Know your foe - James Madison University

[Duke Dawg]

Re: Know your foe - James Madison University

JMU fan here !

Looking forward to the game Saturday. It's going to be a great one! This week can't go fast enough.

I think if you asked most neutral FCS followers are the beginning of the year who the best teams were going into 2017, they'd say JMU and NDSU are 1a and 1b with you guys slightly behind. And so here we are. Down to the final four and those 3 are still involved. Looks like most everyone was right.

It's going to be a war and I can see any of the 3 coming out on top in Frisco. It's a shame both of us have to beat the other two to win a title while NDSU got a free pass to the final (let's be real, Soft Houston State ain't gonna win that game. no way, no how)

As of course a non-neutral, I wouldn't read too much into the result last week. We've won 25 in a row for a reason. That doesn't happen by luck or a soft schedule. Our team is very talented, and while not perfect, we are not an easy out for anyone. I think that showed last weekend. Weber thought they had us. But we moved on and they didn't.

I have great respect for your program and am glad to see you guys get over the hump and take the next step to reach the semis. I just hope you don't take ANOTHER step this weekend.

good luck and hope you guys can bring a good group of fans. I think you'll see when you visit JMU while so many of us feel it is a special place and why we have so much pride and passion for our school and team.

[Jackedforlife]

Re: Know your foe - James Madison University

Welcome to the board Duke fans...so much of this game(as are most games) is going to be won in the trenches. The matchup of our O-line and the Dukes D line will be huge.

Our D on paper looks somewhat soft with the amount of yards we've given up but keep in mind many of those yards can be attributed to the Jacks being up, at times by multiple scores. It is a bend don't break D for the most part. If the Dukes can sustain 8-9 min 9+play drives then they will find success as the game wears on. The Jacks are built to play with the lead.

[DirtyDukes]

Re: Know your foe - James Madison University

This is why the coin toss will be interesting. If they win it, will they choose to receive because they know all of the above stats? Or will they ignore it and defer like 95% of teams do? If I was an opposing coach, I would go against what I normally do and decide to receive the ball.

Houston takes the ball 100% of the time he wins the call. Just FYI.

[CappinHard]

Re: Know your foe - James Madison University

Houston takes the ball 100% of the time he wins the call. Just FYI.

Well there's our answer. Thanks for the insight.

[Jackedforlife]

Re: Know your foe - James Madison University

Houston takes the ball 100% of the time he wins the call. Just FYI.

Even more importantly that we win the flip, as Stig is the same way.

[DirtyDukes]

Re: Know your foe - James Madison University

Even more importantly that we win the flip, as Stig is the same way.

Kind of funny that we have two coaches both dying to win the toss and keep instead of defer. Hahaha. That's a political cartoon in the paper waiting to happen.

[da_coach]

Re: Know your foe - James Madison University

I am of the opinion that this will be a close game that could go either way.

However, no result would surprise me.

I could see JMU getting their running game going, and if they can be physical with the Jackrabbit passing game, I could see them pull away.

I could see SDSU coming out hot (like the last few games), and if they can score early and get a decent lead, force JMU into more of a passing attack, where our defensive backfield can make plays.

More than likely, it will be a close game... and many times, close games can come down to special teams. No worries about Chase or Brady, they will do their job.

Can we cover kicks and punts well? We've done well lately, but have had some breakdowns this season.

Can we spring a good return? Cade Johnson is good on kickoffs, but our punt returns have not been great, I'm just happy when we can make a fair catch.
(No offense to Marquise, as he seems to be usually surrounded when the ball gets there. Punt return has not been a strength.)

Very excited for the game.

[pgjmu]

Re: Know your foe - James Madison University

I come in peace.....

should be a great game. My take on the Dukes

I think most Dukes feel like me. Last year, it all came together at the right time. The offense was dynamic. Our receivers were great and our RB, Khalid Abdullah did it all. Schor was very accurate and had a great TD/ INT ratio as well as completion ratio. The offense line was blowing holes open. The defense started slowly, but by the end of the year, they were outstanding. After we dismantled NH & SHSU in the playoffs we knew we were going to take down NDSU in their dome. We had swagger. The team knew and the fans knew it. The youngstown state game was a victory lap and was over in the first quarter.

This year has been different. The offense led the charge last year. We lead with defense this year. We have been very inconsistent on offense. We lost our top RB to injury and Marcus Marshall (GT transfer) has taken some time to find his way. Our other RB, Trai Sharp has been pretty good, but not spectactular. Schor has been good, but not great. That may be a result of an injury depleted ol and a drop off in receivers. Given the strong defense and inconsistent offense, our formula this year has been to get ahead by 10 points and let our defense take us home. The offense becomes very conservative and unimaginative. While we blew teams out last year, our wins this year may not appear as impressive. But don't let the scores mislead you. Being up 14 with our defense, might as well be 28 points. Additionally, with a 14 point lead, our coaching staff shows little interest in aggressive offensive play.

The Jackrabbits are going to be a huge test for us. You appear on a mission similar to what we did last year. You have a chance to go on the road and knock off the champ. Unlike the NDSU fans from last year, no one here is underestimating your team.

My take -

Our defense is going to be better than last week. WSU score 28, but 7 came from a drive that started on our 5 and another TD was an 80 score completely misplayed by our stud safety.

Our offense. While it has been inconsistent, it showed some signs last week. We had over 500 yards, but misplayed ourselves out of bunch of points. TD called back on a hold, end of half clock mismanagement that cost us points. A drive in the redzone stopped on a 3rd and 4th and one.

I believe our defense will be back. If you score more than 17, I think you will win.

While everyone is focused on our defense vs. your offense, I believe our opportunity to win the game will come down to our offense. If we score more than 24, we will win. If we don't, I believe you will win.

Looking forward to a great game.

One thing we can both agree upon, the winner of this game to take down NDSU.

[discoDancinJackrabbit]

Re: Know your foe - James Madison University

Handling of pressure will be big in this one. Especially for SDSU. Going into the semi's for the first time, on the road against the defending champs riding a huge win streak. Plus there's probably going to me a lot of people there which may or may not effect us. That's the thing I'm lookin for is how we react to the pressure that we'll feel. Will we stay energized throughout the game and make clutch plays that we'll most likely need to make or will be crumble under the pressure of the big stage and JMU's talent level. Idk but am of course pumped 😎

[SoDakJack]

Re: Know your foe - James Madison University

Handling of pressure will be big in this one. Especially for SDSU. Going into the semi's for the first time, on the road against the defending champs riding a huge win streak. Plus there's probably going to me a lot of people there which may or may not effect us. That's the thing I'm lookin for is how we react to the pressure that we'll feel. Will we stay energized throughout the game and make clutch plays that we'll most likely need to make or will be crumble under the pressure of the big stage and JMU's talent level. Idk but am of course pumped 😎

The team benefits either way. Even if they struggle and lose, the staff and players can use that to build on for the future. If they win, I think that it will show that they belong on the same level as JMU and NDSU.

This year whomever wins the natty is going to have earned it. There are 4 legit teams left.

[CappinHard]

Re: Know your foe - James Madison University

The team benefits either way. Even if they struggle and lose, the staff and players can use that to build on for the future. If they win, I think that it will show that they belong on the same level as JMU and NDSU.

This year whomever wins the natty is going to have earned it. There are 3 legit teams left.

FYP. Sam Houston is not that good.

[DukesGoingFor3]

Re: Know your foe - James Madison University

Haven't they won like 26 games in a row? Something tells me the Weber State game was an aberration. This will be a very good team coming off of a really bad game. I remember thinking I would hate to be the team that plays NDSU the week after we beat them(that team was USD and I'd rather punch myself in the face than be USD). We are that team this week. JMU will be hyper-focused this week in practice. If the Jacks are not clicking on all cylinders from the get go, we may get boat raced. Taryn can't overthrow receivers and Jake has to catch the easy ones as well as the highlight material. Defensively, stop the run and put our fate in the DBs hands...and legs. The Jacks can pull off the upset, but it will take a greater effort than it did against the Bison.

Another JMU fan here. First, for those traveling to Harrisonburg, I wish you safe travel and hope (except for the outcome of the game) you enjoy your visit.

The comment above is the X factor in our advantage (besides home field, of course). Our coach is a master motivator and I will be shocked if he will allow the Dukes to make as many mistakes as they did last week against Weber St. Hyper-focused is probably the correct description for this team this week. Admittedly, we were lucky to make as many mistakes as we did and still pull out the win last Friday night. But, that wake up call may have been exactly what this team needed to propel them to two more wins and our 3rd National Championship.

Go Dukes!

[SoDakJack]

Re: Know your foe - James Madison University

FYP. Sam Houston is not that good.

They seem pretty good to me. They have a pretty talented offense and a suspect defense....sounds familiar.

I think that any of the 4 teams left could beat each other. That is all that I ask for in a semi final round.

[JMUbulldogg]

Re: Know your foe - James Madison University

They seem pretty good to me. They have a pretty talented offense and a suspect defense....sounds familiar.

I think that any of the 4 teams left could beat each other. That is all that I ask for in a semi final round.

What little I saw of Sam vs. Kennesaw, I was impressed with Sam. Big improvement from the last time I saw them against Richmond early in the season.

[91jack]

Re: Know your foe - James Madison University

They seem pretty good to me. They have a pretty talented offense and a suspect defense....sounds familiar.

I think that any of the 4 teams left could beat each other. That is all that I ask for in a semi final round.

I think SDSU's defense gets a bad wrap. They only allow 22 points/game. That does include Drake and Duquane but it also includes 6 playoff teams.
I think they got pushed around by YSU but they only allowed 19 points that game.
Missouri State did score 30 against them but that might be the low point of the season.
I know a lot of people keep talking about the UNI game BUT we fumbled a punt, fumbled a kick off return and threw a interception that got returned to the 2 yard line (??) in our first 5 possessions (when the offense doesn't get to touch the ball can you call it a possession)so we didn't give them much of a chance. On top of that, I think our offense went 3 and out and 5 and out. They did allow 200+ yards rushing but it took the 60+ carries to do that. I think they only averaged about 3.8 yards/carry. Our offense even had the ball for something like 0:38, 0:32, 0:29 and 1:23 on some of our other "drives".

I think it will come down to what team gets off to a fast start. It seems like SDSU plays loose if they get the lead but they get flustered if they fall behind. If they fall behind by 2 scores or more, the game will probably be over. Of course if they get a good lead, they will fall into a prevent defense and then James Madison will probably score a TD in about 1 minute or so. I don't think SDSU will get up big but you never know. I think it should be a good game so we will see what happens.