Dukes aim to regroup after disappointing opening performance
Posted on September 4, 2008
For the James Madison football team, it’s time to get back on track.
Madison will have that opportunity Saturday against North Carolina Central University — an independent FCS team — in a game that would be considered a tune-up by some.
The Eagles are coming off a 33-22 loss to Fayetteville State, a Division II school. NCCU is actually located in Durham, N.C., and the Eagles played their home opener a day after JMU faced Duke.
Five turnovers cost the Eagles their opening game, while Madison’s three turnovers at Duke had a similar effect. But even after that lopsided outcome, JMU is undaunted.
“We’re pretty much in the same position we were last year,” Landers said. “And we did pretty well last year.”
He was referring to a 37-14 loss to North Carolina to open the 2007 season, a loss that left the Dukes only 10 games to rack up the eight wins that Football Championship Subdivision (formerly I-AA) teams are expected to have in order to be considered for at-large selection to the playoffs.
“You’ve heard me say before, I think when you schedule these games you have to admit you’re playing a 10-game schedule,” JMU coach Mickey Matthews said at his weekly press conference Monday. “I think nationwide there was one I-AA team win.”
Madison tried to schedule a 12th regular season game this season, but ran into difficulties when the administration wouldn’t allow a home matchup against Liberty — it fell on the weekend of Fall Break. By the time Fall Break was cancelled, it was too late to find an opponent to host.
After the NCCU game, JMU has the toughest two-game stretch of its season: consecutive home matchups against defending Colonial Athletic Association North Division champion, Massachusetts, and defending FCS champion Appalachian State.
But after Madison’s abysmal offensive showing at Duke, players aren’t taking anything for granted. When asked how he expects NCCU to come into Bridgeforth Stadium on Saturday after a frustrating performance in their opener, senior tailback Eugene Holloman was deliberate in his answer.
“Hungry — ready to upset the world, just like we was ready to upset the world” at Duke, Holloman said.
But when asked what he thought the chances of that were, Holloman was a little more elusive in his response, saying: “good question.”
While Holloman said he’s feeling fine after his first game since arthroscopic knee surgery, backup tailback Jamal Sullivan is still sidelined with a torn ligament in his left thumb — he hopes to return for the Massachusetts game. With Sullivan out, sophomore tailback Griff Yancey is the No. 2 running back, while freshman Corwin Acker is seeing action with the third team.
Matthews was emphatic at a Monday press conference that any player who fumbles the ball won’t play, after pulling Landers in the fourth quarter at Duke when he had an interception and two fumbles.
“If you turn the ball over, you’re not going to play,” Matthews said. “We’re not gonna have another year like we did last year — I think it cost us the National Championship.”
There’s good reason to expect Landers to rebound, though. He also struggled at JMU’s season opener at North Carolina last year, throwing two interceptions and fumbling on Madison’s first play. He followed that performance with a passing touchdown, two rushing touchdowns and 241 passing yards against New Hampshire in week 2, after throwing for only 100 yards at UNC.
NCCU is a much less formidable opponent compared with New Hampshire, whom JMU beat 41-24 last season. Still, with two tough games looming after this matchup, the Dukes have a sense of urgency — they know that if they don’t find their rhythm against the Eagles, it’s going to be very hard to contend in the coming weeks.
