{"id":10114,"date":"2018-01-07T09:21:19","date_gmt":"2018-01-07T14:21:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=10114"},"modified":"2018-01-07T09:53:45","modified_gmt":"2018-01-07T14:53:45","slug":"jmu-lost-the-championship-now-what","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=10114","title":{"rendered":"JMU Lost the Championship, Now What?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"The Dukes lost a heartbreaker to North Dakota State by the score of 17-13. And it really was a heartbreaker. We haven’t had to recap a loss in a long, long time. And truth be told, we’re not really sure what to say. After 26 straight wins and a championship, it’s kind of difficult to come to grips with JMU losing. Credit to NDSU for limiting the mistakes and and getting the job done. Really though, it’s pretty difficult not to go the other direction and focus more on the mistakes JMU did make. We’ll try though. Here are 3 quick thoughts on the loss.<\/p>\n

These Were the 2 Best Teams and It Wasn’t Really Close<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you watched FCS football this year, it was pretty obvious JMU and NDSU were the class of the subdivision. While yesterday’s result was bound to disappoint some folks (and unfortunately it turned out those folks were us JMU fans), it only reinforced the notion that JMU and NDSU were the best teams.<\/p>\n

Both defenses came into the game with plenty of hype, and both lived up to it. And then some. It was an absolutely slugfest. Just a hard fought game all around where nothing came easy. And the stats show how close it was. After running roughshod over everyone in the playoffs, the Bison running game squeaked out a meager 2.8 yards per carry. JMU was only slightly better at 3.1 yards per carry. Neither D bent much in the passing game either. NDSU threw for just 130 yards and JMU for 148. It really was close.<\/p>\n

It Came Down to A Few Plays\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yeah, you can say this about pretty much any football game in history. It was especially true for this championship contest though. Maybe we were a little drunk on purple Kool Aid, but it sure seemed to us like JMU was the better team after the break. That scoring drive looked clinical. The receivers had the Bison corners on their heels and Schor was making plays with his feet. It was the first drive all day where either team’s offense looked in complete control. And the defense was having its way with Stick and the Bison offense. So what happened?<\/p>\n

Mistakes happened. Bad breaks happened. Receivers dropped passes. Stapleton made a highlight worthy catch and then fumbled (didn’t fumble). Schor took a hit and coughed up a pass\/fumble thing and the d-lineman made a catch that Franco Harris thought was close to touching the ground (and that’s meant as a compliment, not a gripe about the call). Just when it looked like the Dukes were ready to take the lead, and dare we say, pull away, NDSU got the ball back and that was kind of it. It was that kind of day for JMU.<\/p>\n

Winning is as much about avoiding big mistakes as it is about making big plays. We’re 100% positive that if JMU was the team that benefitted from these same sort of mistakes, we’d be talking about the Dukes’ championship character and how they dug down deep to find a way to win. So let’s be the bigger people and admit that NDSU did just that. Neither team was able to establish any consistency on offense. NDSU won by not beating themselves. That’s a real way to win folks. Even if it is difficult to accept for us as JMU fans.<\/p>\n

Throughout the record winning streak, JMU consistently limited mistakes and frankly, caught a lot of breaks. There was bound to be a game sooner or later, where things didn’t really go the Dukes’ way. It just stinks that it was in the championship.<\/p>\n

Still Damn Proud to be a Duke<\/strong><\/p>\n

This hurts. I found myself in the position of being the guy who has to try to cheer folks up and get them to look at the bright side yesterday. Not sure why, but sometimes you get to be the fan who howls at the moon and sometimes you get to be the one that comforts friends and family even though you’re hurting too. Yesterday, I was the latter. And it was actually rather cathartic. I was at peace with the loss. Then I woke up in the middle of the night and couldn’t get back to sleep. My mind was flooded with visions of sure handed receivers dropping passes with nothing in between them and the endzone. Replays of Stapleton going to the ground with the ball secured. Bad breaks and close calls all around. It’s not so much painful as it is incredibly frustrating. JMU was that<\/em> close to repeating.<\/p>\n

Despite all that, it’s still a great time to be a Duke. Yes, our boys lost yesterday. But Coach Houston and the entire program have completely spoiled us the past 2 years. As fans, this really hurts. It’s nothing compared to the pain the players, especially the seniors, are going through though. But let’s have some perspective folks. Even with the loss, those players gave us all a gift. We don’t wan to be melodramatic, but there aren’t too many things in life that can bring thousands of people together like college football. Life is about shared experiences with folks you love. The Dukes have given us one heck of a shared experience. Whether that experience was traveling to Texas with old friends, gathering with family to watch on the couch, or even watching by yourself but texting and tweeting other fans. It’s all special folks. Sure, JMU lost. But we win for being fans.<\/p>\n

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