Drake won last week’s prediction contest, earning the right to guest post. Here’s his piece on being a JMU fan in the heart of SEC country and his personal top 5 favorite JMU football moments.
JMU gets CAA play started this weekend. The Albany Great Danes will come to Bridgeforth to face the 2-0 Dukes. That means it’s time for predictions. Leave a comment below letting us know who you think will win Saturday’s game and what the final score will be. The person who comes closest to nailing it (winner & score) will get to write a guest post. That’s it. Easy as pie. Have fun and Go Dukes!
Everett Withers just announced the suspension of starting defensive tackle Simeyon Robinson.
— Matt Jones (@MattJones36) September 15, 2015
As we’ve said before Coach Withers doesn’t mess around. Weather we’re talking about onside kicks or player discipline, he operates according to his own standards. And he expects the players to live up to those standards too. No further information was given, other than to say that the starting defensive end violated university and team policies.
The Madison battle station is approaching fully operational status!
The Dukes Death Star is nearly fully operational and it’s only Week 2! On a wet Saturday afternoon, the Dukes rode a relentless offense and some special teams magic to an enormous 55-17 rout of Patriot League foe Lehigh.
The Good
Fans! – for a second straight week, the fans made themselves a factor. While there weren’t many of them (I’m sorry but there’s no getting around the overall down attendance from previous years), they were into the game and it certainly seems like we’re all getting that feeling about this squad and starting to buckle up for the ride!
The Attack – So I was worried about the offense falling out of rhythm after former Offensive Coordinator and play caller Drew Mehringer followed old buddy Tom Hermann to Houston over the offseason. But in case you haven’t noticed, apparently this particular offense is plug n’ play. New OC has picked up right where the Dukes left off last year and for the second straight week, the Dukes just hung half-a-hundred on someone. Deane Cheatham is coming along on his way back from injury and could be a real difference-maker again for this team. Vad is Vad. Cardon Johnson impressed again, and Brandon Ravenel is providing the type of “slash” player that mixes up the attach just right. Pretty tough to complain about much when that’s the case. By the way, have you seen the Houston attack the first two weeks? Looks a heckuva lot like another Death-Star-in-the-Making at the next level.
Gage Steele – So good to have him leading an improving Defense and you always have to love when your linebackers are leading the team in tackles instead of the secondary.
Field Hockey – Oh, have we mentioned this is STILL our favorite non-football, non-hoops squad on campus. We may have lost our favorite coach, but many of the kids she brought in are still producing, in particular redshirt senior Taylor West (#TeamTaylor!) and junior Bailee Hubert. Plus the new coach is the old coach that won the title when we were in school and one of her stud assistants is all-around bad-ass and friend of JMUSB Karen Zarchin (wise move Coach Morgan!). And like the football team, they are rolling to start the year. We may even have to learn the new players like freshman sensation Miranda Rigg. And students – yeah you – Field Hockey still has the most underrated sneaky friends-of-the-program tailgate on campus. And it is just that, on campus. Get yourselves over there, it’s right by E-Hall.
@KlinesDairyBar is now following us (@JMUsportsblog) on Twitter. Pretty sure we should call it a day and retire as there’s really nowhere to go but down from here on out.
Just wanted to share this tweet from a Lehigh fan just before the game: “The @LehighFootball players have to be jacked up right now. Place is electric, FBS atmosphere. Will see how they control their emotions.” I’m leaving this in The Good because that makes us happy and points to the great job by our fans and the in-game production staff. Needless to say, it’s bittersweet because an FBS atmosphere deserves an FBS conference despite the well-written and thoughtful guest post last week.
The Bad
This isn’t really bad, just somewhere in between good and bad, more like confused. But we’re really not sure what to make of the Dukes’ onside kick up 30 in the third quarter. On one hand, we love it because it sends a clear message of “hammer down” no matter the situation and because there should be more onside kicks in any case (like we should be going on 4th even more). But on the other hand, it had at least enough whiff of unsporting that we’d of been complaining were we on the losing end. Tough one, so we’re gonna go with “it’s cool.”
The Ugly
The Breeze tweeting breathlessly about the UVA/Notre Dame game. It’s bad enough when stupid freshmen and overly sheltered Herbs from Brambleton and the West End and Cox just do what their daddies want and continue to follow other state schools, but really, we have much higher expectations from the paper of record at JMU. Remember, you write about James Madison, not THE University of Moral Victories and their tear-stained khakis and puke-stained boat shoes.
It’s gameday boys and girls. The weather is looking up and the JMU Dukes and Lehigh Mountain Hawks are set to kickoff at 4:00 in Bridgeforth Stadium. JMU is a 22.5 point favorite and the popular pick in our prediction contest. You can tune in for the stream via Madizone if you’re unable to make down to the ‘burg. And this is the spot for all your pre-game, in-game, and post-game chatter. Keep Rootin’.
For the second year in a row, JMU football will face off against the Lehigh Mountain Hawks. Last year the Dukes went on the road and narrowly escaped with a 31-28 come from behind win. We wouldn’t argue with you if you said the Dukes stole the game. JMU went on to finish 9-4, while Lehigh struggled to a disappointing 3-8 finish. But it’s a whole new ballgame this year.
The Basics
Match-up: #11 JMU Dukes (1-0) vs. Lehigh Mountain Hawks (1-0), unranked
Kickoff: 4:00 in Bridgeforth Stadium
Weather: 70 degrees and a chance of rain (poncho weather)
Broadcast: Streaming via Madizone
A Few Facts About Lehigh
Lehigh University has an outstanding academic reputation and is in the top 50 of the U.S. News National University rankings. However, at Lehigh Beer Pong is called “Beirut,” so I can only assume that everyone there is stupid. The name Lehigh actually means “The High” in Spanish and the Mountain Hawks compete in the Patriot League. Also, if you go to a party at Lehigh, you will probably be eaten by a bear. Parties where you get eaten by a bear are the worst sort of parties. Some of the things written here are actually true.
How We Got Here
The Dukes rolled over Morehead State in a 56-7 route. JMU racked up a program record 713 yards of total offense. Vad Lee, Khalid Abdullah, and Cardon Johnson all rushed for over 100 yards. Lee also tossed 3 TDs. The defense limited Morehead to 1.5 yards a carry on the ground. It wasn’t much more than a warmup.
Lehigh also picked up a win in its season opener. It was a bit more a struggle than the Dukes’ win though. The Mountain Hawks went on the road and held on for a 20-16 win over Central Connecticut State. Junior dual-threat QB Nick Shafnisky led the way. He rushed for 83 yards and a TD, while completing 19 of 27 passes for 263 yards and a TD. Lehigh jumped out to an early 17-0 lead, but let the Blue Devils claw their way back into the game in the second half. Thankfully for the Mountain Hawks, they were able to grind out a few first downs and run out the clock late to secure the win.
Lehigh’s Approach for Saturday
JMU has more talent than Lehigh. And the Dukes defeated Lehigh last year. The Mountain Hawks won’t be intimidated by JMU though. In the last game between the two teams, Lehigh pretty much rushed the ball at will against the Dukes. JMU surrendered over 300 yards on the ground to the Lehigh ground game. If not for the fact that Lehigh’s special teams were anything but special, missing two field goals and having one blocked, JMU would have probably been sent home with a loss.
Based on what Lehigh showed last week, the offense has pretty good balance. The team ran the ball late and got some first downs to kill the clock late, but also managed 13 first downs passing the ball. The Mountain Hawks also demonstrated some big play potential in the passing attack, with 3 receivers having receptions of 25+ yards. Central Connecticut State is no JMU though. Lehigh can’t get into a track meet with the Dukes, so look for them to try to establish the run and try to control the pace. They’re going to try to win an ugly game.
Football Cliche That is Most Relevant to JMU
“More football games are lost than won.” Lehigh deserves credit for playing the Dukes tough last year. They had the game in hand in the fourth quarter before Vad Lee came alive and carried his team to a win. For most of the first three quarters though, JMU did pretty much everything it could to hand Lehigh the victory.
JMU is a better team than Lehigh. It just is. They’re a 22.5 point favorite. As such, the Dukes should win comfortably on Saturday. Provided of course that they don’t make mistakes and let Lehigh hang around. It’s entirely possibly that they do that of course. So don’t do that Dukes.
How JMU Can Win
By sticking with what it does best. Push the pace and force Lehigh to try to keep up. The Mountain Hawks will be a much tougher out that Morehead State. If the Dukes can spread the ball around, utilizing Johnson and Abdullah on the ground, and Lee’s multiple passing targets, they should put up some points.
Defensively, they’ve got to generate sustained pressure on Shafnisky. It’s tough to complain about anything coming off a performance where JMU held an opponent to 7 points, but the pass rush wasn’t too impressive. On Saturday, the Dukes need to be more aggressive to keep Shafnisky on his toes. If they can get him off his game, the Lehigh offense will sputter.
JMUSB Beer of the Week
The Great Return by Virginia’s own Hardywood Brewery. It’s a good west-coast style IPA, that’s hoppy, but not a palate-wrecker like some of the more bitter versions of the style. Plus, it comes in 16 oz. tall boys which are just perfect for a tailgate. Provided you’re not driving of course, because it’s a dangerously drinkable 7.5% ABV. So pick up a few and find yourself a driver.
Official JMUSB Prediction
Lehigh is a good program with a lot going for it. The Mountain Hawks went punch for punch with the Dukes last year and nearly pulled off the upset. JMU will not take Lehigh lately. In fact, the Dukes will probably be playing with chips on their shoulders, determined to prove that they’re better than they showed last year in Bethlehem. We think the offense will be clicking behind the dynamic backfield, the pass rush is going to show signs of life, the Dukes will win the turnover battle, and it will all add up to a 31-14 win. Keep rootin’.
Andrew came closest to predicting the final score for last week’s game. As a result, he won the chance to guest post. Here’s his take on why JMU should stay put in the FCS
Hey guys, I’ll preface this the way I did last time I did this: I’m not a sportswriter, so I’ll probably have a few typos and word flow probably isn’t going to be good in some places. Expect a lot of run on sentences. Also, before I start with today’s topic, I just want to start off with a few points:
- Thanks to Rob and Todd for letting me once again guest post on this blog. I predicted 59-7, and half of the fourth quarter I was rooting on the Dukes just to get a field goal just meet my prediction.
- You may remember me from the guest post after last year’s Lehigh game, which makes this post come at such a great time. If you haven’t read it yet, I highly suggest it, as some parts are still somewhat relevant now.
- I want to give a shout out to the ~7k students at the game last week. Y’all were great, especially the drunk kid behind me yelling “Fuck Morehead” multiple times every play. I also liked the part when we stayed in our seats for most of the blowout, we should do it again. It was probably the best atmosphere in any stadium I’ve ever been to. The student section has real potential this year.
- Shameless plug to /r/CFB and /r/FCS, you guys should vote in our poll, everyone is welcome. It usually stays up from Sunday to Wednesday. I regularly post in those two places and my name is /u/grizzlywalker, so if you see me, say hi.
Ok, now to the fun part: More realignment talk, and I know, it’s not the offseason anymore so we shouldn’t talk about it, but this time might be a little different, as I’m going to make the claim no one wants to hear: We should stay in the CAA, and I’ll talk from a fan aspect only. I’ll break this into sections. read more…
The Dukes got the season started off right with a 56-7 victory over Morehead State. This week they’ll welcome the Lehigh Mountain Hawks to Bridgeforth. Lehigh is coming off a win of its own in week one. The Mountain Hawks defeated Central Connecticut State 20-14 on the road to kick off the 2015 season.
It’s time for predictions. You should know the drill by now, but in case you don’t, here goes. Leave a comment below with your prediction for Saturday’s game. The person who comes closest to picking it correctly (winner & score) will get to write a guest post. That’s it. Easy as pie. So give us your prediction and Go Dukes!
New Purples looked great with the old gold helmet!
So the Dukes beat a non-scholarship team by 49 points as expected to lift the curtain on the 2015 season in style. There’s really not all that much to be certain about coming off in a game like this, but it sure was fun to see the boys back in action and of course we’ve got some observations from what really amounted to a preseason game.
The Good
- Cardon Johnson – The starter at running back showed exactly the kind of dynamic style we all heard about after he got to JMU but could only dream about as he sat out injured all of last year. Abdullah was solid behind him too and we know there is depth at this spot, but wow, just from the eye test this guy looked like a true talent and difference-maker. Could be wrong, but it sure looked like his combination of size, power, shiftiness, and vision is something that will hold up against anyone.
- THE STUDENT SECTION – Absolutely outstanding! Best opening-day student section in years. Godwin side full BEFORE kickoff, entire section full soon thereafter. And the most surprising, and encouraging thing, about the students this week is they were LOUD and into the game. They even broke out into a very solid, and noticeable, “We Want Morehead!” chant after the Vad TD. (Wonder if they’ll all be banned by the P.C. Police after that?) It made for a fantastic atmosphere and they were certainly treated to plenty of first-half highlights. I know everyone wants them to stay, but you can’t blame anyone in this blowout. It gives us reason to hope that the seeds Withers and the entire program have been planting the last two years are starting to sprout. An undefeated September with a top 5 national ranking might help a bit when CAA play really gets going too.
- The kicking game – this one is subtle, but it’s nice to see a basically mistake-free day in the kicking game in Week 1. Ryan Maglio looked comfortable on extra points and it was good to see that the Dukes’ have added depth in the form of kickoff specialist and Freshman Tyler Gray. Out of Winchester’s Millbrook High, he showed the ability to get a touchback and the ability to place it directionally inside the 5 which Madison actually prefers in order to take their chances that the coverage pins opponents inside the 25.
- Vad Lee – What can we really say? The best player on the field and looked like he had very close to complete command. 297 yards and 3 TD’s passing to go with 105 yards and a highlight-reel 66 yard TD on the ground is a nice little way to kick off your Walter Payton Award candidacy. Though we have to admit, in true old-man fashion, all we could think on the long TD run was “take it easy on those hammies Superman.”
- Morehead State WR/RB/KR Jake Raymond (#4) – we don’t usually show love to an opponent, but this kid was a joy to watch compete amongst his overmatched fellows. No idea what his story is, but our secondary seemed to have no idea how to deal with him.
- Ryan Schorr seemed to do just fine in his one series with the second-team offense. He led the Dukes on a long, multiple penalty-overcoming scoring drive and gave us some hope that the wheels won’t come entirely off if Vad misses part of a game or even one whole game at some point.
- The uniforms. The new purple set looked outstanding and was a reminder of how great the gold helmet can still look when matched up right.
- These shirts, and more importantly the movement they represent, were a real highlight of my gameday. You can find out more and learn how to get involved with this incredible grass-roots effort that is fully alumni-led here.
Want FBS, but tired of the negativity? Join the cause and get involved!
The Bad
- Blocking, especially in the running game. Pass protection with the 1’s actually seemed alright, but not sure if that was more a reflection of the lack of any kind of sustained pressure from an overmatched opponent. In the ground game however, after the first series (presumably scripted and well-rehearsed), the O-line allowed a great deal of penetration to screw with the Dukes’ spread attack, so much so that at one point the normally cool and collected Vad Lee seemed to be issuing quite a bit of “polite encouragement” for a little something better. This has got to get better.
- Defense, particularly against the pass. Morehead only had a little over 200 total yards and it’s hard to get to upset, but had it not been for a red-zone fumble, the Eagles would have not only moved the ball with ease, primarily through the air, but also would have had two long TD drives in the first half. Receivers were wide open and JMU did not, or worse could not, generate consistent pressure. We’ve heard from those that know these things, and are willing to rematch the film, that the Dukes’ are using more variety (they’re being “multiple”) in their defensive packages this year and between that and the youth/inexperience on that side of the ball, we can only hope there is plenty of improvement coming.
The Ugly
- We’re not gonna nit-pick with anything in the ugly from a 56-7 win and we’re thrilled that we don’t seem to have any major injuries to write about in the section like some season openers. But there is one item for this section that didn’t even come from our game. Anyone watch the first half of Baylor/SMU Friday night? The Mustangs were trading punches nose-to-nose with the high-octane and 4th ranked Bears and it sure looks like Chad Morris (ex of Clemson’s offense) is going to have them pretty close to full throttle by the time the Dukes arrive in a few weeks. This game is still winnable, especially after SMU gets taken to the slaughter-house again by TCU before our matchup, but it’s certainly not the “FCS Team should be favored” type game we were hoping for.
JMU got the season started off right last night, with a dominating 56-7 win over an overmatched Morehead State team. We’re going to enjoy this beautiful day and hope you do the same. Check out the highlights above and then come back later this evening for our thorough post with thoughts on the big win.
