JMU football is a perfect 2-0 this season, but Saturday’s 13-6 win over Gardner-Webb was far from perfect, as the Dukes needed a goal-line win to hold off the Runnin’ Bulldogs.
Fans were stressed watching Saturday’s game and players answered questions in the post-game press conference about being booed in their home opener. It was an awkward game, but the Dukes were lucky to win.
Here are some lessons learned from the less than stellar performance:
The attack isn’t far off, but it misses.
JMU’s offense was poor on Saturday, mirroring its first half against Charlotte. The Dukes only managed one touchdown, didn’t score in the first half and only gained 285 total yards against a formidable FCS opponent. Wofford had 379 total yards in Week 1 against Gardner-Webb.
Looking at the film, there were key pieces missing on a number of plays, especially in the passing game.
On some plays, guys were wide open but passes were batted down at the line of scrimmage or Alonza Burnett’s pass was just wide. On other plays, receivers dropped good passes. On a few other plays, receivers failed to create much separation. Rarely was the offensive line missing assignments or executing poorly.
Burnett mostly made the right decisions and threw good passes Saturday, but some play calls were puzzling and his receivers missed a few opportunities to create chunk plays.
JMU’s offensive line received a lot of criticism for its lackluster game on Saturday, but Pro Football Focus gave JMU the third-highest pass-blocking grade among FBS teams through two weeks, and their run-blocking grade also ranked in the top 35 nationally. In Saturday’s game against Gardner-Webb, the group earned a pass-blocking grade of 95(!).
Fans need to stop slandering the offensive line.
Through two weeks, the JMU football team has the third-best pass-blocking rating in the FBS, according to Pro Football Focus.
However, the Dukes rank 103rd nationally in passing yards per game (107).
The Dukes missed some big chances yesterday (missed passes, dropped passes, deflected passes, etc.).
— JMU Sports News (@JMUSportsNews) September 8, 2024
At running back, George Pettaway and Tyler Purdy stood out, but Pettaway quickly became one of JMU’s best offensive weapons. He ran the ball 10 times for a team-high 84 yards and caught four passes for a team-high 32 yards. Pettaway was the team’s most consistent and dangerous offensive player Saturday. Ayo Addei was injured, which limited his play.
The offensive line has potential and the team didn’t perform too badly on Saturday.
The team was a little sluggish, with Gardner-Webb holding the ball for nearly 34 minutes. JMU only had four offensive possessions in the second half, and the Dukes ran out the clock on their fourth drive of the second half. The Dukes scored on their first three drives (one touchdown and two field goals).
I would argue that the overall lack of possession hurt JMU’s offense more than their actual offensive performance, especially in the final 30 minutes.
The biggest concern coming into this game was that JMU looked a little off against average FCS teams, and the Dukes need to get more consistent in a hurry or they could get into an ugly game against a much better opponent.
Less effective defense than in 2023
Well, is the takeaway from the 13-6 win that the defense just isn’t as dominant as it was last year?
Actually, yes!
JMU’s 2024 defense will be much different than 2023. I really like the 2024 unit, but I’m not sure they’ll be able to shut down opponents as easily as last year’s team.
The 2023 JMU defense featured a strong and dominant defensive line that was among the best in the country in sacks and tackles for loss.
The Dukes’ 2024 defensive line may have more depth than last year’s team, but their top-end dominance has regressed. Losing Mikyle Kamara, Jalen Green, James Carpenter and Jamree Kromah will be tough, and the Dukes just don’t have the same firepower up front this season.
As a result, JMU seems more committed to a bend-but-don’t-break philosophy than it has in recent years.
Lyle Hemphill’s defense had two interceptions against Garner-Webb and held strong in the red zone. Still, Garner-Webb had as many drives of five minutes or more (three) as it had three-and-outs, one of which lasted 8 minutes, 42 seconds. In JMU’s 38-3 win over Bucknell in 2023, the Bison were forced into seven three-and-outs and only one drive of five minutes or more.
The Dukes have allowed just one touchdown in two games in 2024 and have a lot to like about it, including improved ball skills in the secondary and depth at linebacker and on the defensive line. At the same time, JMU’s 2023 defense was special in its ability to easily destroy opposing teams with its four-man defensive line.
I don’t know if the 2024 unit will be able to control the game as well as last year’s defense, but their ability to create turnovers should be valuable in league play. I really like this group, but the tackles for loss and sacks allowed JMU to force a lot of three-and-outs in 2023. That defense was incredible in its ability to get off the field quickly. JMU’s defense struggled to get off the field consistently against an average FCS opponent on Saturday, even if they didn’t allow a lot of points.
Dukes isn’t focused.
Head coach Bob Chesney said during the week that the game was both Gardner-Webb’s Super Bowl and JMU’s Super Bowl. Chesney said he basically told his Dukes players they couldn’t focus on anything else but the game in front of them, and that they had to treat the game against an FCS opponent like it was the most important game of the season.
After the game, both Cole Potts and Jacob Dobbs suggested the Dukes had disrespected Gardner-Webb.
“I thought we didn’t play hard in the first half, and that’s embarrassing,” Dobbs said.
“We underestimated them a little bit,” Potts said. “We were a little slacker.”
Huh?
Many aspects of this game baffled me, but none more so than this disconnect: Why would JMU, with so many new players and coaches, be so dismissive of their Week 2 opponent? The Dukes have yet to prove anything as a team.
Chesney’s resume speaks for itself — he’s a winner and JMU is 2-0 — but there are a lot of transfer students on the team. Are they really buying into his message every week, or are there differences of opinion among members?
Did any players really miss Gardner-Webb, with their home opener and next week off? Were they looking ahead to games weeks away? If so, it will be up to team leaders like Dobbs and Potts to make sure the Dukes are aligned on goals heading into the game against UNC.
JMU can’t afford to lose focus against a strong ACC team if it wants to have a chance to win, and the Dukes need to fully believe the message Chesney is delivering during the bye week and play fired up in two weeks’ time.
Photo courtesy of JMU Athletic Communications