively unpopular choice for an offensive coordinator position that was in need of more of a shot in the arm, a continued lack of communication from H’burg about JMU’s intentions, and most of all, the fact that many of the big-name FCS teams still appearing in preseason polls aren’t even playoff-eligible because they’re already transitioning to FBS, this summer is shaping up to be excruciatingly quiet and uninteresting. Given the absolute lack of expectation for actually scoring points this year, maybe that’s for the best. Honestly, since ’04, the bar has never been lower coming into the season, but in many ways the FCS bar is just getting more and more meaningless. Once again, we are 100% supporters of the university and two of the proudest alums we know. We’ve loved the last decade and are already wistful for the “old CAA.” And we’ll do our best to find a way to support whatever decision JMU makes in the long-run in a manner commensurate with that decision, but in case you’re wondering why we’ve moved so squarely into the pro-FBS crowd throughout the last year despite the obvious, and significant, risks, this take from the four-letter last weekpretty well sums it up.
Hopefully team performance won't cause the best LB in FCS to get overlooked this year.
The killer is right there near the end: “When I looked at what was going on, my concern became: Eventually, if the big split happens, are we now at the third level as opposed to the second level?”
Despite that brief flurry of hope after the JB conversation at the Nova Coaches Caravan, we’re very close to giving up hope for an announcement of any GOOD news (i.e. non-CAA, non-monitoring) this calendar year. Like the expectations on the field in Bridgeforth, might as well lower our expectations and realize the best we can hope for is to be pleasantly surprised.
I was thinking the same thing. I (ignorantly) have been going into every season thinking we are underrated. I have finally accepted the reality of the toxic combination of mediocre seasons piling up since ’08.
Your shot at Mike O’Cain, however, shows that you obviously have connections to the bastard maroon stepchild university down the road. While no Chip Kelly or Steve Spurrier, Coach O’Cain was pretty successful and very well-liked at ECU, Clemson and NC State when I was grown up in ACC country. The only place that really never liked him was Virginia Polytech Community College, because they seem to think they are a top-10 football team every single year. I am perfectly qualified for diagnosing the grossly unrealistic and silly expectations of chokie fans, because I am a huge James Madison supporter.
Sure hope you’re right about O’Cain ’04! And you’re quite right that I’m not qualified to judge. It was just a big letdown after the Mumme tease.
I wasn’t saying you are not qualified to judge (i’m not that kind of sanctimonious person). I was making a joke about how VT and JMU are similar in our grossly unrealistic expectations.