So consider this the first in what will be a very intermittent series here at JMUSB we’re calling TMZ Tuesday. After all, we’ve got eyeballs and interest this week with the gridiron Dukes rolling so why not shamelessly roll back out the theme that’s given us our biggest posts ever? Remember this?
Former Dukes Soccer Star Karly Skladany marries that other guy (Chris Kirkpatrick) from N’Sync w/ JT in the wedding party!
Or this?
Dagger!
Of course you do! So in that spirit, how about these two new entries.
First, we have legendary Dukes alum Arthur Don’t Cross the Moats, now contributing heavily for the Pittsburgh Steelers, mugging with The Biebs! Somehow this took place at Steelers Bible Study last week.
And second, something I’ve been meaning to touch on for awhile that I still kind of can’t believe and is just cool. As some of you may know, former JMU TE Mike Caussin has quietly kept his NFL dream alive the last few years after stints on various practice squads and by enduring injuries. This year he’s actually on IR with the Redskins after getting hurt in the preseason. But did you know he’s dating budding country starlet Jana Kramer?! Yes, that Jana Kramer, the one who made the hit song “Why You Wanna?,” a song that made no sense because no guy would leave her. We tend to give her huge points because Mike, simply being a Duke, is obviously a huge upgrade over Ms. Kramer’s according-to-Wikipedia ex-boyfriend Brantley Gilbert!
Dating Up! (Kramer Dating up with a Duke that is)
Now back to your regularly scheduled Poormond Ticks Week! Speaking of, consider this a test balloon for the first-ever North Carolina Triad Area (not Triangle Area) JMU Watch Party this Saturday. JMUSB’s southern half (that’s me) has already set things up with Greensboro’s finest (i.e. trashiest) dive bar – the infamous Suds n’ Duds laundromat bar – for sound and the bigscreen in the ping-pong/living room area. Some type of food ranging from possibly Crock Pot Chili Fritos to delivery pizza and your first shot after a Dukes TD will be sponsored by JMUSB and we’ll give away whatever random purple and gold swag we grabbed up during Homecoming’s fiasco!
Wow! Five in a row for the Dukes and the swagger is back after another huge 2nd half comeback propelled the Dukes to their fourth road victory of the year at Stony Brook on Saturday. And now…. It’s Tick Week and the main reason we want to get this gamer out of the way is so we can move on to all that week means to JMU fans! (Hint: Satchmo the old guy with the YouTube channel is back this year and they try to throw their own streamers now). Seriously, just get you tickets to Richmond’s cute little high school stadium, better known as Bridgeforth East, now if you’re in the vicinity and rest assured that this one’s on NBCSN if you’re not.
The Good
In full control now!
Halftime adjustments – As we’ve been saying all year, one place this coaching staff seems to show why a change was warranted is in their in-game adjustments. JMU has trailed at the half five times (non-Maryland division) by our count this year and is now 4-1 in those games. I’d say that speaks for itself.
Vad Lee – Was simply magical in this game. Stony Brook’s defense was every bit as good as their #1 FCS ranking said and one guy made them look ordinary. Lee has now broken broth Birdsong’s passing TD’s record and Rodney Landers’ all-around yardage record. Yeah, the offense has a ton to do with it, but he’s still got two games left in just the regular season! His ability to keep plays alive and make something out of nothing were the difference in this game and he was so clearly the best player on the field that all doubts have been erased all remaining doubts. Seriously, the 3rd and 29 scramble and the ridiculous Romo/Vick combo scramble to pick up the first down on the game-winning drive were 100% reminiscent of Landers’ finest work.
Maglio and the special teams – Missed a kick he probably shouldn’t have been asked to attempt, but made two big kicks that kept the Dukes in the game in the first half. And the rest of the special teams at least didn’t commit any major botches after last week’s punt block misadventures against the Tribe.
Second half Defense – pitched a shutout in the second half to give JMU’s offense the chance to comeback and win it. While somewhat counter-intuitive, coaches will tell you they all start with defense and this was no exception. This second half performance was complete with an epic four-down goal line stand that ended with Simeyon Robinson destroying an ill-advised fake FG attempt and a game-clinching sack/fumble on Stony Brook’s last drive when trailing by three and nearly in FG range. Just huge.
One-bid SoCon is locked up. One-bid Patriot is locked up. Both good news for at-large playoff candidates.
The Bad
Not much in this section. This game was mostly good or ugly with little in between, but the fourth down/gadget play decisions require revisiting. If you’ve been reading a while, you know I’m the “go-for-it” guy. Mathematically, it’s almost always the right thing to do and it frustrates me no end when coaches clam up. So it goes without saying that I was fine with both decisions in the first half. First the Dukes went for it on 4th and very long from Stony Brook’s 30. This was an odd one, but there was really no right/wrong answer as a FG was really dicey and a punt would likely gain you only 10 yards of field position. The second was an attempted onside kick. Again, though some hate it I was fine with it. The Dukes had fallen behind by multiple scores and were trying to regain momentum. It also appeared it absolutely would’ve worked were it not for a horribly executed kick that barely went five yards. We’re usually not critical of individual players aside from QB’s but with Maglio doing the placekicking, Arnone really only has one job. Get on it. (While we’re at it, you all know we have huge crushes on Jimmy ‘effin Moreland for his huge plays and ballskills, but man could he use some tackling drills). Then in the second half JMU had two chances to go for it on fourth down in the maroon zone and chose instead to punt once and to ask Maglio to make a really long kick the other which didn’t work. Thankfully none of these decisions came back to haunt the Dukes, but our complaint is more with mixed messaging. Whether you’re aggressive or conservative on these might not matter, but some consistency in decision-making would seem in order. (Aggressive please!)
The Ugly
First half defense. It was ugly and awful and atrocious and pathetic. Terrible tackling we thought was behind us and even more disturbing, for the first time all year it seemed the emotion wasn’t there. Maybe the coaches should start giving the halftime speech in pregame?
Stony Brook’s streaming video production. Look, it was free so there’s that. But it is not at all an exaggeration to say that most middle-school morning announcement newscasts are approximately 38 times higher in quality than what we saw from Stony Brook. I might’ve even been tempted to get more effusive in my praise of Vad Lee above if only I had seen half of the runs and passes he was involved in. That said, the stream never cut out on us which is more than we can say for JMU’s switch to ratchet Stretch Internet this year. (Again, the good news is the Tick game is on NBCSN).
Sweater vests. It’s Poormond Week! Let’s Go Dukes!
We did not have this circled as a big game when the schedule came out, but JMU at Stony Brook is huge. The Dukes are looking to avenge a disappointing loss to the Seawolves at Bridgeforth last year. They’re also looking to keep their playoff hopes alive. Kickoff is at 1:00 and the game can be streamed for free from Stony Brook’s website here. Consider this your open thread for all pre-game, in-game, and post-game chatter. Go Dukes!
We forgot to post the chart last week, but it didn’t really matter. The big spike in fan confidence occurred after the win over William & Mary anyway. With the offense rolling and the D line pressuring the QB, JMU fans are thinking that their playoff dreams might become a reality. Fordham avoiding an upset last night helped, as would a win today over a tough Stony Brook team. Go Dukes!
The Basics
Match-up: JMU Dukes (6-3, 3-2 CAA) vs. Stony Brook Seawolves (4-5, 3-2 CAA)
The Line (for recreational purposes only): JMU -2
Location: Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium on the campus of Stony Brook University on Strong Island
Kick-off: 1:00 on Saturday, November 8
Broadcast Options: Watch via Stony Brook’s stream here or tune into the JMU audio broadcast on Madizone.
How They Got Here
Stony Brook is coming off a bye last week, because of course it is. It’s the third CAA game this season for the Dukes in which their opponent had the prior week off. In their last game, the Seawolves dropped a close one to New Hampshire 28-20 on the road. Good job, good effort, but still a loss. Stony Brook has had an up and down season, beating some CAA bottom dwellers and hanging tough in close to losses to William & Mary and UNH. Despite some inconsistent results, one thing has been consistent throughout the season is Stony Brook’s defense. It’s pretty stellar on paper.
JMU of course comes into this game riding a four game win streak. You know this, or at least you should. Last week Vad Lee and the offense woke up after a slow start to rally for a big win over William & Mary. Sage Harold had another outstanding game for a defense that played one of its better games of the season. The season has been all about adjusting to new schemes and new personnel for the Dukes. The offense has been explosive at times, but has yet to put together a full four quarter performance. The team seems to be gaining confidence each week though.
Irresistible Force vs. Immovable Object
The Seawolves aren’t going to beat anyone in a track meet. They’re going to try to shut teams down and slog out 10-3 wins. They’ve got the top scoring defense in the CAA, only surrendering 11 touchdowns thus far. They’ve held opponents to 2.5 yards/carry and 5.8 yards/reception, both tops in the CAA. They’ve collected 10 interceptions while only giving up 6 passing TDs. They’ve played some suspect teams, but this isn’t a case of them collecting stats against the weak part of their schedule. They’ve got a D that has been consistently stellar all season.
JMU on the other hand, is built to play fast and outscore opponents. The Dukes average 30 points a game. They run the ball to the tune of a CAA best 5.0 yards/carry. With the exception of Towson, JMU’s defense hasn’t shut any teams down. In some games it’s looked like as long as they get the ball last, the Dukes will win. JMU is not going to try to grind out low scoring wins. It’s going to try to light up the scoreboard and leave teams in the dust.
Essentially, we’re looking at a match-up of strength versus strength. Vad Lee and the Dukes’ attack against Stony Brook’s dominant defense. Something’s got to give.
The Seawolves Will Win If
They manage to control the pace and turn JMU over. Stony Brook doesn’t want JMU’s offense running 80+ plays. And the Seawolves don’t want JMU breaking off big plays for huge chunks or yardage. They’ll try to shut down the run and keep the Dukes from gaining yards on first down. The more successful they are in forcing the Dukes into third and long situations, the more one dimensional they’ll make JMU. And with an offense that isn’t ultra-explosive, they’d benefit greatly if they force a few turnovers to create short fields.
The Dukes Will Win If
They keep Stony Brook guessing, spread the ball around, and keep it up tempo. Essentially they need to do the complete opposite of what Stony Brook wants to do (funny how that works, huh?). JMU’s offense has come alive late in games several times this year. Some of that is due to solid adjustments. Some of it is simply due to the offense wearing teams out with its pace and dynamic attack. If Vad Lee is doing Vad Lee things, the running backs are finding holes, and multiple receivers are catching passes, it’s a lot for a defense to worry about. If JMU does those things Saturday, it should be able to break through and score. And if Sage Harold continues to go beast mode and the D plays like it did for must of last week’s game, they’ll keep points off the board.
JMUSB Beer of the Week
Schlafly Tasmanian IPA. There are no shortage of IPAs out there and we all have our favorites. Tasmanian might be my newest favorite. It’s so damn good. It’s a single hop/single malt ale. That’s exactly what it sounds like, a beer brewed with only one type of malt and one variety of hops. The result is a super clean IPA that highlights the citrus flavors and aroma of the Galaxy hop. Instead of going on with a bunch of beer geek speak, let me just say this, it’s delicious. It’s really delicious. And it’s only available for a limited time, so grab some. It’s around $12/six pack, which is a little more expensive than most IPAs, but it’s worth it. If you don’t like it, just give it to me. I’ll drink it.
JMUSB Prediction
JMU 31 – Stony Brook 17. Sage Harold gets to the QB, Jimmy Moreland makes us scream Jimmy Effin Moreland with delight, Vad Lee sets the pace, and the Dukes win.
Jason Kennedy, aka madddukes98, won last week’s prediction contest and earned the right to guess post. Here’s his take on the state of JMU hoops.
Although there is still a good chunk of the football season left, I thought I would write up my guest post about JMU basketball. With the tip-off less than 2 weeks away versus a formidable opponent in UVA and an exhibition loss to a D-II team having already taken place, my confidence at the start of the men’s season is already in a deficit. Oh, and that doesn’t even include the part about how our best player is suspended for the first 5 games. By the way, Nation should be gone. There I said it. He has had too many chances. Brady already has some credibility issues in my opinion going all the way back to his Marist days so to allow this behavior to continue isn’t helping his reputation in my mind. The “zero tolerance” policy that Brady is now applying to Nation could very easily not be enforced if it’s something that can be covered up by the athletic department such as a team rules violation or something else with low visibility. Who knows how many other chances he will get that don’t really “count” under the zero tolerance policy. Or, maybe Brady’s words hold true and he does get dismissed. That would be at least honorable and would improve my opinion of the program. read more…
JMU has a huge game up in Long Island this weekend against Stony Brook. JMU will take it’s high scoring attack up north to face Stony Brook’s dominant defense. A dominant defense that has only given up 13 touchdowns all year. This game could be a real dogfight. Leave a comment letting us know who you think will win and what the final score will be. The person who comes closest to predicting it correctly (winner & score) will get to write a guest post. That’s it. Easy. Go Dukes!
[polldaddy poll=8423061]The Dukes got their best win of the New Era last Saturday, defeating William & Mary 31-24. JMU now sits at 6-3 with 3 games remaining. Two of those games are on the road against Stony Brook and Richmond, and the finale is in Bridgeforth against Elon. If the Dukes get to 8-4, they’ll certainly be in the discussion for a playoff bid. If they get to 9-3, they’ll be sitting pretty.
Last week 47% of respondents thought JMU would make the playoffs. Will the confidence increase after the big win? Vote in the poll and let us know your thoughts in the comments.
One last time till next year.
Huge, huge win yesterday. The Dukes 4th quarter comeback to beat William & Mary 31-24 was easily the biggest win of the young Withers era and this season in particular. No caveats needed. Even with one enormous break thanks to the Tribe acting dumb, there’s no way to call this anything but a good win over a good team – exactly the kind of win that JMU has struggled to come by the last few years. Need 2 out of 3 the rest of the way to get to 8-4 and we’d all feel even better if the Dukes could take them all including winning at Bridgeforth East in two weeks against the Ticks.
You can read the official JMU story for stats and gamers here, but we’re a bit beat up after a long, cold, rainy weekend back on campus so we’re keeping our Good/Bad/Ugly brief tonight. Looking forward to seeing the new rankings tomorrow and seeing how everyone’s feeling about our postseason chances this week when we get our own poll up Tuesday or Wednesday.
The Good
The helmets! Look, we know we should focus on the actual play, but those purple lids were perfect. Just perfect – no other adjectives or qualifiers needed. Purple helmets forever.
Halftime adjustments – in case you haven’t noticed, this has become a big-time theme this season and we’ve got to give the new staff a ton of credit. JMU’s offense was a trainwreck in a six-point first half, but as has been the case all year, they found their rhythm after the half and really started humming down the stretch. It’s also great to see in person the last two weeks how invested the entire team seems in the game and how much you can see their own belief growing week by week.
Sage Harold – really starting to look dominant and clearly providing the emotional spark for the whole D.
Vad Lee is now only one TD pass short of the record the GingaNinja set just last year for most in a season. Something to keep an eye on this week out on Long Island.
Daniel Brown – it really is amazing how when the Dukes get him involved, everything else tends to improve.
Non-football note: Field Hockey winning a tough roadie at Hoftsra to punch their ticket to the CAA Tournament. Long-time readers know they’re our favorite program. Even though we lost our insider status with the coaching change, we’re thrilled for the women for getting the program headed in the right direction!
Fourth Quarter fans. We’re just not in a complaining mood about the very light attendance yesterday and the weather did no one any favors. But those that stuck it out were the real fans and honestly the stadium was louder late with less people than I’ve heard it full any other time this season. Good work people. (And remember, you’ll be needed again for the Elon game since the students will mostly be long-gone already for Thanksgiving Break.
The Bad
Slow starts, bad penalties, Richmond beating Villanova.
The Ugly
CAA refs – ’nuff said.
Calling a pass and then throwing a pass when you’re down 1 with a confident kicker that’s made three already and is very much in Field Goal range. Did you not watch the Ole Miss game last week?!
Also, for the record I’m not putting the decision to kick the extra point on JMU’s penultimate TD on here. I was terrified when they made the decision but I did understand it. There was 8:49 on the clock and Withers was betting on his offense to score again (correctly) while insuring that even if W&M scored another TD in the worst case, the Dukes would still get the ball back down 8. Seemed late to most of us in the moment, but I think they just didn’t think it was late enough to chase points.
The JMU Dukes were surprised with new purple helmets and black uniforms prior to the start of yesterday’s game against William & Mary. The uniforms are in a word, amazing. Based on the video above, the players certainly loved them. Even better, the Dukes went out and defeated William & Mary in a thrilling 31-24 victory after putting them on. New Era indeed.
