And so it comes to this. JMU makes the long trip up to Orono to face the Maine Blackbears this Saturday. Neither team is playoff bound, so this is it. Thanks to last week’s huge victory over William & Mary, a win for the Dukes would salvage a winning record. Finishing 6-5 would be a consolation prize at best, considering the expectations many had for this team a few months ago. However, it’s way better than the alternative and would at least close the season on a high note. Maine is fresh off a win of its own, defeating Towson last Saturday 28-18. Maine can’t finish with a winning record, but a victory would push them to .500 in CAA play.
Match-Up – JMU Dukes vs Maine Black Bears
Records: JMU (5-5, 3-5 CAA), Maine (4-6, 3-4 CAA)
Kick-Off: 12:00 PM
Viewing/Listening Options: This one isn’t on tv, but the audio is available for free on Madizone or you can watch the online broadcast for $7.95. Or you can try your luck with the JMU Football App for your phone, which is about as reliable as the JMU passing game.
A Little Perspective
Take a look at the CAA standings. Everyone has been saying that a 7-4 team from the CAA might deserve a bid to the expanded playoffs. Well, depending on how things shake on Saturday we could be looking at 5 CAA teams testing that little theory, including William & Mary and Villanova (with a win), two teams who were ranked #1 this year. It doesn’t mean this season wasn’t a major disappointment for JMU, but maybe it wasn’t the complete disaster some of us made it out to be. Maybe it was just a down year in a really competitive conference.
Maine’s Legions of Support
You ever try to research University of Maine football? I have. It sucks. I don’t recommend it. Here is the biggest thing I learned, apparently nobody gives a damn about University of Maine football. And if they do, they certainly don’t write about it. So anyway, based on my research here is a list of things the residents of Maine would rather do than watch Blackbears’ football: eat lobster, talk about the Red Sawx, wear flannel, watch Maine hockey, read about Maine hockey, attend homecoming craft fairs, discuss Maine hockey, prepare for the upcoming war against New Hampshire, and finally write about Maine hockey. Like we said in our season preview, Maine is a hockey school. Football, not so much.
Same But Different
Maine has a relatively solid passing attack, but struggled rushing the ball for most of the season. The net result is an offense that averages just about 18 points a game. Coincidentally, JMU also averages about 18 points a game, but they have a strong rushing attack and a passing attack that ranges from relatively inept most weeks to completely non-existent last week. The big difference between these two teams is the fact that JMU has an excellent Defense, while Maine’s is ranked dead last in the CAA.
What We’re Looking For This Weekend
Top on the list is definitely Dae’Quan Scott. The redshirt freshman WR stepped into the QB role last week and took over the game, rushing for over 100 yards and 3 TDs. I’m anxious to see how he runs the ball again this week, but also want to see how well he can throw. Maybe by the end of this game, we’ll know if we have a game-breaking slash or wildcat guy, or if we need to get ready for another QB battle in August. I’m also curious to see how the defense plays without redshirt freshman LB Stephon Robertson, who is supsended due to a scuffle in last week’s victory.
How Maine Can Win
By shutting down JMU’s ground game and establishing their own. As stated above, Maine does not have a strong rushing attack and enters the game ranked 9th in the CAA in rushing. However, RB Pushuan Brown has put together several strong games in a row and could be a key factor in Saturday’s contest. JMU was dead set on running the ball last week and will probably look to do so again this weeked. Maine’s best chance on D might be to try to get Dae’Quan Scott throw the ball in only his second game as QB.
How JMU Can Win
By doing what they did against William & Mary and I don’t mean refusing to pass. I mean establishing long, clock killing scoring drives. Lost in all the shouting about “zero passing yards” last week, was the fact that JMU put together one hell of an impressive TD drive to open the third quarter. It lasted over 8 minutes! If JMU puts together a few more of those, the Dukes will win easily.
JMUSB Beer of the Week
It’s been a long season, so let’s drink something special. The JMUSB Beer of the Week is Allagash Curieux. It’s a Belgian Tripel aged in bourbon barrels and it’s one of my personal favorites. Plus, it’s brewed in the great state of Maine so it’s appropriate for this weekend. Pour yourself one after the game, toast the completion of another football season, and make the transition to basketball.
JMUSB Prediction
The momentum continues, JMU wins, and Dae’Quan Scott bandwagon grows larger. JMU Dukes 21 – Maine Black Bears 13.
So in all the excitement surrounding the start of hoops season and the black hole of another disappointing football season, we’ve been remiss in reporting on some other great news. This certainly doesn’t do justice to the accomplishments of JMU’s other Fall Sports, but we at least wanted to make sure to pass along the highlights (Rob and the BSchool crew might call this a “high-level overview”; only thought of this because the non-lawyer manager at my work used the term “matrix management” in an offhand manner that clearly indicated everyone in the room should know what the hell she was talking about yesterday – classic).
Congrats to CAA Player of the Year CJ Sapong
Men’s Soccer’s C.J. Sapong won the CAA Player of the Year after leading the Conference in BOTH goals and assists. He is the first Duke ever to be a four-time CAA First Team Member and we can only hope we’ll get to follow his professsional career somewhere soon.
Women’s Soccer likely had the highlight of the Fall by winning the CAA Championship. They also beat Texas in the first round of the Big Dance before falling 3-1 to defending national champion and #1 UNC last weekend. Fabulous season from Coach Lombardo’s team!
Women’s Cross Country finished 5th at the NCAA Regionals where they were paced by Senior superstar Alison Paris’ 13th overall. For many reasons I’ll leave to the running community to discuss, strong senior performances are rare in women’s distance running and it makes me proud to think that Alison and the coach’s have done things right!
Finally, the Volleyball team is our one shining team still playing (not counting the afterthought that is the Orono trip) after storming to wins over Hofstra and Northeastern to clinch a spot in this weekend’s CAA Tourney where they’ll have a chance to advance further. Last weekend’s performance was led by CAA Defensive Player of the Week Lindsay Callahan. Let’s Go Dukes!
JMU's Humpty Hitchens
It’s tough to make any judgements after only one game, but Todd and I were both pretty excited by some of the things we saw during JMU’s loss at Kansas State last Friday. At first glance, it’s clear that Brady has assembled a fairly talented roster that might have the potential to do big things in CAA play. It was a loss however, so obviously there are still plenty of things to work on. Here is our quick breakdown of some of the positives and negatives we picked up on last Friday.
Three Positives
Rashard Goins – He looks like he could be the perfect complement to Bowles down low. Last year the Dukes were sorely missing another player who could score in the paint. Goins seems more than capable of filling that void, as he led the Dukes in scoring. He’s only 6’6″, but he’s a house and wasn’t afraid to challenge the big guys. He also showed some range, hitting a 3 from about 8 feet beyond the line. It’s scary to think how good he could be if he played in shorts, instead of those mid-shin length pants the team was sporting.
Balanced Scoring – Last year on most nights Bowles set the pace, Julius Wells chipped in 15+, and it was a guessing game to determine if anyone else would score. Friday night, the Dukes had 4 guys in double figures. Goins had 17, Bowles 11, while Moore and Wells each had 13. Despite averaging 16 points per game, Julius Wells shot under 40% from the floor and had over 100 turnovers last year. Translation – he needs a lot of touches to get his points. Therefore I think this year’s team will be better if he’s not one of the primary options on offense. If Friday night is any indication, this team has more weapons and shouldn’t need to rely on the same 2 players every game.
Depth – Last year JMU had injury and eligibility issues resulting in a severe lack of depth. When JMU had players in foul trouble, Coach Brady had a thin bench to rely on. Friday night, we got a chance to see how much deeper this year’s team is. Ben Louis started at times last year and he was the 3rd or 4th guy of the bench against Kansas State. In his first college game, Chad Jackson looked a little overwhelmed at times, but overall played a solid game and looks like he can give Brady good minutes. Plus James Millen will be eligible in December, adding another option at guard.
Three Negatives
Turnovers – They cost JMU games last season and might have cost them a shot at the upset on Friday. The Dukes turned the ball over a whopping 26 times. You can’t win in conference play if you don’t take care of the ball.
Perimeter Defense – From what I gather, I’m one of the few people who thought our defense on the blocks looked better. I didn’t see the same improvement on the perimeter. Kansas State was able to work the ball around and get open jumpers repeatedly in the first half. The Wildcats shot over 50% from behind the arc. I guess you could argue that they were just red hot, but to me it looked like they were given too many wide open looks.
Flow of the Offense – JMU started off great, leading early and keeping it close for a while. As mentioned above, they had 4 guys in double figures and have more weapons than in years past. It appeared like the guys on the floor didn’t know who the primary weapons were however. Denzel only scored 11, but hit 4 of 7 from the field. It looked like he was waiting for the game to come him and deferring to the new guys a little too much. I just think this is a case of guys learning to play with each other and it will be worked out relatively soon. For know though, we’ll count it as a negative.
Bonus Positive
JMU has a guy named Humpty in the starting lineup. I love that.
Balance? We don’t need no stinking balance! I’ve got to hand it to Mickey Matthews, Durden, and the rest of the JMU coaching staff. They came up with a strategy that they thought would work, and then they stuck with it. JMU defeated the William & Mary Tribe by the score of 30-24 and did it without a single yard passing. One pass attempt, zero yards, one win. The coaches went with WR Dae’Quan Scott playing wildcat qb for most of the day and just ran the ball down the Tribe’s throats. Scott ran for 125 of JMU’s 266 yards and had 3 TDs in his breakout performance.
We had a bit of a bizarro JMUSB situation this week. Todd, who’s normally one of the most optimistic fans I’ve ever met, was pretty down on the Dukes and their chances this weekend. I am usually the paranoid, sky is falling, my favorite team is dooomed, sort of fan. Yet for some reason I really believed JMU was primed for an upset win. I was down after the Richmond loss, but somehow snapped out of it and convinced myself things weren’t that bad and decided to stick with my plans to go to the game. I am so glad that I did. The weather was beautiful and so were the results. It was easily the most fun I’ve had at Bridgeforth since the Rodney Landers years.
I’ve heard a few folks grumbling about this being an ugly win or bemoaning the fact that the Dukes didn’t have a single passing yard. Seriously? The Dukes knocked off a CAA rival who was ranked #1 in the country. And they did it by setting up in the wildcat and just daring William & Mary to stop them. I thought it was bold almost to the point of arrogance, and just a blast to watch. Why do anything different if the Tribe couldn’t stop what JMU was doing? Todd and I have been clamoring for more touches for Dae’Quan and the plays he made today are the reason why. Just a great game by an exciting player. An exciting redshirt freshman player I might add.
This game showed how little I know about the Xs and Os of football. I’ve been screaming that the Dukes should pass more, add some variety to the playbook, etc. Then Matthews has the stones to basically run the same thing over and over again and it worked. I feel awful for Dudzik, who essentially got replaced on his Senior Day, but the insertion of Scott was an outstanding move that gave JMU its best shot at winning. It also resultedd in some exciting football. And man was it fun to watch the Dukes win again!
UPDATE: Before the football preview, quick update on tonight’s JMU action. First Women’s Soccer opened the NCAA tournament with a huge 3-1 win over the Texas Longhorns in Chapel Hill. Up next, a 1:00 p.m. date Sunday with defending national champions UNC Tarheels.
In hoops, it appears the Dukes will bow out gracefully to the KSt. Wildcats, but watching this game with the future in mind, this team looks damn good! Goins is going to be a huge factor in freeing up Bowles, Devon Moore narrowly avoided a major injury (phew!), Semenov looks back to form, and Jackson looks atheticallly ready to fit in anywhere despite some freshman mistakes in the first half! Can’t wait to se how this team develops. Brady’s on the clock now with this assembly of talent and ability. Now back to the miserable exercise of previewing tomorrow’s game.
Amazingly, this is our 162nd post. I’m certain it’s the toughest one I’ve written. I have almost no energy to make fun of the Featherless Tribe so I’ll keep this short n’ sweet despite the fact the Dukes are bringing the nation’s new #1 team to the ‘Burg on Senior Day.
Smartest school in the conference and THIS is what they came up with?!
The Basics:
As stated in our preseason preview, the Tribe/Griffins are incredibly well coached by the incomparable Jimmye Laycock. To say they are better coached than the Dukes is like saying Brett Favre has an Irish curse. The Tribe are now using their fourth QB of the year yet seem to be getting better, and are clearly maxing their potential for a team most thought would take a step back this year. On the other hand, JMU’s staff has mentioned our injuries more than Sarah Palin talks about grizzly bears this fall. William & Mary’s been up and down a bit this year, but they always have a strong defense (which will look like the ’85 Bears against the Dukes offense) and stud RB Jonathan Grimes leads a punishing running attack that seems likely to gash the Dukes decimated front four.
JMUSB Beer of the Week: Just make sure to have something with a high ABV so you can forget the second half if necessary. I’d say Ommegang Abbey Ale at an incredibly tasty 8.6% should do the trick.
Reasons to attend this week’s game: Your kid is a senior on the team or the MRD’s, you’re on a JMU high after a huge Friday upset of KState in hoops, or you’re a cutter.
Chances the Dukes score more than 10 points: 23%
Chances MM burns Jace Edward’s redshirt for ABSOLUTELY no reason: A very unfortunate 10% Seriously, there is NO excuse for doing this and it better not even be considered.
Official JMUSB Prediction: Rob and I have flipped. I’m now the half-empty guy. Tribe 34, Dukes 6 (missed XP, not two FGs of course).
The 2010-2011 JMU basketball season officially kicks off tonight as the Dukes face Kansas State in Manhattan, Kansas. The Wildcats are ranked #3 in the preseason poll and have eyes on winning it all after last season’s Elite 8 campaign. They’re good and it will obviously be a great test for the Dukes. The game will be televised on ESPNU at 9:00. There is a viewing party at Bailey’s in Ballston for the NOVA folks.
Upset wins against teams from big conferences are nice and it would be awesome for Coach Brady and the boys to get off to a hot start. As this football season has taught us however, one upset does not make a season. Let’s try to stay big picture here and take a look at the outlook for the 2010 Dukes.
The Third Year is the Charm
This will be Head Coach Matt Brady’s third season at the helm of the JMU program. In his first year, he guided the team to its first winning season in 9 years, playing 3 freshmen major minutes. Brady’s top 3 recruits, Devon Moore, Julius Wells, and Andrey Semenov all earned CAA all-rookie honors that year. Fans were ready to put the dark days of Dillard and Keener behind them and anxious to see JMU challenge for a CAA crown in year two. Last year, the Dukes got crushed by injuries, losing Semenov and Moore among others, and finished 13-20. Brady enters his third year, with the same trio of players who helped pace the Dukes in his first season, plus the addition of the ultra-talented Denzel Bowles and a number of promising transfers. The prognosticators are expecting the Dukes to make a leap this year and go from bottom of the pack, to contending with the big boys.
What We’re Most Excited About
Denzel Bowles. Denzel Bowles. Denzel Bowles. Anyone who read this blog last season, knows how everytime we watched Denzel play we turned into fanboys. Expect more of the same this year. Can you really blame us? He averaged 20 points and 9 boards a game and shot 59% from the field. The knock on him last year, was that he didn’t give max effort on the defense. It sounds like he realized that this offseason and is now committed to play both ends of the court. I can’t wait to see what Denzel does with a stronger supporting cast this season. He’s our pick for CAA Player of the Year hands down.
What Worries Us
Injuries. Last season JMU just got bit by the injury bug and it hurt big time. After watching the football team suffer through a similar bout of sprains, breaks, and tears, I’m full on paranoid. I really don’t want to talk about. No more injuries please.
The Big Additions
Coach Brady brought in 4 transfers, 3 of whom will are eligible to play this year. Forward Rayshawn Goins, is a 6’6″ bruiser who is expected to add some muscle and toughness to the Dukes starting frontcourt after averaging a double-double in junior college. His juco teammate, James Millen, is a guard who will contend for a role in the starting 5. Humpty Hitchens transferred from Akron and was unexepectedly granted his eligibility to play this season. He’ll bring experience and poise off the bench. Brady’s top high school recruit is guard Chad Jackson, who was runner up for Mr. Basketball in Kentucky as a senior in high school.
Key Questions
Can Brady get this team to play tougher defense?
Will Julius Wells be better since he’ll have less of the offense on his shoulders?
Can Brady build chemistry on a team with this many transfers?
How will players who saw major minutes last season, react to fewer minutes this year?
The Bottom Line
We predicted that the football team would go 8-3, so either we just suck at making predictions or we’re a jinx. Regardless, we’re getting out of that business. The Dukes finished 11th in the CAA last season and were tapped to finish 4th in the preseason poll at CAA Media Day. Clearly, people are expecting big things for this year’s team. So are we. For the first time in a long time, we’re not simply hoping the Dukes can avoid the play-in game at the CAA tourney. We’re not praying that they can keep it close against the ODUs, VCUs, and George Masons of the league. We’re expecting them to win and we’re expecting them to contend for a CAA Championship. Let’s just leave it at that. Go Dukes!
Alright folks, this is getting depressing. Yeah, the Dukes obviously are not living up to the expectations many of us had for them. Reading crap like my wrap-up of the Richmond game (worst post ever) makes it sound like JMU’s best option might be to halt the construction of the new stadium and fold the program. There are still 2 games left. JMU isn’t going to the playoffs. This season. That doesn’t mean they won’t turn it around and be back competing for championships next season. Here are 3 quick thoughts on why things might not be as bad as they seem.
1. ) Did anyone watch the Cowboys play Sunday night? Now that is a football team that has completely given up and bailed on its coach. It was the complete opposite of the sort of effort I’ve seen JMU put in every week. Obviously, effort doesn’t equal wins, but I’d be far more concerned with the state of the program if the players had obviously given up. Idiots (like yours truly) who alleged that two disappointing seasons in a row means the program is in crisis might be taking things a bit too seriously.
2.) JMU has a championship caliber defense and they’re excelling with a bunch of back-ups and guys playing out of position. This defense is on pace to give up the fewest points in JMU history. JMU has only given up 12 TDs all season! The only thing they have lacked is an ability to cause turnovers, but it looks like they might have figured that out last weekend against Richmond.
3.) The Dukes are really young overall. At times this season, JMU has looked a little inexperienced in big moments. You know why?Nearly 70% of the players on the roster are Freshmen or Sophomores! JMU had few senior leaders heading into the season and now due to injuries and other issues, many of them haven’t been playing. Injuries are no excuse, but sometimes a season like this one gives players a chance to get game experience earlier on in their careers than they normally would. That could pay off over the next few seasons.
Yeah, I’m definitely drinking more Kool Aid then most right now. This season has been a complete downer since the Tech win. Let’s try to have a little perspective though. Things probably aren’t as bad as they seem. Plus, the Dukes get to knock off William & Mary this weekend, which is nice.
It's still just a pig.
Ugh. There is nothing else you can say. The Dukes wasted another strong performance by the Defense and fell 13-10 in overtime to Richmond. I’d love to sit here and tell you that JMU just got unlucky or that it was a game that saw the Dukes take a huge step forward. It wasn’t though. We can try to dress this one up all we want, but it won’t make a difference. It was bad. The offense wasted another gutsy effort from the banged up Defense and an outstanding game by Jamal Sullivan. Completely wasted them.
I continue to be amazed that the Defense can rise to the occasion and keep JMU in games week in and week out. It would be an accomplishment with a full complement of starters. Doing it with a bunch of back-ups and players playing out of position is just awesome. Throw in the pressure of knowing that the offense is virtually incapable of scoring more than 14 points and it’s barely short of miraculous. Yesterday, DJ Bryant, Stephon Robertson, Vidal Nelson, Taveion Cuffee, and the boys on D played awesome, forced turnovers, and did everything possible to put the offense in a position to win. It’s really just pathetic that the offense couldn’t come through.
Jamal Sullivan had a heck of a game. That’s about the only positive I can come up with for the offense. It’s gotten to the point, where I just feel bad for Drew Dudzik. I’ve been a big fan of the kid’s since I first saw him take the field a few seasons ago in relief of Rodney. I still am a fan of his. The poor guy just looked absolutely lost yesterday though. To say he wasn’t very effective would be putting it mildly. And the penalties. Oh, the untimely penalties. Those didn’t help much. Nor did the typically terrible play-calling. Going straight backwards in overtime? Is it worse that it happened, or that we all knew it would?
Maybe we should do another Fan Confidence Poll. I was shocked even 1.92% of you said you had full confidence in the program heading into this week. I’d be blown away if anyone had even moderate confidence after yesterday. If you actually do have a lot of confidence in this program now, then please explain why in the comments. Please! I won’t argue with you or attempt to change your opinion. I just want someone to cheer me up and tell me what the Kool Aid tastes like.
Seriously, there’s nothing to say at this point. The offense is just flat out broken and the coaches can’t seem to do anything to fix it (or give us the appearance they’re even trying to fix it.) The Dukes will look to close the season with two wins and salvage another meaningless 6-5 season over the next two weeks. #1 William & Mary comes to town next Saturday. I’m sure there will be PLENTY of good seats available. Todd and I will still be there cheering on the boys with some family and friends. Hopefully we’re not the only ones.
Well it’s come down to this. The Dukes are set to take on the hated Richmond Ticks this Saturday and despite the pathetic lack of offense, lots of hate for the coaching staff, and the fact that most fans have abandoned the Dukes already, JMU will play it’s first game at Richmond’s brand spanking new on-campus high school stadium with a flickering hope at the postseason remaining. Thanks to a down year nationwide in FCS and an expanded playoff field, it’s not that farfetched to think a 7-4 team will make the playoffs. And it remains highly likely if that happens that the team will come from the CAA. Not to mention that if ESPN has anything to say about the new “opening round” game participants, and let’s be honest, they do, the suits would love to roll out the Hokie-vanquishing Dukes!
Tick engorged with thumb on toddler's head causing disease
That said, it’s going to take at least a point, though maybe not more than 10 or so, to send the red-sweater and boat shoes brigade that is the UR fanbase (such as it is) back across the street to CCV to deal with another loss in the usual manner – drinking watered-down bourbon and telling old cracka’ jokes.
JMUSB Special Note: We know we’ve been slack the last couple of weeks. Like a lot of JMU Nation, we’ve been “slightly disappointed” in the play of the gridiron Dukes and unfortunately, it’s shown in our blogging abilities. Following Saturday’s victory, we promise to pick it up given that Men’s and Women’s Soccer have great tourney action, CJ Sapong was the National player of the week last week, Cross Country and Volleyball have had some moments lately, Dawn Evans is the best and most inspiring player in all of women’s basketball, and last but certainly not least the EXTREMELY underrated Men’s Basketball team opens the season with a huge opportunity next Friday at top five Kansas St. on ESPNU. Also, Hoops previews and KSt. watch party announcements coming soon.
JMUSB Beer of the Week: Screw beer, it’s playoff time. Fill a flask with something dark and smoky, stick it in your sock, and get after it. If the Dukes win, you’ve created a superstition bound for greatness in the next eight games (yeah, I said eight!). If they lose, you’ve got a headstart on a night of brooding and trying to convince yourself hoops season means as much.
Preseason Ticks PreviewSpecial Note: Mr. Fancypants Aaron Corp, the USC transfer, is out for the year as is the backup QB. UR is now starting their punter at QB so you can pretty much take all mediocrity we discussed in the summer and downgrade it. Doesn’t mean the Dukes will win, only that the Ticks have our kind of problems.
Official JMUSB Prediction: Come on, it’s me, and I’m always delusional and completely hopped up on the Purple Kool-Aid for at least one more week. With the pressure off, and playing a virtual home game, Dudzik and company finally explode this weekend. Much like JMU’s just-announced deal to “host” playoff games in Richmond’s old City Stadium, this could be too little, too late, but this weekend, the boys will quiet the critics and win this won going away. Dukes 42, Ticks 10.
Throw those streamers with authority.
We’ll be at Bailey’s again.
Keep Coach Lucas!
[polldaddy poll=4027348]Saying this season has had peaks and valleys would be a gross understatement. JMU became only the second FCS team to beat a ranked FBS opponent by knocking off VA Tech, but the Dukes currently sit at 9th place in the CAA with a 1-4 conference record. They are 4-4 overall. There are 3 more games on the schedule, all against CAA foes. The Dukes could close on a hot streak and finish with a very respectable 7-4 record. Things could get worse and they could lose out and finish 4-7. They could finish somewhere in between. One thing is certain, this is not where most fans expected JMU to be back in September.
A lot can change over the next 3 weeks. The point of this post isn’t to try to force you to drink the kool aid and believe that everything is fine. Nor is it an attempt to persuade you that the program has entered into a some downward spiral. I’m just curious to see how confident you are in the state of the program. Please vote in the poll above and feel free to make your case in the comments.
