{"id":4541,"date":"2012-10-21T20:58:09","date_gmt":"2012-10-22T00:58:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=4541"},"modified":"2012-10-22T12:50:43","modified_gmt":"2012-10-22T16:50:43","slug":"dukes-suffer-disappointing-loss-to-richmond","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=4541","title":{"rendered":"Dukes Suffer Disappointing Loss to Richmond – Updated"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Update: Mickey announced that Birdsong is starting. Go get ’em kid. Carry on folks. <\/em><\/p>\n

We usually hold off on writing our post game thoughts until we have a chance to let thing sink in. Well, it’s been over 24 hours and thinks have sunk in quite a bit. The sting of yesterday’s loss still hasn’t worn off though and I’m still not quite sure what to make of JMU’s 35-29 defeat at the hands of Richmond. Rather than just mindlessly blubbering and complaining about things, we’ll attempt go through things “Good, Bad, and Ugly” style.<\/p>\n

The Good<\/strong><\/p>\n

Top of everyone’s mind here, is Michael Birdsong. We’d be crazy to argue that the kid didn’t look good. He did. He provided a much needed spark for the offense and almost helped the Dukes steal a game they had no business winning. He’s a big kid and showed that he can sling the ball around yesterday. He’s also a pretty effective runner when he starts going downhill. Let’s hold off on the coronation and keep things in perspective though. He was facing some pretty soft coverages and had the good fortune to have Mickey go for broke and open things up once he came in. However, we seem to remember a lot of folks reading way too much into a near comeback performance by Drew Dudzik in relief of Rodney Landers against Montana in 2008. Look how that turned out. Birdsong took advantage of the opportunity though and played very well in relief of Justin Thorpe. The future looks bright for the Ginger Giant, but let’s not go crazy yet.<\/p>\n

Dae’Quan Scott wasn’t as good as we’ve seen him at his peak, but I still thought he played better than he has in weeks. He was more decisive and turned up field quicker. As a result, he got going North-South and was able to break a few. Maybe he’s turning the corner after his injury and ready to go on a roll. And DeAndre Smith continues to progress as a receiver. He’s young, but he’s already showing that he’s got the potential to be a game-breaker.
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\nThe Bad<\/strong><\/p>\n

When Todd and I started this blog, we said we’d never rip a JMU student athlete for poor play. If they do something to embarrass the school, all bets are off. We’re not going to crush a college kid who puts on the uniform and gives it his all though. Even if we didn’t abide by that, we still wouldn’t categorize JT’s game as anything worse than bad. Yes, he had a rough game, but it wasn’t nearly as terrible as some folks are making it out to be. The two picks he threw were costly, but the Spiders secondary has been picking off every QB they face. And the coaching staff did him no favors with the playcalling (more on that later). We were as excited as anyone when Birdsong got the nod, because we thought the team needed a spark. Not because we thought JT’s time has passed. JT made a couple bad throws that he’d like back. We can’t hang the loss on him alone though.<\/p>\n

The Ugly<\/strong><\/p>\n

Let’s just go ahead and say it, the playcalling was atrocious. You want to know why they pulled Thorpe in the 3rd quarter? Because it’s easier to replace a QB mid-game than to replace an entire offensive philosophy. Is JMU an option team? A balanced offense? A power rushing attack? I have no clue. I do know that when JMU came out of gates mixing the run and the pass, they easily marched down the field and scored. When things got tough though, Matthews reverted to his ultra-conservative self. Except of course in 4th in 1 situations, where he continues to put the team in shot-gun formation and run the option. Seriously, WTF was that? And running outside again on a botched 2 point conversion attempt (which wasn’t necessary btw) was equally bad. JMU needs to fix the offense and fix it fast if they want to live up to expectations.<\/p>\n

And perhaps even uglier then the playcalling, was the lack of discipline by the defense. There has been no pass rush to speak of this year (which might merit an “ugly” of its own), so the D seemed to make up for it with hits after the whistle. Poor discipline and unsportsmanlike conduct penalties extended drives and led to Richmond points. Just as we said you can’t hang this one on Thorpe, you can’t hang it on any one single defensive player. You could probably make an argument though, that the 3 unsportsmanlike penalties on Stephon Robertson (who’s probably one of my top-5 favorite Dukes ever) were at least as damaging as JT’s 2 picks. Missed tackles, dumb mistakes, and ridiculously large cushions for the receivers and the end result was that the Dukes got lit up by a second string QB making his first start. And I know that the kid transferred from UVA. I just don’t think it matters. Sure he’s talented, but he’s a back-up and he destroyed a supposedly dominant defense.<\/p>\n

What Next?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Dukes need to regroup and move on. This was a bad loss, but give Richmond credit. They’re a solid team. The CAA is too tough for JMU to expect to win when its off it’s A-game. Villanova, Maine, and ODU will do exactly what Richmond did to the Dukes if JMU can’t step it up in the coming weeks. JMU has a home game against an awful Georgia State team this Saturday. We expect Thorpe to start at QB and are optimistic that he’ll respond well to prove the doubters wrong. From there it’s a brutal homestretch with a couple of road games before the regular season finale against ODU. JMU probably wasn’t the 2nd best team in the country despite what the ranking said. They’re better than they showed though and could make a deep run in the playoffs if they get it together.<\/p>\n