Alonza Barnett is not a problem for JMU football, and the vocal few fans should stop calling for him to be benched.
Burnett, a redshirt sophomore, has created a rare division among JMU fans, with some praising the quarterback’s athleticism and potential while others believe Washington transfer Dylan Morris gives JMU a better chance to win.
I strongly argue that Burnett should be given more time, much more minutes, as JMU’s starting quarterback.
Gardner-Webb Breakdown
It’s really easy to blame the starting quarterback when the Dukes only managed 13 points against an FCS opponent. The 13 points against Gardner-Webb wasn’t a good performance, but it wasn’t all Barnett’s fault.
Sure, he made some botched passes and misplayed reads, most notably airing a short pass to Yamir Knight on the first pass of the game, a play that may have gone 15 yards or more considering Knight was pretty open.
But JMU’s wide receivers didn’t give Barnett much help in Week 2. Logan Kyle dropped a catchable pass on fourth down that could have led to a first down and over 20 yards for a touchdown on the second drive.
“I think this game would have been a lot different if we had gotten that first fourth down and driven down the field and scored,” coach Bob Chesney said Tuesday. “We didn’t.”
Omarion Dollaron again dropped a third-down pass that likely would have led to a first down. Dollaron and Kyle are both solid players who will eventually get it done on these plays. Dollaron scored a touchdown in Week 1 and Kyle followed that up with a 20+ yard catch against Gardner-Webb.
Despite two bad pass errors, Burnett completed 14 of 22 passes for 135 yards with no touchdowns or turnovers. That’s nothing spectacular, but JMU’s emphasis on underhand and mid-range passes led to fewer passing yards. Burnett took good care of the ball and threw accurate passes. His only interception in the two games came when Burnett thought Charlotte was offside and took a shot downfield hoping for a flag.
Bob Chesney was asked about the interception by Alonza Burnett, and according to Chesney, Burnett thought he had a free play and threw it free.
Gold Watch No. 25 (Prince Wallace Bemer). pic.twitter.com/lDaqsjFXJT
— Jarvis Haren (@jarvisharen) September 2, 2024
Burnett was sacked three times against Gardner-Webb, but only one of those could be attributed to him, and even that one is up for debate.
Gardner-Webb’s first sack came early in the game when Burnett couldn’t find an open receiver and tried to tack the ball down and run, only losing a yard.
The second sack was also a covered sack, as Burnett left the pocket on third down in the second quarter and was sacked while running for some yards. Some have suggested the ball should have been thrown away on this sack, but scrambling to gain a few yards was not a wild decision.
The final sack came when the middle linebacker made a beautiful read on a play-action pass and quickly threaded it to Burnett, a transfer from Appalachian State who wasn’t blocked.
I wouldn’t blame Barnett for those sacks. Twice the receivers failed to get the separation on third down, and another time Barnett got pressured right away by a good linebacker.
Benching Burnett doesn’t change the fact that JMU needs wide receivers to constantly shake off defensive backs and avoid cover sacks, nor does it change the drop issue that JMU has had, with four drops through two games.
It’s easy to blame the starting quarterback for the team’s poor offensive performance, but Saturday’s game wasn’t Burnett’s fault.
The time for patience has come
Burnett showed flashes of elite athlete traits in the Charlotte game, and he did the same against Gardner-Webb.
A third-down 17-yard pass to Yamir Knight was on the ropes, who darted to Knight to move his sticks, and then he made an accurate and timely pass to Kyle for a 20-plus yard gain across the middle of the field.
He also helped move the chains and win the game with a 23-yard run late in the fourth quarter, in which he intentionally slowed down to allow his receivers to throw blocks, resulting in a run that went 23 yards instead of 10.
Dylan Morris can’t run like that.
Through two games, Burnett is one of two Group of Five quarterbacks (along with USF’s Byram Brown) to record three runs of 20 or more yards, according to cfbstats.com He’s an explosive runner and will be a valuable addition to JMU’s roster all year long.
“I think he’s done a great job,” Chesney said Tuesday. “I think he gives us a good option in the run game, I think he’s a good leader, I think he’s a good football player. I think he’s right where he needs to be.”
Barnett was far from perfect through two games, but he had a great second half against Charlotte and his receivers let him down at times against Gardner-Webb.
The quarterback only has three games of starting experience at the collegiate level, and those starts came under two different offensive coordinators. It may take him some time to reach his full potential, and there may be some growing pains, but those plateaus could be worth it if he can consistently display his superior athleticism.
He has earned the starting quarterback spot for JMU and deserves to be there going into Week 3. He is JMU’s best chance to win games this year and in future seasons.
