JMU/ Del. State

[Tribe4SF]

JMU up 6-0 mid first.

New kicker missed the PAT.

[th0m]

Yep, kicking game isn't exactly stellar. We're passing a lot more though: 75yds passing, 42 yards rushing so far.

[JMU2004]

we're still sloppy.....2 tds called back on penalties.

CCU getting slaughtered says something too

[JMU2004]

JMU up 13-0 in the 1st

[Tribe4SF]

13-0 JMU. He made one!

[th0m]

Another TD, by Hines this time. 20-0 JMU 1:11 1st.

[JMU2004]

20-0 on a Raymond Hines 19 yd run...... 1:11 left in the 1st

[Coastal89]

Hurt'em good. They come in to Hootersville next week.

[JMU2004]

27-0 on a Rascati pass....early in the 2nd

[JMU2004]

34-0 on a long pass from Rascati

[JMU2004]

JMU up 41-0 late in the 2nd Q

[JMU2004]

48-7 in the 3rd

[blur2005]

Del State fumble, Marcus Haywood takes it to the Del St. 25

[blur2005]

Joe Kluesner is the kicker, he went to my high school. He hits a 23-yard field goal to make it 58-7. The regular starter, David Rabil, has been hurt, and I don't know the kicker was against Coastal, but he was wack. Kluesner took over this week.

[th0m]

Blur, the kicker for CCU was Paul Wantuck.

BTW, how did DSU score? I went out to get some beer and came back to see the 0 gone.

[blur2005]

I don't know. When I showed up back from the UVA soccer game, it was 48-7, so I don't know.

[blur2005]

The backup QB Rodney Landers races 82-yards for a touchdown, extra point is good, 65-7.

[th0m]

It looks like JR threw an interception which Del State ran home for a TD.

2nd string QB Rodney Landers runs 81 yards for a TD. 65-7.

[blur2005]

About the 10th punt for the Hornets punter...that's always a good sign for the other team when their opponent's punter has to punt that much.

[blur2005]

Now Englehart will punt. His second of the game, and they were both here in junk time.

[blur2005]

Final: JMU 65, Delaware State 7

[blur2005]

Rascati 18-25, 281 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT
5 Carries, 24 yards, and a rushing TD

[blur2005]

Rushing

Landers 8-106 (backup QB) 1 TD
Banks 10-67
Fenner 8-44, 1 TD
Hines 5-38, 2 TDs
Boldin 13-31

[JMU Duke Dog]

Total Offensive Yards:
James Madison 599
Delaware State 88

The team played solidly for the first team this season. This is how the Dukes should have played last weekend at Coastal Carolina; however, without that loss the team might not have gotten their poise back. Now JMU has two weeks to get ready for the Hofstra Pride in Hempstead.

[JMUfan2008]

so...we basically destroyed them....please tell me they weren't supposed to be very good

[89Hen]

Total Offensive Yards:
Delaware State 88
:eek: Couldn't you QB sneak every play and gain more yards than that?

[JMU Duke Dog]

so...we basically destroyed them....please tell me they weren't supposed to be very good

Before the game I heard they had one of the quickest defenses in the country, and during the game they played very well on kick returns. The Hornets racked up 247 return yards on 10 kick returns. Our team did not take them lightly to start off the game. Hopefully this will continue to be the mentality for every opponent for the remainder of the season as the remaining opponents are all in the A10.

[JMU Duke Dog]

Here is an article on the game from JMU's athetics website:

http://www.jmusports.com/Team/Stories/2_3308.asp?TeamID=2&NewsID=3308

HARRISONBURG, Sept. 17, 2005 – Junior quarterback Justin Rascati (Gainesville, Fla./Buchholz) threw for a career-high 281 yards and three touchdowns, and James Madison scored on its first six possessions in rolling to a 65-7 non-conference football victory over Delaware State Saturday at Bridgeforth Stadium/Zane Showker Field.

Seven Dukes scored touchdowns, and JMU compiled 599 yards of total offense (307 rushing, 292 passing) while raising its record to 2-1. The Dukes limited Delaware State to 88 total yards (19 rushing, 69 passing) – the fewest yards a Division I team ever has had in a game against JMU – in handing the Hornets their first loss after two wins in 2005.

JMU scored touchdowns on each of its first six possessions, threw an interception on its initial series of the final half and then had two touchdowns and a field goal during its next three possessions. The Dukes led 20-0 after one quarter, 41-0 at halftime and 55-7 after three quarters.

JMU’s 65 points are the fourth-most the Dukes have scored in a game and their second-best effort against a Division I foe. JMU defeated Morgan State 76-7 in its 1995 opener – the most points it has scored in a game and its best effort against a Division I foe. JMU beat Galluadet 75-15 in 1974 and Lock Haven 72-0 in 2000.

The Dukes have had more than 41 points during a first half only in the 1995 game with Morgan State when they led 49-7 at halftime.

The previous record-low defensive effort for the Dukes against a Division I team was 91 yards that they allowed Villanova last season.

Rascati completed 18 of 25 passes overall and surpassed his previous career-high passing yardage total while throwing for 249 first-half yards. He scored on a one-yard run to give JMU a 13-0 lead with 3:59 left in the first quarter and connected with junior wide receiver Ardon Bransford (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin) on two scoring passes and junior tailback Alvin Banks (Hampton, Va./Hampton) on one.

Bransford had touchdown receptions of 28 yards in the second quarter and 32 yards in the third period and finished with career highs of six catches for 123 yards.

Banks caught an eight-yard touchdown pass in the second period and ran 10 times for 67 yards.

The Dukes’ second quarterback, red-shirt freshman Rodney Landers (Virginia Beach, Va./Tallwood), also had an impressive evening, rushing eight times for a game-high 106 yards and a touchdown and throwing an 11-yard scoring pass to red-shirt freshman wide receiver Dexter Manley (Chesapeake, Va./Oscar Smith).

Landers scored on an 81-yard run in the fourth quarter, matching the sixth-longest run in the team history. Landers’ scoring carry was the second-longest ever for a JMU quarterback, surpassed only by Stan Jones’ (1974-78) 82-yarder in 1976 against Emory & Henry.

Also scoring touchdowns for the Dukes were junior tailback Maurice Fenner (Virginia Beach, Va./Bayside) on a four-yard run and senior tailback Raymond Hines (Hyattsville, Md./High Point) on runs of 18 and two yards.

Sophomore placekicker Joe Kluesner (Harrisonburg, Va./Harrisonburg) had his first JMU field goal, a 23-yarder, and was successful on eight of nine conversion kicks.

Delaware State averaged only 1.8 yards on 48 plays from scrimmage, and JMU’s defense recorded four sacks and recovered two Hornet fumbles. Red-shirt freshman safety Marcus Haywood (Williamsburg, Va./Bruton) took part in seven tackles and had a sack and a fumble recovery, and sophomore safety Tony LeZotte (Augusta, Ga./Westside) was involved in seven stops.

After an off week, JMU returns to action Oct. 1 in a 3:30 p.m. game at Hofstra. The game’s starting time has been moved to accommodate a telecast by the Madison Square Garden Network.

[blukeys]

so...we basically destroyed them....please tell me they weren't supposed to be very good


The report on the Hornets were that they were weak on offense but solid on defense. One half of this equation was correct today . Only time will tell if DSU will challenge in the MEAC. They have to overcome Hampton and SCSU. I don't know if they can do this.

What is important is that last week's game woke up JMU. I'm sure Mickey Matthews also had something to do with this and that Mickey challenged the Dukes to show what they are made of. We all now know the result. ;) ;)

[Tubby Raymond]

so...we basically destroyed them....please tell me they weren't supposed to be very good

They weren't supposed to be very good ;)

[JMU Duke Dog]

http://www.timesdispatch.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=RTD/MGArticle/RTD_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1031785131003&path=!sports&s=1045855934844

JMU flattens Delaware State
Dukes take frustration out on overmatched MEAC opponent

BY JOHN PACKETT
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Sep 18, 2005

HARRISONBURG -- This was too easy. Even the James Madison student section got tired of cheering for the Dukes in their dismantling of Delaware State last night.

Scoring on all six possessions of the opening half, No. 8 JMU led 41-0 at the break and finished off the previously unbeaten visitors 65-7 in front of a sellout crowd of 13,645 at Bridgeforth Stadium.

The Dukes (2-1) were coming off a loss at Coastal Carolina their first setback since claiming the I-AA national championship last year -- and the defeat didn't sit well with JMU.

"We decided that today couldn't come any quicker than it did," said quarterback Justin Rascati, who was chiefly responsible for the blowout with his passing. "We were so ready to get another win under our belt.

"A performance like this shows we don't get down on ourselves. We don't point a finger at anybody."

How one-sided was this? The Dukes were up 27-0 before the Hornets (2-1) managed a first down.

JMU collected nearly 400 yards of offense in the first half and held DSU to only 28. The Dukes registered 23 first downs and held the Hornets to one before intermission.

"It was great to come back here and see all the fans who didn't leave us after we lose one game," safety Tony LeZotte said. "We were real anxious to play after what happened last week."

Rascati had passed for a career-high 249 yards before the Dukes went to the locker room, connecting on 17 of 23 attempts. The junior transfer from Louisville started the second half but came out after the first two series.

"We need to keep the ball in his hands," JMU coach Mickey Matthews said of Rascati. "He's a playmaker. He improvises so well."

Rascati finished 18 of 25 for 281 yards and three TDs. Wideout Ardon Bransford caught six of his passes for 123 yards and a pair of scores.

"When you lose a game, everyone wants to bounce back and play better," Bransford said.

Matthews substituted liberally in the second half, but the Dukes still dominated on both sides of the ball.

"I don't know if it was anger or frustration [after first loss], but we played with that mind-set in the first half," Matthews said. "We need to play that way the rest of the year."

The only thing JMU messed up in the first half was when kicker Joe Kluesner, making his first start this year, shanked an extra-point try after the Dukes' first TD, a 4-yard run by tailback Maurice Fenner that culminated an 80-yard drive.

The 41 first-half points were the second-most against a Division I-AA team and tied for the third-most in school history.

"Coming off a loss, you always want to improve," said Raymond Hines, one of the JMU running backs who helped account for 307 yards rushing. "I think the loss last week let the team know that this is not last year. This is not past years. We're a new team. We have to work just as hard as last year. So maybe it was a wakeup call."

DSU, a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, finally dented the Dukes' defense four minutes into the third quarter when Rodney Roy scored on a 1-yard run following Rascati's first interception since the last regular-season game in 2004.

The Hornets wound up with only 88 yards of offense, compared to 599 for the Dukes.

"We wanted to come back and have a real big win and get some momentum going," Fenner said.

Backup QB Rodney Landers capped the Dukes' evening when the redshirt freshman raced 81 yards down the sideline with 4:45 left in the game for what was the second-longest scoring run by a JMU quarterback in school history.

The 65 points were the most for the Dukes since they whipped Division II Lock Haven 72-0 to open the 2000 season.

The Dukes have this week off and go to Hofstra on Oct. 1 for their opening Atlantic 10 Conference game.

[JMU Duke Dog]

Here is a highlight video from yesterday's game.
http://www.jmusports.com/include/AdCode/abmc.asp?b=105&z=20

[JMU Duke Dog]

http://www.dnronline.com/photos/m091705%20JMU-DEL%20FTB1%20PM_1127111564.jpg Photo by Pete Marovich
Here is the Harrisonburg's newspaper article on this past weekend's game:
http://www.dnronline.com/news_details.php?AID=693&CHID=3

Dukes Get Offensive
Apparently annoyed by a loss to Coastal Carolina in its previous game, the JMU football team obliterated Delaware State on Saturday.

By Mike Barber

JMU wide receiver Ardon Bransford attempts to break free from a Delaware State defender in the first quarter. Bransford caught 6 passes for 123 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Two weekends ago, James Madison’s football team sleep-walked through its loss at Coastal Carolina. Saturday night, the Dukes were wide awake.

JMU coach Mickey Matthews last week promised more offense, and his team delivered in nearly record-setting fashion.

The Dukes scored six first-half touchdowns -- and junior receiver Ardon Bransford caught six passes for 123 yards -- as Madison rolled over Delaware State 65-7 in front of 13,645 fans at sold-out Bridgeforth Stadium.

"They just gave us an old-fashioned butt whuppin," Delaware State coach Al Lavan said. "By and large, they had their way with us."

The Dukes (2-1) scored touchdowns on all six of their first-half possessions, taking a 41-0 lead at the break. It was the most points Madison had scored in the first half since amassing 49 against Morgan State in 1995.

"The JMU players and coaches did a job on our players and coaches," Lavan said. "They just overwhelmed us."

In all, the Dukes scored on 10 of their 13 possessions and piled up 599 yards of offense. Seven players notched touchdowns, with Bransford and senior tailback Raymond Hines scoring twice.

Delaware State’s defense, which had recorded 11 sacks coming into the game, didn’t get much pressure on JMU quarterback Justin Rascati, never sacking him Saturday. JMU’s defense, meanwhile, after struggling to pressure Coastal Carolina, dropped Delaware State quarterback Vashon Winton four times.

The only hiccup for Madison came when Rascati’s first pass of the second half was intercepted by Delaware State linebacker Kenny Kern at the Dukes’ 29-yard-line, setting up the Hornets’ only touchdown.

Right from the start, it was obvious JMU was playing with the fire and emotion that was lacking a week earlier at Coastal Carolina. On Delaware State’s second play of the game, JMU safety Tony LeZotte, ignoring a sore right ankle, led a group of tacklers in driving back Hornets tailback Rodney Roy. After the play, LeZotte jumped up and chest bumped a teammate. The drive ended as a three-and-out for Delaware State (2-1) and a punt.

"We always play better at home, anyway," LeZotte said. "It was great to come back here and see all the fans that didn’t leave us after we lose one game. We were real anxious to play another game after last week."

Delaware State scratched out just 88 yards of offense, the fewest ever by a Division I team against JMU. The five first downs the Hornets mustered also were the fewest by a D-I team against Madison.

Regardless, Matthews said his team has been too inconsistent for him to even guess how they might fare in a given game.

"I’m not for sure what to except out of this team yet," Matthews said. "I’m just not for sure."

Matthews said that while the Dukes executed better Saturday than a week ago, the biggest difference was that they "just played hard."

"I don’t know if the word’s frustration or anger, but certainly we played with that mindset in the first half," Matthews said. "I don’t know if it was a frustrated football team or if we were mad, but we need to play that way the rest of the year. That just gives us a chance to win."

As they had promised, the Dukes came out throwing. Three of the first four plays of the game were called passing plays, though Rascati ran once. In all, the usually ground-oriented Dukes threw 28 times for 292 yards, most of it in the first half.

Rascati went 18-25 for 281 yards and three touchdowns while seeing action in only two drives in the second half.

"After last week’s performance, we knew we had to spread it out a little bit, get it to our playmakers outside," Rascati said.

It was Rascati who was the Dukes’ biggest playmaker, a role he performed all last season as JMU captured the Division I-AA championship.

The transfer from Louisville turned in several exceptional plays, perhaps none better than his effort on JMU’s fourth touchdown.

On the Dukes’ first possession of the second quarter, JMU had a first-and-goal at Delaware State’s 8-yard-line. The Hornets sent senior linebacker Derrick Singleton on a backside blitz, bearing down on Rascati from his blindside. Rascati rolled away from the pressure, broke away from Singleton’s arm tackle, reversed direction and flung the ball to a wide-open Alvin Banks across the field and in the end zone, putting JMU up 27-0 with 11:13 left in the first half.

"I think we just have to keep the ball in Justin Rascati’s hands," Matthews said. "It’s obvious he’s a playmaker. When he improvises, he makes a lot of plays. He’s a great athlete."

Like most of his teammates, Rascati was eager to redeem himself after the Coastal defeat.

"Today couldn’t come any quicker than it did. We were so ready to get out here and get another win under our belt," Rascati said."

Quarterback Rodney Landers came into the game, along with most of the backups, midway through the third quarter. Landers hit fellow redshirt freshman Dexter Manley in the end zone for an 11-yard score, zipping a pass between two Hornets defenders, who ended up colliding.

Afterward, Matthews admitted it was more of a "risky" throw than a great one.

"But he had some RPM’s on it," Matthews said.

Third-string kicker Joe Kluesner, playing in place of injured starter David Rabil and struggling backup Paul Wantuck, hit a 23-yard field goal with 14:55 to go in the fourth quarter. Kluesner, the former Harrisonburg High School star, missed his first extra point of the game but then hit his next eight.

Landers capped the scoring with an 81-yard burst up the sideline with 4:45 to go, the third-longest run by a quarterback in JMU’s history.

More JMU superlatives: the 65 points were the fourth-most in school history, and the 599 yards were the second-most in school history against a D-I squad (trailing the 611 against Towson in 1991).

Madison is off this weekend, then starts its Atlantic 10 conference schedule with an Oct. 1 game at Hofstra.