{"id":8173,"date":"2015-11-12T22:32:21","date_gmt":"2015-11-13T03:32:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=8173"},"modified":"2015-11-13T09:53:15","modified_gmt":"2015-11-13T14:53:15","slug":"jmusb-game-10-preview-jmu-americas-taint","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=8173","title":{"rendered":"JMUSB Game #10 Preview: JMU @ America’s Taint"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Two<\/a>

Two sides of the enormous, three-sided, world-famous Delaware “Piss Wall.” Seriously, this is the men’s room at The Tub. Also, do you know how difficult and uncomfortable it is to try to snap a photo in this situation?! Talk about awkward visiting fan.<\/p><\/div>\n

Well time to pack up the tailgate and head north to the place that gives the other Newark a good name. And don’t forget the extra money for tolls. Normally we’d advise puke-bibs for the Preakness trolls and general Baltimore\/Philly hellhole corridor denizens, but everyone under 75 years old has abandoned all support and hope for the once proud Blue Chickens program, so just make sure not to get caught in the long lines for the early-bird special at Old Country Buffet.<\/p>\n

The Basics<\/b><\/p>\n

#9 James Madison Dukes (7-2, 4-2 CAA) at Delaware Blue Hens (3-6, \u00a0CAA), 3:30 p.m. at Tubby Raymond Stadium in Newark, Delaware.<\/p>\n

Coverage: Comcast SportsNet but SPECIAL NOTE: In at least Virginia and North Carolina, Comcast is not scheduled to pick this up until 4 p.m. following the 12:30 Virginia\/Louisville game so don’t adjust your set or give up on the game if you tune in at 3:30 and the Dukes aren’t on. Patience grasshopper. Plus you should be able to watch the start on MadiZone (and\/or CAA.TV) and then make the switch after the Hoos lose.<\/p>\n

Weather: Getting brisk out there. 49 degrees, mostly sunny at kickoff. Wind 17 mph WNW and could be some factor.<\/p>\n

Line: Dukes are favored by 19.<\/p>\n

Why We Should Worry About the Chickens<\/strong><\/p>\n

Because Delaware somehow beat William & Mary and New Hampshire.<\/p>\n

Why We Shouldn’t Worry About the Chickens<\/strong><\/p>\n

Because Delaware scored six (yes, 6) points total in three losses to Albany, Towson, and Rhode Island. Seriously, they were shut out at RhodeI and also lost to non-scholly Jacksonville (not Jacksonville St., just plain Jacksonville).<\/p>\n

Honestly, we have no idea what to make of this team and there seems to be no logical pattern to this schedule:<\/p>\n

9\/4 L Jacksonville 20-14
\n9\/12 W Lafayette 19-9
\n9\/19 L @ VU 28-21
\n9\/26 L @ UNC 41-14
\n10\/3 W W&M 24-23
\n10\/10 L @ URI 20-0
\n9\/24 W UNH 31-14
\n10\/31 L @ TU 19-0
\n11\/7 L Albany 17-6<\/p>\n

We do know they are woefully uncoached by what is shaping up to be one of the all-time CAA dud hires in Dave Brock, though it’s hard to blame just the HC when the AD seems way over his head and not in on the conversation with a school president and a state legislature dropping all pretense of even giving a shit about athletics in general. It seems like only yesterday we were hoping UD would get its act together so we could move to FBS together and now they stand as a constant reminder on multiple levels that for all of our frustration with the CAA and JMU’s inability to find (or accept) a way out, it can always be worse, and at least we should take heart that JMU not only hasn’t quit on athletics, but has actually doubled down in a lot of ways, especially the ways those only paying attention to football and men’s hoops don’t always see.<\/p>\n

What We’re Looking for from the Dukes<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Freshness and some new wrinkles. Coming off the bye week, we’re really looking for the Dukes to look re-energized after there incredibly draining weeks that ended with the W&M loss. And of course with the extra time to prep both scheme and Schor, we fully expect to see some creative new stuff on both sides of the ball. But mainly we want to see that they quickly shake off any rust or lethargy from the bye and that the Dukes have the ability to recapture the swagger they had earlier in a post-Vad, post-gameday world.<\/p>\n

Tailgating Notes and Watch Parties<\/strong><\/p>\n

Delaware is tailgate-friendly and the weather looks good. Having made this trip before, I can vouch that the oldsters (yes, even older than us) being good sports so we strongly recommend this trip.<\/p>\n

Also, I’ll be hosting the second-ever Triad Dukes Watch Party at Old Town Draught House in Greensboro, NC this weekend if anyone is in the area (you might be one of four of us so feel free!). Let us know in the comments if you know of other spots.<\/p>\n

Beer of The Week<\/strong><\/p>\n

So we had been all-IPA early on, then got called out on it and switched for UR. We blamed the BOTW of course for that debacle and went back to an IPA for W&M. Clearly it’s not about the beer. So we’re going back to one we’ve discussed in past years, but it’s so far and away the best example of a style and it’s just that time of year. Founder’s Backwoods Bastard is darn near perfect. This is the Bourbon Barrel aged Ale from one of the country’s best breweries and it proves two things: 1) most people have no idea what they’re doing with bourbon or bourbon barrels mixed with beer and 2) when you do mix them, it’s cool to use an ale and not a stout. This year’s version is an enormous (but still beautiful) 11.6% so maybe save it for the second half.<\/p>\n

Prediction<\/strong><\/p>\n

Dukes 41, Delaware 17 – For all our wailing and the defense’s struggles, the Dukes have scored 49 and 41 in back-to-back games against top 10 teams and the CAA’s best. And everything we’ve seen from Schor and the relatively healthy (otherwise of course) offense gives us no reason to doubt they’ll keep up the pace. While Delaware should, like everyone else, be able to top their recent putrid averages, with two weeks for the Dukes to prepare and the Hens likely mailing in the end of a season of discord, there’s also no reason to think this will be nearly as bad as the last two. Hopefully we’ll all be talking playoffs Saturday night as the Dukes would almost surely clinch a bid with a win.<\/p>\n