Now things get interesting! The Dukes visit #23 Villanova this week with all of their goals still achievable, the QB controversy solved (unfortunately by injury), sports betting sites making them a one point favorite, and coming off what has to be their most confidence-building performance of the season in last week’s thrashing of Maine.
Just to lay out the playoff scenario again for the Dukes: 7-4 will VERY likely NOT get anyone in this year so the Dukes absolutely need at least this game or the ODU game to clinch a bid. Two wins VERY likely wins the CAA, the Automatic Qualifier, and a Jeff-Bourne proof seed in the playoffs. Villanova is currently 6-3 with JMU and a trip to fading rival Delaware remaining. This is simply an enormous games for both programs.
The Basics
Villanova may have been even more inconsistent than the Dukes to this point in the season. Like the Dukes, the Wildcats lost at Richmond. Unlike the Dukes, they are coming off their worst performance of the year after giving up a whopping 49 points at home to Towson last week. However, it’s impossible to overlook that this same team went to Norfolk and laid their pimp hand down on Old Dominion just three weeks ago in a 38-14 beatdown of the Monarchs.
Villanova is usually very well-coached by Andy Talley and company and plays a somewhat odd 3-3-5 defense that has often given JMU a hard time in the past. With Birdsong injured, it’s likely the Cats will be ready to stack the box against our zone-read and it will be interesting to see if MM/JD do anything at all to throw them off.
On offense, Nova has a big-time target in Norman White at WR. He missed all of last season with an injury, but was a CAA-killer in his freshman year and is back at full strength now. Interestingly, he’s an extra-tough cover this year because Villanova has quietly transformed themselves into a juggernaut rushing team led by rFr. QB John Robertson and hard-nosed RB Kevin Monangai. We actually like this matchup as almost no one has been able to run the ball consistently against the Dukes D this year although the threat of White over the top is scary given our somewhat inconsistent play against the pass.
Also Monitoring the Situation – Villanova has had its own controversy regarding their decision to stay in FCS or move up to FBS the last few years. As many of you know, this is the battle for the House Cup in my home as my wife is a Villanova alum. The truth is she, like a ton of alums, doesn’t really give a turd about football so long as Jay Wright and the boys are getting it done (more on that later). They’ve never been close to developing a strong following or filling there decrepit old stadium on the Main Line. Back when the Big East was a real conference just a short 18 months ago, Villanova sat on their choir robes, “monitoring the situation” so long in making a decision on their invite to join the BigEast in football that then-BE members WVU and Pitt led a conference-wide revolt to rescind the invitation and Nova was left out. Just like JMU, there are alums and supporters with wildly divergent opinions on the subject. One thing that may be increasingly clear when the ball is tossed next week though is that at least in part due to the Big East’s changing nature and Villanova’s awkward place in the conference, Jay Wright and the boys may not be getting it done much longer. If they run him out of town Philly style, or he leaves when the lack of football revenue means he can find a better option elsewhere, you can bet there will be as much hand-wringing in Nova Nation as there is in the ‘Burg.
Beer of the Week
This week’s selection is reflective of the change in the weather as you can finally justify breaking out the stouts again! We’ll go with TenFidy from Oskar Blues in Colorado. The Dale’s Pale Ale guys also the best canned stout around (non-Guinness category of course).
Coverage
Unfortunately, this one is internet-only, available at this time only through Nova Nation All Access. This is a CBS site which is not our favorite, but if you’re willing to pay the $9.99, it’s very easy to cancel your subscription right after the game (we’ve done it a few times already). Thanks to Nova’s heavy usage for their “somewhat” more prominent hoops product, our experience has been that they do a decent job where places like UMass and URI that have similar CBS-owned products have been terrible lately.
One other score to keep an eye on this weekend is the Lehigh/Colgate game. All teams with at-large hopes are REALLY rooting for Lehigh, who comes in a 3-point favorite and as the only undefeated team in FCS, would likely get in to the playoffs either way while Colgate would be stealing a bid by making the Patriot a two-bid conference.
Prediction
Dukes got it cranked up last week and this week we think they’ll start to prove they’re serious about mounting a run! Dawgs 24, Cats 16.
Scott won last week’s prediction contest and the right to be our guest blogger this week. Here are his thoughts on JMU football and why folks need to show up for the regular season finale against ODU.
First, I would like to start out by saying that when I received the email telling me that I had the closest prediction, I thought.. “This isn’t right, I couldn’t have..” But I do appreciate Rob and Todd for their work every week and thank my Fiancée for telling me a little over a year ago to read this blog because of all the great insight (yeah, she LOVES JMU football). I read it RELIGIOUSLY, plus it is a lot more optimistic than the CAA zone message boards. I hate reading them sometimes because of all the pessimism, and not being so pessimistic is on the list of things I want to change about myself. Unfortunately, sometimes this football team and even the student’s support of JMU in general, make this very hard.
There are several things I felt I could write about, but nothing really sparked any thought. I am an MRD Alum, but I really didn’t want to talk about the band that much, I will say that we had a good time in London two years ago once we got there and the MRDs will be performing in the 2013 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade which will be awesome to see JMU represented next Thanksgiving, but this year they have played the same stand tunes over and over and over and the only song we have been able to get into is “A Mis Abuelos”. It is a killer song and very loud which we like! We know that this is not the fault of the band members, as we have many friends still in band, but the fault of its leaders. This is such a great band! It has has so much potential, but it just doesn’t feel right this year. read more…
It’s that time again and I’m pretty sure we all know the drill by now. JMU has a huge (no understatement) game on the road against a dangerous Villanova team on Saturday. Drop us a comment letting us know who will win and what the final score will be. The person who comes closest to predicting it correctly (winner & score) will win the right to guest post on anything he or she wants next week. Pretty simple, right?
Now about this game. It’s absolutely critical. The Dukes are currently sitting at 7-2 and have a couple of extremely difficult games on the docket. With the landscape in FCS what it is, 7-4 is not going to get the Dukes in the playoffs. Win both games, and the Dukes are not only a lock for the playoffs, they’d actually get the CAA auto-bid and likely a seed. But before they can win two, they need to win one. That is a brilliantly stupid statement, but I think you get what I’m saying. This is a big game. And Nova is also fighting for a playoff spot and playing some great football. So who you got? Will the Dukes have another epic victory on the road like the above or will the Wildcats ruin the day?
Thanks to the great folks at the Duke Club, our lucky reader Jim Hueber just picked up 4 chair back seats and a prime parking pass for the highly anticipated JMU vs. ODU game in Bridgeforth Stadium on November 17. As you might recall, the Duke Club generously offered to raffle off the prize package for JMUSB readers who joined the club via this offer. Luckily, Jim and others opened up their check books, became Duke Club members, and provided much needed support for JMU athletics. Our contact at the Duke Club reached out to Jim today to let him know that he won.
Thanks to all of you who took advantage of this opportunity and supported the Duke Club. If you are not a member, we really encourage you to read up on the program and consider joining. Todd and I are both members and we both agree that it’s great to give back and support the JMU student athletes who provide us with so much fun and excitement. The folks at the Duke Club (and everyone else we’ve had contact with in JMU athletics really) have been tremendously supportive of this blog. So if you do take the plunge, please list “JMUSB” as your referrer. We don’t stand to get anything by referring people, but we’ve tried to encourage folks to donate and it would be nice to know if we’re making an impact. Thanks again and congratulations Jim.
Finally! At long last, and just when many in JMU Nation had nearly abandoned hope of it happening, the Dukes came to play for 60 minutes (well, 59, but who’s counting?) in all phases of the game, destroying Maine 31-7 on the road and setting up an exciting final two weeks!
The Good
Defense. Pitched a shutout (that was only ruined by the offensive coaches ridiculous over-aggressiveness in the final minute when the Dukes gave up a fumble return td). Pressured the QB consistently. For the most part, finally seemed to play tighter on receivers. By far their best performance of the season and the Dukes were simply dominant, holding Maine to 104 yards of total offense for the game and creating three turnovers. If the D plays like that, JMU can win. And keep winning for a while over the next six weeks.
Specials. Kick coverage continued its consistent play. And after missing an early one, Killa Cam Starke got back on track in the kicking game. Despite an occasional scare with ball security, Ryan Smith is also beginning to provide a spark in the return game and he made some big plays on D as well. Nice to have another new big-play contributor.
Certain elements on offense. Namely the use of multiple RB’s and involving Brian Barlow throughout the game. While DaeQuan Scott went over 100 yards again, it was nice to see some of the other backs in the mix as the game went along. Brodie, Anderson, and Latney had 15 carries between them including some very solid play from Brodie, something Rob’s been begging for for weeks now.
He's Baaack!
JT. Came back from the doghouse and turned in his best effort of the season. This was exactly the kind of performance he’s always seemed capable of, but rarely delivered. Running, passing, and dare we say it, leading. It’s not even that Birdsong was terrible, going 5-8 when he was in there, but JT sparked the team and we can only dream it continues.
The Bad
Seriously, the east/west running plays are just beyond painful to watch at this point. You’ve got an All-American Left Guard leading a veteran and relatively healthy OLine, a top RB, and when JT is in there, a tough running QB. Just line up and hit people in the mouth and for the love of everything decent stop going shotgun on short yardage plays.
The Ugly
Michael Birdsong’s seemingly ugly sprained ankle. Word is no major, long-term damage, but it was the dreaded high-ankle sprain so it doesn’t seem likely he’ll be replacing JT again anytime soon. That said, given that the other QB’s have zero experience, the Dukes will feel a hell of a lot better if the Ginger Giant can heal up quick.
The Dukes make take their longest road trip of the season up Orono, Maine to play the Maine Black Bears on Saturday. It will be the second collegiate start for true freshman QB Michael Birdsong, who’s coming off a win in his debut. Birdsong played decently in the victory over Georgia State, but JMU fans are anxious to see him elevate his play and breathe some life into the offense.
Basics: JMU (6-2, 4-1) ranked 10th vs Maine (3-5, 2-3) unranked. Kickoff at 3:30 PM.
Weather: High of 48, partly sunny, and a 20% chance of rain.
Broadcast: Televised on Comcast SportsNet, Audio available via Madizone and the JMU/nTelos Radio Network
Venue: Maine’s Henry Alfond Stadium, a 10,000 seat venue that opened in 1998 after the previous stadium was condemned. Seriously. It might just be a couple of bleachers hastily thrown up on either side of the field, but it can be a very tough place to play because of its exposure to the elements. Fortunately the weather isn’t expected to be too bad and Maine has struggled at home all season. They’re 0-3 in Orono this season.
No Pushover
Despite its losing record, Maine is no slouch. They soundly beat both Delaware and William & Mary on the road and only lost to first place New Hampshire by a TD. The Black Bears have the second best scoring defense in the CAA (JMU is tops) and are ranked 3rd against the pass. They don’t have the most dynamic offense, but their strong defense has kept them in most CAA contests. The lone exception to that was the loss to Villanova, in which the Cats ran all over them to secure a convincing 35-14 win.
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JMU makes the 812 mile trip up to the University of Maine to play the Black Bears this Saturday. The Dukes will be out for revenge after a dagger of an OT loss to Maine in Bridgeforth last year. And like we do before each game, we’re going to open things up for each of you to make your predictions for the game in the comments. And per usual, the person who comes closest to predicting the outcome correctly (winner & score) will get to write a guest post on whatever his or heart desires. Provided you don’t make us look like complete asses of course.
This is the first of brutal 3 game closing stretch for JMU. The Black Bears might not have the fanciest stadiums in the land, but Orono is always a tough place to play. It can be especially tough if the weather takes a turn for the worse like it often does this time of year. So how confident are you Dukes fans? Will JMU close strong and pick up a crucial win on the road or will the Black Bears prove last year was no fluke and protect their home turf?
JMUSB Reader Devon came closest to predicting the final score of JMU’s win over Georgia State. As a result he is our guest blogger for the week. Here are his ideas for rallying student support for JMU football.
First of all, I would like to thank Rob and Todd for all of their insight and analysis you simply cant find anywhere else for JMU Sports, it is a joy reading your blog and I check it religiously.
As a graduating senior, coming here in 2009, I have not seen JMU Football live up to it’s potential, and each and every year I have seen students become less and less involved with football games. When I first came here, there was no “preordering tickets” for football games, you just showed up, and if you weren’t there at least an hour before game time, there was no way you were getting inside. Even when they moved to the online system you had to reserve tickets the first day they were available. Now students can pick up tickets on game day and not have to think twice about it…it’s pathetic. The lack of support our team gets from the students is depressing, there were far too many empty seats for the GSU game, which sadly turned out to be a good (or at least a close) game. But how do we fix this? How can JMU take steps to get students more involved? Below are my thoughts from a student perspective:
Say it with me folks, “a win is a win”. I’ve been muttering that to myself repeatedly like some sort of freak show for about 18 hours. It hasn’t done much good though. Obviously, the important thing is that the Dukes notched another win and moved to 6-2 on the season. There is no column in the standings for style points, so that’s really all that matters, right? With that being said, let’s just jump right in and try to break down the good, bad, and ugly from JMU’s 28-21 win over Georgia State.
The Good
There’s not a whole lot to include here. Much like he did last week, Dae’Quan Scott managed to play well in an otherwise uninspiring performance by the JMU offense. He rushed for over 100 yards for the second straight week and eclipsed 2,000 yards rushing for his career. And he looked very good running between the tackles and going North-South. Which of course makes us wonder why the heck the coaches ever went away from that philosophy in favor of all the sideways crap.
And because I’m feeling generous, let’s put the fact that JMU managed 3 sacks in the “Good” category. The Dukes have sorely been lacking a pass rush all season. Even if Georgia State isn’t the world’s most powerful offense (gross understatement), it was nice to see JMU get to the QB a few times.
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Now this is a traditional HC opponent! Used to be teams at high school and college at every level went out and scrounged the bottom of the barrel to find an opponent for Homecoming that was certain to provide the nostalgic fans (and potential donors) with the type of feel-good outcome they expected. But life in the CAA has gotten tough during the last decade and the Dukes have occasionally been forced to entertain a less-than-ideal high quality HC opponent. Thankfully, things are back to normal this year as Georgia St.’s only season in the CAA is shaping up to be one long string of ass-kickings (except for URI who they beat worse than JMU did of course).
The Giant Elephant in the Room
The truth of the matter is if this game is anything less than a very comfortable Dukes win, it will be both disastrous and shocking. But all of us have one enormous thing to be excited about even if it’s a laugher: the starting debut of the Ginger Giant! True freshman QB Michael Birdsong replaces Justin Thorpe and hopes are inappropriately high among the faithful after he provided a huge spark and nearly fueled a miraculous comeback late against Richmond last week. For the record, JT has been dealing with a seriously injured finger on his throwing hand and issued a solid apology for his sideline reaction after being pulled last week and we hope fans will respect that, wish him well, and pull for him in whatever capacity he can contribute to the team going forward this season. One thing’s for sure, with his athletic ability and experience, he hasn’t seen the last of the field for this team and while we’re excited about the potential of the Giant, at this point it’s just potential and JMU will need Thorpe in some capacity during the stretch run and hopefully the playoffs.
The Basics
Look, usually we try to give you a detailed breakdown on the opponent, but Georgia St. really is that bad. We’re talking St. Francis bad. After launching their football program and ambitiously playing home games at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, the Panthers have pretty much done the exact opposite of fellow newbie ODU. Other than the fact they’re also going FBS next year when they’ll join the SunBelt (really this will give them better chances for victories than this one time through the CAA), they’ve done none of the promising and begrudgingly admitted positive things the Monarchs have. They have an ancient coach in Bill Curry. Yes, that Bill Curry. Apparently he must still be good at fundraising because he’s lost whatever recruiting touch he had and they’ve literally resorted to dumping cash from the ceiling of the stadium to try to draw fans to watch this putrid outfit. So all that said, we’ll leave the Phil Steele FCS Preview in the basement bathroom and just tell you there is absolutely no excuse for less than a butt-whippin’, inspired performance from the Dukes. Oddly, the other GSU does have a decent secondary so it will be interesting to see how the GingaNinja throws this week.
Beer Beverage of the Week
With the combo of HC and the approaching Frankenstorm, we’ll go against our usual tendency and actually go with something that could be considered “seasonal.” No, it’s not any crappy, overhyped pumpkin beer. But rather we’re going with Albemarle Ciderworks’ Royal Pippin. Damn right cider’s a thing now, and Virginia happens to be one of the country’s best cider regions. Royal Pippin is made entirely with Virginia’s own Albemarle Pippin apples. It’s not sweet and is almost more champagne-like than any crummy Hornsby’s you may be familiar with. Given the champagne comparison, it will hold up to whatever your Homecoming tailgate foods of choice happen to be.
Prediction
Ginger Giant is a tad shaky as the nerves and pressure of expectancy catch up a bit, but the Dukes defense turns in a big bounce-back performance after being embarrassed last week. Dukes 34, Georgia St. 7.
p.s. If you haven’t already, read our Open Letter below and share with any current students you may know. Thanks everyone for the comments lately!
