Just noticed that JMU is still getting votes in both polls and, since I was at the Bucknell game this past Saturday, wanted to share some thoughts.
JMU played like a shadow of the team I saw last season. I don't feel like the score (38-3) represented the game as I saw. JMU more wore-them-down than beat-them-up. 3-0 after the 1st quarter where is seemed no one could string anything together.
Personnel-wise, I liked their RB (#6), though nearly half of his rushing yards came on a single run, and a couple of their receivers. Their QB was not really a factor (3 of 11 for 15 yds). #2 may be starting by the time Marshall sees them. In the trenches, JMU's OL was better than Bucknell's D-front but not by a big margin. Again, even though the score implies otherwise, there was no domination up front.
Defensively, JMU is undersized but quick. This seems a choice as I know a couple players local to me that have been recruited there and then moved from LB to DE; from Edge-rusher to 3-tech. And this is despite running an odd-front where you would expect the dudes with their hands in the dirt to be a little larger. The match-up with MU will be all about speed vs size.
Not sure JMU deserves any national votes but their play from this point on will take care of that. Overall, they seemed like a .500 team, at best.
I'd like to add that the game-time atmosphere was electric. It certainly looked (and sounded) like a sellout. The student section was huge and packed tight, sitting behind the Marching Royal Dukes (around 400-strong). I was disappointed that there weren't more interactive moments to engage the fans. It was loud, just not coordinated, just like I have complained about Marshall for years. Oh, and, no surprise, only about a third of the student-section made it into the second half. Of course, they come to Huntington this year so it will be our students leaving the stadium early.
JMU played like a shadow of the team I saw last season. I don't feel like the score (38-3) represented the game as I saw. JMU more wore-them-down than beat-them-up. 3-0 after the 1st quarter where is seemed no one could string anything together.
Personnel-wise, I liked their RB (#6), though nearly half of his rushing yards came on a single run, and a couple of their receivers. Their QB was not really a factor (3 of 11 for 15 yds). #2 may be starting by the time Marshall sees them. In the trenches, JMU's OL was better than Bucknell's D-front but not by a big margin. Again, even though the score implies otherwise, there was no domination up front.
Defensively, JMU is undersized but quick. This seems a choice as I know a couple players local to me that have been recruited there and then moved from LB to DE; from Edge-rusher to 3-tech. And this is despite running an odd-front where you would expect the dudes with their hands in the dirt to be a little larger. The match-up with MU will be all about speed vs size.
Not sure JMU deserves any national votes but their play from this point on will take care of that. Overall, they seemed like a .500 team, at best.
I'd like to add that the game-time atmosphere was electric. It certainly looked (and sounded) like a sellout. The student section was huge and packed tight, sitting behind the Marching Royal Dukes (around 400-strong). I was disappointed that there weren't more interactive moments to engage the fans. It was loud, just not coordinated, just like I have complained about Marshall for years. Oh, and, no surprise, only about a third of the student-section made it into the second half. Of course, they come to Huntington this year so it will be our students leaving the stadium early.
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