Corp didn't get hit this much in the Pac-10
This picture from the RTD story really is worth a thousand words, or in this case 400 unnecessary words from me that could never explain the beatdown the Dukes put on Richmond as well as this image. I’ll be brief because there were 8 sacks and that is the headline as Richmond couldn’t bust a grape, much less deal with the fired up defense we’ve all been waiting on to arrive this season.
Three Things to Love
The black jerseys, return of Nick Emmons beefing up the D Line, the word that DQ Scott’s shoulder injury may not be that serious even though it was nice to see just how deep JMU’s running back stable is.
Three Things to be Concerned About
Special teams still not special, Maine looks like the real deal after putting a hurt on Delaware yesterday, the shoddy A/V work not living up to the rest of the stadium.
One Last Thing
I didn’t even have to mention the QB.
JMU's breakout star, Dae'Quan Scott.
The JMU Dukes welcome the Richmond Spiders to campus on Saturday. It’s a big weekend in the Burg. Not only is it the first CAA game in the newly expanded Bridgeforth Stadium, but it’s Homecoming and thousands of alums will be back in town for the game. And it also is going to be the first game behind center for JMU’s redshirt freshman QB, Jace Edwards. In any case, the crowd should be good and lubed up by the time the ball is kicked at 3:36 PM.
The Basics
Match-up: #9 JMU (3-1, 1-0 CAA) vs #10 Richmond (3-1, 01 CAA).
Television: The Comcast Network (not Comcast SportsNet) and Comcast New England
Weather: High 49 and slight chance of showers. Football weather.
How We Got Here
Both JMU and Richmond have got to be pleased with their 3-1 records at this point, but the Dukes already has a leg up on the Spiders in the CAA thanks to the win at William & Mary. JMU started slowly, but is coming off 2 road wins over ranked opponents. The Dukes’ offense made huge strides in those games and appeared to find an identity last Saturday. And then just as QB Justin Thorpe was finally starting to win over the fanbase, he was suspended. As a result Dae’Quan Scott has gone from emerging fan favorite to “the guy” in the span of one week.
Richmond opened up the season by defeating Duke in Durham, NC. Not only did it give the Spiders a coveted FCS-FBS upset, but it gave their alumni bragging rights in the douchey New Jersey/Long Island carpet baggers social circle. The Spiders then went through the motions for 2 victories over overmatched teams that taught us nothing. Last weekend they mounted a furious fourth quarter comeback, but still fell short in a 45-43 loss to New Hampshire.
Spider Football, the Fashion Statement
Richmond football is known for many things. The Spiders play their home games in one of the nicest high school stadiums in the entire West End, have won a National Championship, count Todd McShay and Tim Hightower as former players, and they receive disproportionately high web search traffic due to the existence of a certain Australian Football League team. Most of all though Spider football is known for sweater vests. I don’t get it either, but it’s true. Richmond fans love sweater vests. Maybe they were worried that UVA fans had gained an edge in the pretentious gameday attire category. Maybe they just have no fashion sense. In any case, do not be alarmed if you encounter people on Saturday who appear to be dressed more appropriately for a Color Me Badd Fan Club meeting than a football game. They’re just Richmond fans.
How Richmond Can Win
Throw, throw, throw. Aaron Corp might have had a disappointing career at USC, but so far this season he’s showing that he has quite an arm. In last week’s shootout against UNH, he tossed for more than 350 yards. His favorite target, Tre Gray (seriously, that’s his name), could have a field day if the Dukes’ secondary doesn’t step up. He’s averaging over 100 yards receiving a game. Defensively, it’s no mystery. Richmond is going to key in on stopping Scott and forcing Jace to beat them with his arm.
How JMU Can Win
Obviously, with Justin Thorpe suspended JMU is going to pound the ball with Scott and Latney. I also expect them to mix in some easy pass plays to build the QB’s confidence. Don’t be surprised to see Brian Barlow’s number called early to do just that. Richmond had two starters on the d-line, Kerry Wynn and Corey Jackson, go down last weekend. Wynn might play, but Jackson is expected to be out. That should help the Dukes’ rushing attack and ease the pressure on the young QB. The real key to the game will be the JMU defense however. They need to get to QB Aaron Corp early and often. The less time he has to throw, the better JMU’s chances will be. Four games down and we have yet to see the JMU D live up to preseason expectations. If they step it up Saturday and the Dukes can establish the ground game, JMU will win.
Beer of the Week
It’s Homecoming, which means extended tailgating. Todd and I will be dragging a large group of friends back and setting up shop in P Lot (come say hi, we’ll let you know where we are via Facebook and Twitter). It’s a situation that calls for a session beer. Therefore we’re going with one of Todd’s personal favorites for the JMUSB BOTW. Full Sail Session Black. It’s exactly what is sounds like, a dark roasty beer that won’t crush your palate. It’s also a more manageable 5.4% ABV, which means you’ll make it to the game no problem. Unless you’re a total lush.
Prediction
I was jumping on the Justin Thorpe bandwagon last Saturday, but I’m not too worried about Jace taking over. The offense depends on the rushing attack, so if the line does it’s job, Scott and Latney can move the chains. The defense is getting Nick Emmons back, which should help tremendously. And as we learned in the season opener, the Bridgeforth crowd can wreak havoc with an offense. This crowd should be bigger and louder. Advantage Dukes. Last year’s clash in Richmond might have been the ugliest football game ever played. This one might not be much prettier, but the Dukes should come out on top. Good guys win 24-14.
She's gonna kill us for running this ad!
So we got what I thought was a great question on Twitter (@jmusportsblog) the other day from @JMO_757. What did we think the ceiling was for the football Dukes before the JT suspension and what did we think now? It was a great question, but the truth is we have no clue. The only thing I can say for sure is that I’m more concerned about the off-field/chemistry/locker-room/distraction issues than I am about on-field dropoff in play. Were the Dukes really destined for a final four berth with consistent misreads on bread-and-butter option plays and a coach without the confidence in his QB’s passing abilityand decision-making to open up the offense? On the other hand, there has to be some reason JT won the preseason competition and the coaches know just a wee bit more about making that decision than we do. But honestly, we all (us most of all) need to take a step back, look for a little perspective, and get ready to enjoy a great fall weekend in the ‘Burg. Or maybe it’s just the Bartman documentary and the self-reflection it provokes.
And in that spirit, we thought we’d go all Rudy on you and shine a spotlight on a feel-good story of a program not making headlines for rumors, weed, fights, or controversy. Don’t worry, we’ll be back with a full game preview for the Ticks and of course the all-important HC BOTW pick on Friday.
One of the best things about being a season-ticket holder the last five years has been connecting, or reconnecting, with JMU peeps from outside the tiny world we now realize we actually inhabited during the time we were “earning” our degrees. And as we’ve mentioned before in this space, as huge sports fans, one of the coolest people we’ve met is Head Field Hockey Coach Antoinette Lucas. She might be the best athlete currently living in the Valley, is funny (especially about Mickey), and is leading a hard-working and committed squad of young women that JMU folks can be proud of without reservation. Here’s a few questions we had a chance to ask her at the CCSU game and we’d just like to encourage everyone to enjoy this weekend for everything it offers (reintroducing old friends to a gameday experience that is shocking if you’re a pre-04 grad and haven’t been back, cheap beer, east campus, and best of all celebrating with friends like always) and not spending a great fall Saturday in the long shadow of a beautiful new Bridgeforth myopically discussing the questionable decision-making of a 19 year old (there but for the grace of….).
Interview with Coach L
1) What are your expectations for Dukes FH this year? Is a CAA title a possiblity? What about an NCAA berth? We are very much in a re-building year. If we advance to the CAA finals or NCAA play this year we will have hugely overachieved. What I have seen from our team this year though is that they are capable and willing to run through a brick wall to overachieve. It is a great feeling to have such a young, enthusiastic group of determined young women. It bodes well for JMU, the future of our team and the athletes involved.
2) Any newcomers (freshmen or transfers) you’re really excited about?
I have and continue to be excited about all of our 8 incoming freshmen. Across the board, we have talent and work ethic that can ignite our team to a sustainable top 10-15 program level for their next 4 years of eligibility.
Super Frosh Taylor West
With that being said, Taylor West is our most decorated freshmen to date. She will be a USA Olympian and National Team player once she is healthy. Unfortunately, she has struggled with stress fractures in her shins for the last year. She rested her legs from the end of May, 2011 until the start of our pre-seasion (very limited running) but has unfortunately had a recurrence of pain in her shins after competing in pre-season and 4 of our competitions. We are resting her now and will be making day by day decisions to see if she can continue to compete with us this fall.
We also had the misfortune of losing our English recruit, Chole Tyler, during pre-season. She left for home for undisclosable reasons. She would have developed in to a very good player had she chosen to stay. We wish her the best and respect her reasons to return to her home country.
3) What’s your team’s biggest strength at this point? Our team’s biggest strength’s at this point is our heart,desire and our willingness to compete against the odds. I could not predict in our scheduling that we would have lost several key players to injury etc.. Fortunately, with our injuries and losses to our roster, we have retained athletes that are willing to work together and to find ways to compete. It has been a great group to work with a group that wants to win so badly, but gosh, I wish they would shoot more! I also hope and pray that Sam Smiertka, our junior captain who is suffering from a disc injury in her back, and Taylor West will return to action soon
4) Any new stories about whipping Mickey’s behind on the golf course? Mickey has been MIA on the golf course! My take on it is he played poorly at Pebble Beach in early June and then whined about it all summer… He has teases me ALL THE TIME about being able to “get in my helmet” when I putt..(I do putt like I am hitting the ball in to next week) but uh, please.. Can you at least show up to play?!? 🙂
Update: After we posted this, JMU Athletic Director made the announcement that both Justin Thorpe and Chase Williams are suspended indefinitely.
CSNWashington is reporting that JMU’s starting QB, Justin Thorpe, has been suspended 5 games for failing a drug test. There aren’t too many details at this time, but JMU is supposedly going to issue a release with more information later this morning. Rumors of Thorpe’s suspension were brought to our attention last night by reader @MikeOShea33. He tweeted us and the DNR’s Mike Barber to let us know that he heard from a well informed source that JT was going to be suspended. This prompted Barber to hit the phones and start reporting. It prompted us to panic.
I don’t want to judge Thorpe or call him a bad guy. Thousands of kids on campuses all across the country probably did drugs of some sort over the weekend. Thousands of kids don’t have the opportunity to quarterback a football team with rapidly building expectations though. This just sucks. The Dukes had a great win on the road against a conference rival on Saturday. Thorpe only threw the ball 4 times, but he made great decisions and took another giant step forward. Fans were finally coming around to Justin and starting to think big things for this Dukes squad. Now redshirt freshman, Jace Edwards is presumably going to be the starter this Saturday against Richmond. Many fans were calling for him to start heading into this season. They’re going to get their wish.
In Friday’s preview, I predicted that the Dukes would win comfortably on Saturday and are the CAA favorites Sunday morning. I never thought they’d be breaking in a new starting QB on Monday.
It’s Homecoming Week! And as hard as it would’ve been to believe when we left Bridgeforth a couple weeks back after a lackluster opener against CCSU, the Dukes are coming home 3-1 after back-to-back road wins over ranked teams after taking down William & Mary 20-14 last night. And even crazier, there are signs the old Dukes swagger the program seemed to have misplaced the last two years is coming back!
One more laugh at the Griffin everyone.
But before we get carried away getting excited for this coming weekend, a little wrapup from last night’s game. Solid straight game story can be found here. Yes, the Dukes caught a few breaks last night (dropped TD catch, botched FG, and catching WM in the middle of a four-alarm QB crisis), but after the Tribe’s strong opening drive, the D stepped up big time to clamp down on the CAA’s best player in RB Jonathan Grimes. In typical Dukes fashion, they made us all sweat the whole way through a late Tribe comeback attempt, but don’t let the score or the naysayers fool you on this one. JMU was dominant last night on both sides of the ball in a way we haven’t seen in way too long. Deeper, more physical, and more athletic all over the field. Getting Latney in the mix at RB added a new dimension to the running game and they found ways to get Kerby Long the ball in space. JT seems to be getting his legs back under him as well and was a threat to run all night.
But it was the old JMU attitude that came right through the non-HD screen (complete with the un-PC Tribe logo WITH feathers on Comcast) and emboldened hopes that this season may be starting to get on track! The D, led by Robertson and Middleton, was just stifling and came to hit. And I have to grudgingly admit I loved the stubborn old MM playcalling for numerous reasons for once! The Dukes had a two-score lead for huge stretches of this game, the rain was torrential for most of the third quarter, and they seemed to be able to knock the Tribe off the line and pick up four or five yards at will. Oh yeah, and they also beat W&M last year attempting one lonely pass. If ain’t broke, don’t fix it. You just know Mickey loved a gameplan where JMU only attempted four passes!
Ok, now we can move on to freaking out about how the hell JMU”s going to stop UR wideout Tre Gray next week and planning for some serious cooler rustlin’ during a huge HC tailgate in P-Lot!
The 2011 CAA opener for the JMU Dukes is this Saturday. JMU will head to Williamsburg for a game with 5th ranked William & Mary, the team that practically everyone picked to win the conference. It’s the marquee CAA match-up for the weekend and the winner will emerge with plenty of momentum, not to mention a huge target on its back.
TV Coverage: Comcast Sports Mid Atlantic at 7:00
Viewing Parties: Bailey’s in Ballston for the Nova folks
How We Got Here
Each team enters the game with identical 2-1 records. You know the story for the Dukes. A blowout loss in Chapel Hill followed up by a shaky win over CCSU. They are fresh off a confidence building win over Liberty last weekend though in which the offense came to life. William & Mary also opened the season with a blowout loss to an ACC team, falling 40-3 to UVa, before getting back on the winning track with a 24-7 defeat of VMI. Last weekend the Tribe had a less than inspiring 3 point win over Division II New Haven. Their much heralded UNC transfer QB, Mike Paulus, was benched in the first half of the game. As a result Tribe fans are still unsure what to think of this team.
The QB Situation
Earlier today W&M’s coaches named Mike Graham the starting QB for Saturday. Graham is a recruited walk-on who was the third on the depth chart entering the season, before both Mike Paulus and Brent Caprio failed to impress head coach Jimmy Laycock. And failed to impress is an understatement. The Tribe is ranked 115th out of 121 teams in passing efficiency. Paulus has only completed 18 of 48 pass attempts on the season. So in the span of just a few years, he went from signing with UNC as one of the top 10 QB recruits in the nation, to transferring to W&M, to being benched after struggling against a Division II team. If not for the fact that his brother took Deron Washington’s nutsack to the face, that would have to be the athletic low point for he and his family.
The Dukes QB play is on a little firmer footing. Justin Thorpe has struggled to win fans’ support, but he bounced back from a rough home opener with a strong game at Liberty. He didn’t play mistake free football, but he made the throws when he needed to and showed a lot of poise down the stretch. Fans are hoping it was his breakout game.
The Academics Excuse
Spend a night out with a group of W&M alums and I can guarantee you two things will occur. 1.) You will be bored to death and 2.) You will lose track of how many times they refer to their alma matter as “the college”. They seem to think that this little pet name for their school somehow makes it sound more prestigious. In reality it just sounds sort of douchey. And it’s stupid, because the school’s academic reputation speaks for itself. There is no denying that the W&M diploma is respected all over the world. And W&M fans continue to use the rigorous academics as an excuse every time the Tribe fails to meet expectations with athletics. You’d think that a bunch of smart people would find a way to use a school’s prestige and top notch academics as a recruiting advantage, but apparently not. I’m sure there are some recruits who can’t cut it academically and thus don’t end up at W&M. That’s not the biggest reason the Tribe loses football recruiting battles with other schools though. They lose far more recruits because the school is just mind-numbingly boring. W&M is a great school, but it would be more fun to spend the four years after high school in an Armenian prison than hanging out in Williamsburg delis with high achieving, yet distinctly unattractive W&M undergrads.
Keys to the Game for JMU
Three weeks into the season and Dae’Quan Scott has already has eclipsed the 100 yard rushing mark twice. That might surprise some folks, but not the W&M defense. Scott shredded the Tribe last year as a wildcat QB, rushing for 3 TDs in the Dukes’ upset win. A win in which the Dukes only attempted a single pass. The Tribe will focus on stopping Scott, so it’s going to be up to Justin Thorpe and the offense to execute a balanced attack like they did against Liberty. The more they can get TE Brian Barlow involved, the better off they’ll be.
On Defense, the Dukes will probably put 8 in the box to try to shut down W&M’s Jonathan Grimes. Grimes is one of the top rushers in the CAA and a key part of the Tribe attack. With Mike Graham getting his first start at QB, look for the Tribe to lean on Grimes even more than usual. The Dukes passing defense struggled against Mike Brown and Liberty last weekend, so facing an inexperienced QB might be just what the doctor ordered.
JMUSB Beer of the Week
We’re going back to Cali for the BOTW this week. Our recommendation is Bear Republic Racer 5 IPA. There are plenty of West Coast IPAs that just crank the bitterness up to attract hop heads and turn off everyone else. Racer 5 is not one of those beers. It’s got a pleasant citrusy hop aroma that beer geeks will dig, but it’s balanced enough to be enjoyed by all beer drinkers. Get some. It’s very drinkable and very good.
Prediction
I had this one marked for a loss in the preseason, but I’m much more confident now. W&M has struggled mightily and will be relying on a 3rd string QB Saturday night. The Dukes’ offense impressed me last Saturday, but the pass D gave me heartburn. I’m willing to chalk that up to the outstanding play of Mike Brown though and I think the D will bounce back this weekend. The Dukes win comfortably on Saturday and are the CAA favorites Sunday morning.
The Story
Pigs may fly after all. After years of responding to questions about the possibility of JMU moving up to the FBS (1A) level in football with responses like “not under the current administration” and “over my dead body,” Athletic Director Jeff Bourne told the Daily News Record yesterday that “I think it is very likely this could happen. I think you could see movement in the next 18-24 months.”
Talk about news to wake up to! And here I was all set to write a Field Hockey post thanks to a new interview with Coach Lucas.
We’d seriously love to link you to the original story, but in case you didn’t know, the DNR is a subscription service so it probably wouldn’t help all that much for most of us. That said, here’s the rest of the important bits with much love to DNR for asking the questions in light of the enormous shakeup going on throughout college footbal.
Bourne said, without prompting, that he could see JMU becoming a charter member of a conference comprised of upper-level I-AA schools and lower-level I-A schools – schools such as Appalachian State, Delaware, Marshall, Ohio University and Old Dominion.
While that would mean the end of meaningful rivalries with the Richmonds and William & Marys – programs likely to remain in what is now Division I-AA — it would put Madison in a conference of completely like-minded universities, meaning all would be committed to football as well as basketball.
Bourne also believes it would be cozy enough geographically to be cost effective.
“If you’re going to start a league, ideally, from scratch, you’d want to have one where your travel costs are reasonable and the institutions are similar,” he said.
Asked if a new I-A league might fit under the CAA umbrella, Bourne said, “I guess it’s always possible.” But he quickly added it’s not likely because he would prefer everybody in a I-A conference also play football. The Colonial includes basketball-only programs, such as George Mason and Virginia Commonwealth.
To JMU’s tremendous credit, Bourn mentioned precisely this scenario back in 2008 when discussing the expansion of Bridgeforth Stadium. Whether or not the stadium, and this potential move, turn out to be a good idea financially and ideaologically, remains to be seen, but you can’t say JMU didn’t plan for this or is just being reactionary to as the effects trickle down from the mega-conference/BCS cartel.
Our Take
As some of you may know who have been reading a while, Rob and I have diverged slightly on the idea of moving up. I’ve always been gung-ho about it, at times naively, while Rob has frequently touted the great things about FCS (namely winning consistently and playing for a championship) and been more cautious about the pitfalls of such a move.
Did you really think we built this for CCSU?
But all Dukes fans are smartest enough to see two things that make this move both inevitable and sound. First, the landscape of college football is set to change in a major way, and second, the stadium speaks for itself. In other words, JMU has clearly been positioning themselves as a “football school” to the tune of 68 million dollars for the new Bridgeforth Stadium we all love so much. This, or something like this, is going to happen and honestly, the news was less shocking than the WVU @ FedEx Field morning.
Yes, I can already hear the cries from some parts base that playing second-tier FBS football is less exciting and more expensive than FCS, epecially when the four or five super-conferences work even harder to keep the BCS for themselves, and freeze out everyone else. That’s missing the point. Am I looking forward to JMU playing in a money-losing bowl in Shreveport against Central Northwest Arkansas A&T? No, I’m not. But I’m a JMU psycho and I’m not sure I would, or could, throw everything aside for trip to Frisco, Texas to play in front of a half-full stadium for a 1-AA Championship either. There are already three tiers (BCS, non BCS D-1, and FCS) and this is about moving up from Tier 3 to Tier 2. It’s about joining with like-minded and similarly-sized schools that take football seriously in a conference that makes geographic sense for all sports where some of the most powerful political voices don’t make financial decisions without considering football (VCU, GMU). And lastly, it’s about positioning. In the same way JMU was ahead of the game by building Bridgeforth out to be ready for this college football shakeup, it would be nice to think this will put them in better position ten years from now when the current BCS deal runs its course and the next earthquake hits college football.
We’re going to be covering this ad nauseum for the foreseeable future from about a zillion angles (effect on search for a new JMU president, the approximately 50 additional scholarships required including the possibility of a new women’s sport for Title IX compliance, future rivals, etc.). But I think it’s safe to say we’re strongly optimistic about the future and JMU’s place in it.
Now let’s all try and remember we’ve got a top-ten showdown at William & Mary this Saturday night with wide tv coverage!
Not gonna bury the lead here. The JMU Dukes scored 27 points and beat Liberty 27-24 on a last-second field goal in a thrilling game in Lynchburg Saturday night. And they didn’t do it on the strength of lucky breaks or huge turnovers, but rather by producing a number of creative, sustained drives the likes of which we haven’t seen in a few seasons. In the course of a performance that gives all Dukes fan a chance to breathe a sigh of relief, they also answered a TON of questions. What a difference a week makes.
$$$$$$$$$$$$
Does Justin Thorpe have a chance to be a big time player? Sure looked like it. On two of JMU’s long drives, JT missed wide open receivers for huge plays (likely a TD on the overthrow to Sharp). But you know what? He came right back on both drives and threw darts to convert 3rd downs leading to touchdowns. Also made a few nice plays with his feet and generally led the team with a confident calm in a tense game. (Does need to clean up his option decisions and pitches though)
Will Mickey Matthews ever open the playbook? At least for one night he did. It’s really amazing how much better a QB, and for that matter an entire offense, can look when allowed to throw in non-obvious passing situations. Also took MM till midway through the third quarter to find TE Brian Barlow, whom he calls his best player, but once he did, that opened thing up even further. The opening drive of the second half was an absolute thing of beauty that Dukes fans have been craving since Rodney Landers left the field against Montana to end the ’08 season.
Are we going to get anything more than “god-awful” out of the kicking game? Who knows, but that was a MONEY kick by Cameron Starke to win it and you’d have to think that’s going to be an enormous confidence boost that has the potential to spread throughout the special teams.
Are the Dukes tough enough to navigate the always difficult CAA year better than the last two years? Signs are certainly trending upward. On the road, loud crowd, seriously tough opponent led by an All-American talent in top form in QB Mike Brown, two weeks of bitching and moaning from a grumpy, impatient fan base, two missing defensive tackles, four leads given up thanks to an uncharacteristically atrocious showing from the defensive backfield, and a batshit crazy refereeing crew handing out personal fouls like condoms at the Bunny Ranch. NONE of it phased the Dukes. They fought through all of it mentally, phyically, and emotionally and came through in a huge way. They also came to hit in a big way.
Things we don’t want to hear: 1) Any more about Liberty. Dukes don’t play them next year. They have a great stadium (not Bridgeforth by a country mile though), a building fanbase (albeit sober), and a tough, experienced team. But unless they join the conference or enter into potential playoff scenarios, can we shelve all the obsession with the Flames and move on to the low-rent Monarchs? 2) Dukes only won because of LU penalties. Look, this game was exhibit A on the monstrosity that is FCS officiating, but it was horribly inconsistent both ways and the Dukes won. 3) Any more jumping off the bandwagon for at least the next two weeks. The Dukes are now right where we all thought, and hoped, they’d be. 2-1 headed to top-ranked W&M. Regardless what happens this week, coming back to BFS for Homecoming agains the Ticks will be the real test on how they rest of the season will play out so show some support and don’t panic. And last, but not least, 4) W&M is somehow an easier task because they barely snuck by D2 New Haven on Saturday. CCSU, please reference. Going to be a great week!
Well folks it’s time for the Dukes to clash with the Liberty Flames. Admittedly, I didn’t know too much about the Liberty football program or the school itself before last year’s game. I did a little poking around online though and Liberty seems like a neat place full of incredibly nice people. Incredibly nice people who thought Kevin Bacon played a bad guy in Footloose, but nice people nonetheless. And while the Flame fans who visited JMUSB last season or chimed in about us on Twitter were completely devoid of anything even resembling a sense of humor and collectively had the thinnest skin of any group of fans I’ve ever encountered, let’s assume they were outliers. In any case, this is a huge game for Liberty and for JMU. The Flames will have the luxury of playing it at home in front of what is expected to be a record crowd. And it’s a night game so the Liberty fans will have all day to tailgate and stay extra sober.
Striking Similarities
JMU and Liberty are both 1-1, after each losing to an ACC opponent on the road, and defeating an NEC opponent at home. Liberty lost to NC State 43-21 and then cruised to a 38-7 win over Robert Morris. The Dukes as you know, lost 42-10 to UNC before opening Bridgeforth with a 14-9 win over CCSU. As a result, JMU is currently ranked 14th and Liberty 19th in the FCS Coaches Poll. Yes, the poll is worthless and illogical.
A Clash of Styles
Liberty has a high powered offense led by Mike Brown, a talented dual threat QB. They’re very tough to beat in Lynchburg and are currently riding a 9 game home winning streak. During the winning streak, they’ve averaged almost 50 points a game. Yes, 50. The Flames defense has been better than expected, but this is an offensive football team. JMU is all about defense however. And the Dukes defense was able to shut down Liberty last year, holding them to just 3 points. The offense ran all over CCSU last weekend, but struggled passing and couldn’t hold onto the ball. As a result, JMU still caries the stigma of “All D, No O” into this game.
How Liberty Can Win
By striking quickly and forcing the Dukes to pass. No matter if you believe Justin Thorpe just had an off day last Saturday or if you think he’s terrible, the fact is he has yet to prove himself as a passer. Liberty’s best chance to win might be to jump out to a lead and force the Dukes to play catch up by airing it out.
How JMU Can Win
By shutting down Mike Brown and eliminating the turnovers. I know everyone is anxious for the Dukes to show some explosiveness on offense. The fact is they can win this game just like they won last year’s 10-3 slugfest (as boring as it might have been), by clamping down on D and scoring just enough.
JMUSB Beer of the Week
As we all know, beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy. We’re sticking close to that theme this week and choosing Chimay Blanche as our BOTW. One of my all time favorites, this Belgian tripel is brewed by Trappist monks in Scourmont Abbey. It’s a good crisp beer and since it’s brewed by men of the cloth, it’s almost like you’ll be praying for a Dukes win by drinking it.
JMUSB Prediction
I’m not going to lie, I’ve got a bad, bad feeling about this one. Despite the fact that Flame fans will say it’s disrespecting their program by claiming that a win Saturday would be a signature moment for the program, it’s true. It would. Get over it. This is the game they’ve had circled on the calendar since last year and it’s their seniors last chance to beat JMU or any team from a top FCS conference. The Dukes have been searching for an offensive identity since 2008 and I don’t think they’ll find it Saturday. My heart says Dukes 24-10. My head says Liberty 17 – JMU 6. Pull for the heart.
Bad Duke Dog.
JMU not only unveiled a new and improved Bridgeforth Stadium on Saturday night, they also unveiled a new Duke Dog costume. The stadium received rave reviews all around. The new Duke Dog on the other hand, um, not so much. Everyone hated it. And with good reason. There was nothing wrong with the old Duke Dog. The new one didn’t even look like a dog. It looked like the bastard child of Teddy Ruxpin and one of the sluttier Care Bears. JMU athletics got the message and is bringing the real Duke Dog back.
Because it is 2011, Facebook played a huge role in this. Duke Dog fans utilized it to collect signatures for a petition. In turn, the news that the old Duke Dog was returning was delivered via a post to “Fellow Members of the JMU Nation” (Ed. note: let’s kill that term while we’re in a changing mood) on the JMU Dukes Facebook page.
Good Duke Dog.
Thankfully, the new Duke Dog will probably be nothing more than JMU athletic’s own little “new Coke” moment. W&M and George Mason already have the CAA market cornered on pathetic mascots. There’s really no need to infringe on their territory. Plus, the old Duke Dog was great. As the saying goes, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. With this little mishap behind us, JMU can now focus its attention on things that really need fixing. You know, like the Dukes’ passing game.
