{"id":8493,"date":"2016-04-18T07:28:17","date_gmt":"2016-04-18T11:28:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=8493"},"modified":"2016-04-18T07:32:12","modified_gmt":"2016-04-18T11:32:12","slug":"guest-post-jmu-football-spring-game-notes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=8493","title":{"rendered":"Guest Post: JMU Football Spring Game Notes"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em><img data-attachment-id=\"8494\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?attachment_id=8494\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/041616-JMU-FTB-Spring-Game1-DL.jpg?fit=700%2C468&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"700,468\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;2.8&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;Daniel Lin&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;NIKON D700&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;(20160416) - (Harrisonburg)\\rJames Madison cornerback Taylor Reynolds (14) tackles wide receiver Brandon Ravenel (11) during the team&#039;s NCAA spring football game in Harrisonburg, Va., Saturday, April 16, 2016.\\r(Daniel Lin\\\/Daily News-Record)&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1460824489&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;Daily News-Record&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;300&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;200&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.0003125&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;JMU FTB Spring Game&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"spring game\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/041616-JMU-FTB-Spring-Game1-DL.jpg?fit=300%2C201&amp;ssl=1\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/041616-JMU-FTB-Spring-Game1-DL.jpg?fit=700%2C468&amp;ssl=1\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-8494\" src=\"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/041616-JMU-FTB-Spring-Game1-DL.jpg?resize=568%2C380\" alt=\"spring game\" width=\"568\" height=\"380\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/041616-JMU-FTB-Spring-Game1-DL.jpg?w=700&amp;ssl=1 700w, https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/041616-JMU-FTB-Spring-Game1-DL.jpg?resize=300%2C201&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 568px) 100vw, 568px\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" \/>Our buddy Michael made the trip down to the &#8216;burg on Saturday for the spring game. He agreed to let us post his thoughts on what was looking good, and what wasn&#8217;t. Give it a read and then give him a follow on Twitter at <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Michael_2Clutch\">@Michael_2Clutch<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Saturday was the perfect day for football and a sign for greater things to come for the Dukes. In front of 2500+ fans, JMU hosted their annual spring game and for the first time, allowed tailgating on Godwin field.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here\u2019s the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly from the 58-39 Purple (defense) victory:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Good:<\/strong> <\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sr Khalid Abdullah and rJr Cardon Johnson are an elite tandem and Coach Houston is looking to go fast. JMU showcased a two-back formation utilizing both potential all-conference running backs which will be deadly for defenses. We are 4 deep at the position as Taylor Woods was difficult to tackle and the speedster, Trai Sharp, looked equally impressive. JMU will continue to run the up tempo no-huddle spread under new OC, Donnie Kirkpatrick.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">JMU is as talented as ever at wide receiver. Domo Taylor left early due to an apparent concussion but looks even bigger than last year. Rashard Davis, John Miller and ODU transfer, Quintin Reynolds, had a number of catches in the middle of the field. Ravanel and Hyman will be elite threats on the outside; both look especially hungry and physically impressive.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The defense looks much more tough, physical and fundamentally sound. The pads were \u201cclacking\u201d on Saturday and we saw more wrap-up tackling than the lunging and arm-tackling of old. For the first time in 3 spring games, no running back was able to break for a 40+ yard touchdown. rSR Gage Steele played phenomenal and looks much more comfortable in Coach Trott\u2019s scheme. JR Brandon Hereford and SO Dimitri Holloway looked great as well, both are athletic and have impressive sideline-to-sideline speed<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In JMU\u2019s \u201cnew\u201d 4-2-5 defensive front (a staple of the Mickey Matthews era), Kyre Hawkins looks to play the hybrid Strong Safety\/Linebacker role that Vidal Nelson used to thrive in &#8211; the position often asks for a \u201ctweaner\u201d who has the range to play zone versus inside receivers but also the bulk and mindset to provide heavy run support<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">JMU is deep in the secondary. Jordan Brown moved back to safety, Reynold was dominant as usual and many of the true freshmen (Branch, Robinson, Oliver) from last season made some big time plays. Florida A&amp;M safety transfer, Robert Carter, seemed to always be around the ball as well. Coach Trott called for more secondary blitzes which is a nice wrinkle for offenses to gameplan for<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here\u2019s a nice hit by Rashad Robinson on Rashard Davis:<br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-video\" data-lang=\"en\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"und\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/JMUfootball?src=hash\">#JMUfootball<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/Boom?src=hash\">#Boom<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/Jp6YZhLvHu\">pic.twitter.com\/Jp6YZhLvHu<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Michael Evangelista (@Michael_2Clutch) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Michael_2Clutch\/status\/721387076332220419\">April 16, 2016<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><strong>Bad:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">West Virginia\/Lackawanna transfer, Martez Stone looks to provide depth at defensive tackle teaming with Cornell Urquhart and Simeyon Robinson but overall depth seems to be lacking on the line. Kirk Robinette was very active at defensive end after transitioning from linebacker, his HS position. Look for a few of the incoming recruits to push the incumbent players<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Former walk-on Kloosterman has big shoes to fill in replacing Deane Cheatham. The tight ends weren\u2019t very active in the passing game which was probably due more to play design than a showcase of talent. Schiele was the main back-up with former QB, Mack Cullen, under his wings. Expect incoming freshman, Lawton Riggs, to get some PT<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While it was encouraging to see the Dukes back under the center, the starting offense failed to punch it into the endzone on 1st and Goal. The defensive line did a great job of stonewalling the offensive line and Gage Steele, on one play, had a phenomenal hit on the running back. rSr Kyle Rigney replaces Dominick Richards and currently-injured rJR Nick Edwards replaces Austin Lane; rJR AJ Bolden saw plenty of time at guard in replacement as well as rFR Tyree Chavious for rSR Mitchell Kirsch who\u2019s recovering from surgery<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While not necessarily \u201cbad\u201d per say, it would\u2019ve been nice to see Coach Mike Houston address the crowd either before or after the spring game. It was an amazing day in the burg\u2019 and there was an impressive crowd mixed with both fans and recruits. It seemed like the perfect way to get in touch with the fans who made the drive and to instill additional excitement for next year \u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Ugly:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Quarterback depth and play: Bryan Schor, the only scholarship QB, did little to instill confidence for JMU Nation to believe he\u2019s the right man for the job. Too many 3 and outs, inaccurate throws and missed\/slow reads left fans discouraged. There were a number of \u201cHe was open!\u201d comments being yelled and even when he decided to unwind the arm in the 4th quarter, it was a little too late. The QB position will be the story to keep up with during the offseason, walk-on Hunter Etheridge looked impressive manning the 2nd team<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jimmy Moreland\u2026 I\u2019m a huge Jimmy fan but he seemed to struggle; running mostly with the second team. I saw him get man-handled in press coverage a few times and he just looks like someone who\u2019s been away from football for a year. He\u2019ll have time to get back into his freshman year shape but he\u2019ll be hard-pressed to find a spot especially if the talent continues to develop. Keep an eye out for #37<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Recruiting Notes: <\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">JMU received 3 verbal commitments over the weekend (40-50 total recruits in attendance):<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PK Kier, 5\u201911 205lb RB (VA): offers from ODU, TX State, App State, Marshall<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Garrett Groulx, 6\u20193 240lb DE (NC):offers from Charleston Southern, Eastern Kentucky, Army, Mercer, Elon, ODU<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Robbie Walker, 5\u20199 180lb WR (transfer from Ohio University): former 3 star WR comes to JMU with 3 years of eligibility<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It was great meeting fans like @PurpleReign300 and @RyanRutherchevy in person and we have plenty to be excited for! Expect Coach Houston and Co.. to continue to supplement an already-talented roster with additions during the offseason. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Go Dukes! <\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<iframe src=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/plugins\/like.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fjmusportsblog.com%2F%3Fp%3D8493&amp;layout=standard&amp;show_faces=true&amp;width=450&amp;action=like&amp;colorscheme=light&amp;height=80\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none; overflow:hidden; width:450px; height:80px;\" allowTransparency=\"true\"><\/iframe>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Our buddy Michael made the trip down to the &#8216;burg on Saturday for the spring game. He agreed to let us post his thoughts on what was looking good, and what wasn&#8217;t. Give it a read and then give him a follow on Twitter at @Michael_2Clutch Saturday was the perfect day for football and a [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":11608,"url":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=11608","url_meta":{"origin":8493,"position":0},"title":"2021 Spring Football Game #4 Official JMUSB Preview: JMU at W&#038;M","date":"March 25, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"In normal times, we have \u201cspring football.\u201d You know what we\u2019re talking about. A few weeks of practice for the coaches to run everyone out there and maybe light a few fires of around some key position battles, before everyone suiting up for a pseudo-competitive exhibition with indeterminate scoring to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;JMU Football&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/team-shot.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":11539,"url":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=11539","url_meta":{"origin":8493,"position":1},"title":"Three Thoughts on JMU 52 &#8211; Morehead State 0","date":"February 21, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"JMU opened the 2021 (Part 1) season with a convincing 52 point shutout over Morehead State. As the score might indicate, the game was never in doubt. The Dukes scored touchdowns on their first three drives and turned the game into laugher early. JMU's defense overwhelmed the Morehead attack, limiting\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;JMU Football&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/01\/brideforth-overhead.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":11580,"url":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=11580","url_meta":{"origin":8493,"position":2},"title":"Prediction Contest: JMU vs. Elon","date":"March 3, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"The Dukes get the CAA portion of the Spring season started this Saturday with a road game versus Elon. The Phoenix struggled in week one and had things fall apart in week two with a brutal loss to Gardner Webb. We're looking forward to a strong JMU performance, but we\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;JMU Football&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/James-Madison-vs.-Elon.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":10233,"url":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=10233","url_meta":{"origin":8493,"position":3},"title":"JMU Spring Football Game Preview","date":"April 12, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"It's been 96 days since the JMU Dukes last played a football game. And we've missed them. A lot. Sure we've been able to see some reasons for optimism with hoops and enjoyed some stellar play from lacrosse and softball, but we miss football. Thankfully, our boys are back in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;JMU Football&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/5871777dd91de.image_-1024x683.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":11647,"url":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=11647","url_meta":{"origin":8493,"position":4},"title":"Dukes Beat VMI to Survive and Advance","date":"April 25, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"JMU opened up the 2021 FCS Playoffs (Spring Edition) with a 31-24 win over VMI. Let's repeat the last part. JMU picked up a win. And now the Dukes are moving on to the quarterfinals to face North Dakota. VMI proved to be a very tough out. The Keydets were\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;JMU Football&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/100519_SBU_128.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":11482,"url":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=11482","url_meta":{"origin":8493,"position":5},"title":"Potentially Reading Too Much Into Towson Opting Out","date":"October 20, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TowsonTigers\/status\/1318205287036194816?s=20 Something big was going to have to happen to break us out of our Covid-induced blogging hibernation. Yesterday something big happened. And no, we're not talking about Ben Dinucci becoming the first JMU quarterback to ever take a snap in an NFL game. (That was amazing though.) We're talking\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;JMU Football&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8493"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8493"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8493\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8495,"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8493\/revisions\/8495"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8493"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8493"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8493"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}