Before we move on to a promising start to hoops and tomorrow night’s big home game against a very strong Kent St. team (see their drubbing of WVU last week), here’s our season wrapup on the gridiron.
The NDSU Game
Rob said it very well postgame, but it’s worth reiterating. While a 2nd round exit didn’t meet my expectations coming into the season, it felt about right given everything that’s happened since the 2010 season ended. In the end, the Dukes just got beat by a better team on Saturday. Two big botches on the kickoffs out of bounds gave NDSU opportunities and they made two huge plays (a 53 yard FG and the beast McNorton run that was probably aided by the Pat Williams and Tavieon Cuffee injuries earlier in the game). That was really the difference. In some ways it felt refreshing to walk away from a frustrating Dukes “result” without actually being particularly frustrated at anything specifically self-inflicted. The playcalling and coaching were aggressive, pass-happy, and clearly showed the staff understood what they were up against. Thorpe missed one throw in the 2nd half horribly, but depsite message-board ranting about his play, I didn’t find any way to put this one on JT. He even made some mature decisions to get rid of the ball a few times in a defensive struggle that was closer than the final score and idiot ESPN commentator Jay Harris made it out to be throughout. Defense held them in as usual and played their hearts out, but as has been the case all season, the Dukes could never find the huge turnover or special teams play to change the game. Again, the kickoffs were killer, but tough to heap too much blame on Cam Starke, who only one two games for the the Dukes this year.
The Season
The truth is this 2nd round loss started a long, long time ago. Yes, these are excuses but we need to acknowledge them so as to not lose sight of the actual accomplishments of the group in pads when the whistle blew Saturday. This loss really started with Jon Williams and the Rose brothers offseason shenanigans last summer. In the end, the biggest blow to the Dukes season was probably losing Emmons and O’Neill at the two defensive tackle spots early in the season. This turned the defense from dominant to very good, reduced QB pressure against the pass and dominance against the run and put huge pressure on the back seven. Wonder if all those short passes we all hated giving up might’ve been a different story with those two in the lineup more often? Moving on, we can obviously thank our QB for missing five games of which the Dukes lost two very tight ones he might’ve contributed in. One more win, and certainly two, and the Dukes definitely wouldn’t have beent playing the seeded Bison Saturday. And finally, a big shoutout to our AD and co. for putting us on long road trips the last three straight weeks. The DLine injuries can’t be accounted for and it always takes some breaks to go deep, but many of those others are preventable and let’s all hope JMU can avoid the same fate in 2012.
Having said all that, it’s really hard not to be proud of the effort the team turned in the last five weeks and the way they hung in there through all of that the last year. HUGE credit to the seniors on this team too for their leadership throughout, particularly Vidal Nelson, Pat Williams, and Roane Babington. Oh yeah, and of course we’re gonna miss JMUSB favorite DJ Bryant even if he couldn’t depart the field without one last personal foul.
The biggest thing to remember about the 2011 season is that the Dukes accomplished their two most important goals, if not their most audacious. JMU averaged 25,000 fans at Bridgeforth and the Dukes made the playoffs (where they even won a game). Those were the most important things to ensuring long-term success and no matter your position on offensive creativity (or lack thereof), the need for an OC, stale coaching jobs, or weed-smoking QB’s, you cannot deny those two accomplishments and what they mean to next year and beyond.
Next Season
Can’t remember exactly when it was, but much-maligned AD Jeff Bourne once said his expectation was that JMU is in contention for the playoffs every year and that they make a DEEP run at least once every four years. If two 6-5 seasons and a second-round 8-5 playoff team are the in between, with 25k and a VT win thrown in for good measure, those of us whining may need to reexamine our priorities. Next year is 2012 and I don’t need to remind you how the Dukes performed in ’04 and ’08.
If we’ve learned anything during our “rebuilding” the last couple of years, it’s that you can’t project the future roster (Corwin Acker, Jon Williams, Nick Emmons where are you??). But one thing’s for sure, next year’s team “should” be even better if they can find some true leaders in the locker room. The offense ONLY loses Long and Babington and this O-Line/TE/RB group could be special next season. Of course a transfer D-Linemen or playmaker (WR/KR type) sure wouldn’t hurt either. Personally, I think this team can win with Thorpe, but we’ve got eight months for that debate.
And last but not least, Mickey has two years left on his deal, so barring fisticuffs between he and President Alger during their initial meeting or his taking driving lessons from a Richmond coach, you can go ahead and set the over/under on the first visor toss for about six minutes into the season opener next season. Needless to say, however, next year will be determinative on the future of this staff.
Oh yeah, and we get to rent the Keg Bus for a trip to FedEx to play the real Mountaineers! (and don’t tell us about the Big 12/WVU might cancel stuff unless it actually happens – the buyout they’d owe Danny Snyder makes it much more likely poor cross-state “rival” Marshall will be the one left out in the cold if necessary).
Now, let’s all turn our attention the Humpty Dance!
The Dukes lost to the North Dakota State Bison today by the score of 26-14. We’ll take a day or two to let this sink in, and then we’ll post some serious thoughts about the game and the 2011 season. For now though, we just wanted to get a quick post up with some gut reactions to the loss.
In the preview, I said that JMU had to control the line of scrimmage and take care of the ball to win. Well, they didn’t control the line of scrimmage on either side of the ball unfortunately. NDSU’s defense shut the Dukes rushing attack down, limiting them to just 76 yards on the ground. That’s over 150 yards fewer than the Dukes’ per game average. JMU had some success throwing the ball, but without a strong rushing attack, they never really got clicking on offense. On defense, the Dukes made the supposedly efficient NDSU QB look pretty average to be honest. Running back DJ McNorton looked anything but average though. He torched the JMU defense for 154 yards, including a dagger of a 60 yard TD run to ice the game. That was pretty much the story. The Bison were a better team today. It might not be easy to admit it, but it’s true.
I’m not really sure what else to say. A few weeks ago, I thought the Dukes were dead in the water and headed for a 5-6 season. Instead they went on a run, finally made it back to the playoffs, won a playoff game, and then lost to the #2 overall seed on the road. I’m definitely not satisfied with a second round playoff defeat. I have much higher expectations for the JMU program. Realistically speaking though, it was a nice accomplishment and something that made me proud as a fan. I’ve been saying all year that this was a down year for the CAA. Today’s results proved that unfortunately, with ODU, UNH, and Towson also losing. So the Dukes were a 5th place team in a good, but not great, conference this year. They won a playoff game, but lost in the second round to a better team. Again, I’m definitely not satisfied, but I can live with that.
Hi Everyone, just a quick psa for Dukes around the country on viewing parties for today’s big game! Go Dukes!
DC/NoVa – Ballston Bailey’s (get there early!)
Loudoun – Greene Turtle on 7
Richmond – Bandito’s
Chicago – Lion Head Pub on Lincoln (ericmccann@gmail.com)
NYC – Whiskey Tavern
Harrisonburg – Bridgeforth Stadium, baby
Boston – Tavern in the Square (Allston)
Otherwise, check last week’s preview and we assume the same bars (San Diego, Honolulu, Fredericksburg, Philly, etc.) will be running it back after the beer-selling success that a JMU crowd always brings.
If you really want to get riled up about this game, check out the comments from yesterday’s game preview. Apparently, JMUSB was discovered by a few Bison fans.
Let’s Go Dukes!
And so we move on. Last weekend’s win over Eastern Kentucky was an exciting way to open the playoffs, but the time to celebrate has long passed. The JMU Dukes travel 1,336 miles this weekend for their round 2 clash with the North Dakota State University Bison. North Dakota State is looking to protect its home field and the Dukes are looking to keep up the momentum after securing their first playoff win since 2008 last Saturday.
Match-up – JMU Dukes (unseeded) vs NDSU Bison (#2 seed)
Records – JMU (8-4), NDSU (10-1)
Kick-off – 4:05 PM EST
Viewing Options – ESPN Gameplan or streaming via ESPN3.
Road Warriors
This will be the Dukes second straight playoff road game. This one has nothing to do with bidgate though. As a seeded team, NDSU will have the opportunity to play host all the way to the finals. Therefore the Dukes will take their longest road trip ever and head all the way to Fargo, North Dakota. Yes, North Dakota State University is in Fargo. That’s convenient since Fargo is the only city anyone has ever heard of in North Dakota. Although I still have it on good authority that every time someone stops to ask for directions there they start with “Wait, which Dakota are we in again?”. But I digress. Anyway, the 2011 Dukes are going to have to take a page out of the 2004 Dukes’ book and string together a few playoff wins on the road.
The Fargodome
Saturday’s game will be held in the Fargodome, NDSU’s 18,700 seat home. NDSU draws big crowds that get worked into a frenzy and give the Bison a distinct home field advantage. They also apparently eat a lot of hot dogs. In fact, in 2006 the FARGODOME sold 25,504 hot dogs, jumbo dogs, polish sausages, and brats…enough to stretch from West Acres Mall to the Flying J Truck Stop. I can only assume those two places are far enough apart to make that seem impressive. The most unique aspect of the Fargodome however is that it has an astroturf field. Yes, astroturf, not field turf. It’s like the Fargodome is some sort of 1980’s time capsule. I wonder if all of the Coke advertisements feature Max Headroom and fans mull around the concourse playing Q*bert during halftime. JMU seriously had to order $4,000 worth of turf shoes for this game. I’m sure you don’t have a lot of choice when it comes to turf shoes nowadays, but I really hope they snagged some of those sweet Walter Payton Roos with the zipper pockets on the side.
NDSU Strengths & Weaknesses
The Bison are similar to the Dukes in that they have an excellent defense. They are ranked 2nd in FCS in scoring defense and give up only 14.9 points per game. Not only does their defense prevent opponents from scoring, but they score themselves. They had defensive scores in 5 games this season. Offensively, NDSU has a slightly more balanced attack then the Dukes, but averages about 8 yards fewer a game. They score more though due to the defensive touchdowns and their 91% efficiency in the Red Zone. They employ a 2 headed rushing attack of Sam Ojuri and D.J. McNorton. The duo reached the endzone a combined 19 times. Warren Holloway was the top receiver and is a big play threat. He had 4 TDs of greater than 30 yards on the season.
Keys for the Dukes
There is nothing exotic here. The Dukes need to win the turnover battle and control the line of scrimmage. Obviously, if they get Dae’Quan Scott rolling it could mean good things. I think they’re going to need big contributions from Jordan Anderson this week though. He offers a different style that could keep the Bison D on edge. We all know the Dukes aren’t going to air it out, but mixing in some early completions to Brian Barlow and Kerby Long (completions, not end-arounds) should open things up for what the Dukes do best. On defense, they need to clamp down on the rush and prevent Holloway from getting over the top.
Beer of the Week
Sixpoint The Crisp. This is an amazing German style pilsner from my new favorite brewery, Sixpoint Craft Ales. It tastes just like it sounds, pleasantly malty with a super crisp bite of bitterness at the end. It’s a nice departure from all of the extreme beers trying to be the darkest roasted or hoppiest or whatever else is in favor. This is just an honest to goodness excellent beer. Nothing fancy, just well executed. Try some. You’ll love it.
Prediction
Look NDSU is a good team. They will be playing in front of a raucous home crowd and were ranked in the top 5 for most of the season. In case you were unaware though, the FCS polls are complete crap so don’t let that worry you. Yes, they rattled off an impressive 10-1 record. They lost to Youngstown State, a team that ended up on the wrong side of the playoff bubble though. They needed a late score to defeat Southern Illinois, a team that finished 2-6 in their conference. They had an impressive win over Northern Iowa, but they’re not unbeatable. Most JMU fans I know seem to be chalking this one up as a loss. We’re not. The Dukes are 10-0 in Justin Thorpes’ last 10 starts against FCS opponents. Scott and Anderson are rushing well. The o-line played angry and caught fire late last week. DJ Bryant is crazy and won’t let anyone quit. The Dukes have their swagger back. JMU 24 – NDSU 14.
I draw that to say this: you never know when YOUR team will come together and get that coveted last W of the season. Personally, my sport of choice is football, and it has been for quite some time. I have had the great fortune of witnessing multiple championships by my favorite football teams over the years, with my friends on the Centreville High School football team winning the Virginia AAA Division 6 Football Championships when I was a senior, being a senior at JMU (THE University of Virginia) in 2004 when we won the Division 1-AA National Championship in The ‘Noog, and just last year when the Green Bay Packers won Super Bowl XLV. What do all of these teams have in common? Their sports have a playoff in which one team prevails at the end of the season. Make sense, does it not?
Those that know me best are well aware of many a JMU alumni’s efforts to get the JMU faithful up and cheering during JMU sporting events. With so much to cheer about these past few years, how could you not? Here is one more thing to get excited about: if we take down the #2 Bison of North Dakota State University this Saturday we will be playing in sunny Bridgeforth Stadium in the heart of the Shenandoah Valley against the winner of Lehigh @ Towson. We will not count any eggs until they hatch against the ONLY team from the quarterfinals a year ago that finds itself in this year’s field. But, I will not count out this JMU team until their clock hits 0, hopefully with a W on January 7, 2012.
For Nick Keats and the other fallen Dukes of this year… gone, but not forgotten.
Headline courtesy of one T$ Jones of the RIC. What a weekend for JMU sports! Although the headline is clearly the Football team’s hardnosed performance on the road in front of that fearsome EKU crowd, the hoops team also ground out two wins with what appeared to be, wait for it, tough defense, in the legendary Palestra over underrated opponents Rider and Penn. Sadly, the soccer Dukes’ outstanding season came to an end in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tourney in a loss at UConn, but that only wraps up one of the most outstanding seasons in program history and with only four major contributors leaving, this squad is starting to look like a team that rebuilds instead of reloading.
The Good
Hoops – Defense appeared to show up and Humpty Hitchens has (much to our amazement) clearly stepped up to become the leader on this team in Devon Moore’s absence. The cajones it took to miss a clutch shot and turn right around and drill the next one on Friday night have got to inspire confidence from his teammates and his coaches. In what is shaping up to be a crazy year in the CAA with no clear-cut favorite, don’t be surprised if all of the JMU cynics and skeptics are the ones eating a little humble pie come late February/early March (assuming Semenov’s back doesn’t reveal him to be an 83 year old resident of Del Boca Vista posing as a college athlete).
The Decision – On 4th and 1 from the EKU 43 with about 2 minutes to go in an odd game largely dictated by gale-force winds and a blind back judge, Mickey surprisingly sent in the punt team. Apparently EKU had the wrong personnel on the field and called timeout. HUGE mistake. Mickey said after the game he was “outvoted” during the timeout by assistants and players and the Dukes went for it. Justin Thorpe said he told Mickey “just give the ball to Dae’Quan and we got this!” Before the play, our friend UncleRon leaned over and said “Let the record reflect that the bar (Bailey’s) is entirely in favor of this call and I don’t want to hear a bunch of crap later.” A few seconds later, Dae’Quan was hit at or behind the line, but kept his legs moving and ground out the most important half yard in a couple of seasons for JMU. There are a lot of other things to look at from this game, but to me this IS the JMU football team I know. This, more than anything, says “the swagger is back, the belief is back.” Yes, it likely means we can look for more Les Miles-lite bravado and wackiness out of MM the rest of the way, but I’ll take it!
Oh the excitement of North Dakota!
Survive and Advance – Is there room to pick nits? Sure. Would we have liked to see them put away an inferior opponent with a bit more ease? You bet. But this is tournament play. All credit to EKU for playing a tough game defensively and figuring out that short passing is the key to moving the ball on the Dukes. And everyone back on our side who thinks a close first-round game means the Dukes are doomed later, you’re just wrong. They are still playing and that’s all that matters. They may even be getting healthier unlike a lot of teams (including NDSU). I’m kind of tired of making ’04 comparisons, and they’re not really fair to the current group, but I seem to remember sitting in Summer’s watching the most ghettofabulous old-school satellite feed of the first-round nailbiter against Patriot League Lehigh in the first round back then and thinking, man this might be impossible when we have to play a SoCon team next week. The Dukes overcame a 10-point second half deficit on the road in the playoffs, despite being robbed of three points, so find yourself some room on the bandwagon.
Turnovers – A key going in was turnovers. The Dukes commited none (though they did turn it over on downs once) and forced a huge one to stop EKU from scoring after their long punt return early.
Effort – All you needed to watch was Jakarie Jackson and Taveion Cuffee running down EKU players who had busted out on the punt return and the long run respectively to know we couldn’t ask for anything more from the Dukes. These were enormous plays.
Thorpe passing – Some may disagree, but I thought JT looked solid. He made some huge 3rd down throws in the second half and went 1 for 2 on deep passes into the hurricane. Really looking up in the passing game actually.
The Bad
Short passing – Still killing the D. North Dakota St. runs a west-coast offense. Needless to say, we better figure this out.
Thorpe running the option – I don’t know what it is, but the timing and decision-making just aren’t clicking. He’s pitching too early and getting his backs killed or when he keeps it he’s cutting up field too late. He’ll never be Jamel Holloway, but hopefully the more rust he shakes off, the better the timing will ge
The Ugly
The FG call. I have no idea what to say, and I’d like to think the ref standing under the goal post would get it right. But really, I’ve watched it about a zillion times and a) I just can’t see how it was no good, and b) it really doesn’t appear the ref was looking up anyhow. The other ref even started to raise his hands good. HUGE props to the Dukes for overcoming this.
The crowd – Attendance was announced at under 2400. Enough said. For you Major League fans out there, Bourne better bring a huge fricking anaconda with him for good luck when he opens his locker these next few weeks. Of course, just assuming EKU lost their shirt, their AD probably has even more to worry about.
Bridgeforth
One last note of awesomeness. This week’s game will be shown live on the jumbotron at Bridgeforth. $20 for club level food and bev pass. We’ll be back at Bailey’s but that’s pretty great for students and Valley residents.
JMU went on the road today and captured a thrilling 20-17 win over Eastern Kentucky to advance to the second round of the FCS playoffs. Cameron Starke hit a 35 yard field goal into the wind as time elapsed to complete the Dukes’ comeback and send EKU packing. It was an exciting day of football and a huge win obviously. We’re gonna let things sink in a bit, but will be back with our complete postgame thoughts tomorrow. Let’s celebrate tonight Dukes fans.
Photo courtesy of JMUsports.com
Hope reading that headline gave you all as much pleasure as it did for me writing it. The long wait is over! JMU playoff football is back. Put all the crap aside and say it again: JMU playoff football is back. Forget everything else that’s happened since Rodney Landers and the Dukes limped off the field in old Bridegforth on that cold December night three years ago after the loss to Montana and say it again: JMU playoff football is back. Forget the opponent, the record, the nervous bubble watch, the suspended star, the upset of Virginia Tech (ok, maybe don’t forget that), the Dudzik/Thorpe controversy, new Bridgeforth, even the webcam, and most of all forget bid-gate and say it again: JMU playoff football is back. And the best news of all, besides the possibility of getting AJ Scott back on the O-Line of course, is that unless the last two Thorpe-led weeks were a mirage, the Dukes are finally firing on all cylinders and appear as primed for tough competition as they have at any point in the last three seasons. Needless to say, we believe!
Sports Calendar Interlude
Before we get carried away with the preview, just a quick reminder of all the tasty dishes being served up by JMU sports this holiday weekend. Men’s hoops has the rare good fortune to play two games in the legendary Palestra this weekend against an underrated Rider team today at 2 p.m. and Penn Saturday night at 7. Good news for fans is both games are televised (CSN+ or MASN19 or something but consult your local listings). And of course Sunday we’ve got soccer in the Sweet 16! 1 p.m. at UConn and if the Dukes win this one, there’s a very good chance they’ll be hosting (what a novel concept) the defending national champions Akron for the chance to go to the Final Four.
Also, we just wanted to link to a thread about all the viewing party options for the playoff game around the country. This game may be on ESPNU, but in our opinion you’re really missing a rare opportunity for playoff atmosphere and general Dukes shenanigans if you don’t go watch this in a group setting. If you stay home, your stupid-assed Ohio St. uncle is just going to piss you off making ignorant comments about 1-AA anyways. Viewing parties seem to be coming together in Nova, Loudoun (not Nova), Richmond, the Burg, Charlottesville, Hampton Roads, Fredericksburg, NYC, San Diego (two in SD!), Phoenix, Philly, B’More, and Chicago so get out there and join your fellow Dukes in a little streamer throwing and annoying other bar patrons with a drunken rendition of the fight song!
Beer of the Week
As most of our frequent readers (we’re starting to think you may exist) know, we’re huge supporters of the JMU alum who started Port City Brewing in Alexandria. And this week he’s provided kegs to Bailey’s in Ballston to offer $2 drafts for the Dukes playoff games. So of course we’re choosing one of his beers. That said, I got my first taste of Port City’s seasonal offering, Tidings, yesterday, and it’s definitely one of the most impressive efforts from these guys yet! Think Mad Elf, just priced reasonably. Enjoy!
Oh yeah, the preview
Finally, the game. EKU will be lucky to have 10k in the stands and yes, the Ohio Valley Conference is on an 0-18 run in the playoffs, but the Colonels have a stud RB Denham who rushed for 1400 yards in only about nine games. They hardly ever turn the ball over (most of their to’s were early in the season when their QB was effected by a broken hand). The Colonels don’t have much in the way of a kicking game so look out for lots of going for it on 4th. They also hung in with FBS powerhouse Kansas St. early in the season in a 10-7 loss so they’re not to be taken lightly (though to reenforce the point, K-St. had six turnovers that game).
Honestly, the matchup could not be better for the Dukes. This is a power team and that plays into the Dukes strengths of running and stopping the run. If JMU can hang onto the ball, we love the Dukes in this spot. But this is the playoffs and no one will go away easily. Our prediction is Dukes 31, Colonels 26.
Reader Sean Petrizzi won our prediction contest for the second time last week. He’s chosen to post his thoughts on the JMU – ODU rivalry. You can follow him on Twitter at @SeanPetrizzi. Take it away Sean.
Some of you wont believe me when I say this but Dook vs UNC is not just a basketball rivalry. It extends to all sports, even football(where Carolina has won 20 of the last 21 games.) It may not be nationally relevant at all, but when I am in Chapel Hill Saturday afternoon(3:30 game, no chance of missing JMU game) my blood will still boil at the sight of the Dark Shade of blue desecrating beautiful Kenan Stadium. And I’ve been to a Dook/Carolina soccer game; its fair to say it wasn’t what I’d consider a “friendly.” We need a school that brings out such passion, such unity in defeat of them and agony in loss.
And that’s why ODU is good for us. Our school’s and fans are just as similar as they are different. Both passionate and dedicated, we will learn to hate one another. Now we will get to meet them each year on the gridiron and twice on the hardwood, not too mention every other sport. Who else here was ecstatic when our soccer Dukes took down ODU? I know I was. Who was infuriated by the F*** JMU tshirts ODU fans were sporting in Norfolk? I mean seriously? The greatest part of the Dook/Carolina rivalry is respect with hate, if they can’t show that, then we will win the class battle.
And that’s another point. Be prepared for the war of the words to bring up everything to who’s team is better, to prettier campus(aesthetically and female-wise) to the rap sheet of the criminal offenses of each school’s athletes. It’s going to be mentioned. I’ve experienced it with many Dook fans. The Royal Rumble as this blog dubbed it, will become a annual hatefest. JMU alums will rag and brag to ODU alums and vice versa all over the state. Your stomach will fill with knots and heart will explode with joy. Your blood pressure will rise. You’ll never have a worse year, and then you’ll never have a better one. Your season will be ok at 1-9 as long as that win is ODU. You will miss weddings and birthday parties. You will hate Monarch butterflies and Lions. Norfolk will be behind enemy lines. You’ll hate Jay Harris and proclaim Curt Dudley could be 10 times the Sportscenter anchor. Silver and Blue will make your eyes burn. “Foreman Field is loud?!” you’ll proclaim, “HA! You’ve never been to Bridgeforth.” You’ll learn to love it, crave it, and hate it. And that is good.
Now that I think of it, Old Dirty University is kind of a hell hole.
I recently took my 3 year old son fishing for the first time down on the Shenandoah River. We caught 3 small mouth bass…and our golden retriever. What was supposed to be a pleasant family outing, ended up being a $350 trip to the vet. For a hundred bucks less than that, I could have registered for the 3rd annual JMU Rockfish Shootout, helped raise some money for the Duke Club, and spent some the day on the water catching fish. I also probably could have saved my dog a few stitches.
The JMU Rockfish Shootout will take place on December 2nd and 3rd in Virginia Beach. The tournament has raised nearly $10,000 for the Duke Club in its first 2 years. It’s a great event and we encourage all you Dukes anglers out there to register. Not only will you have a great time and possibly win some big prize money, but you’ll help raise money for JMU student athletes. Check the tournament website or the Facebook page for more info.
