JMU BEATS NEW HAMPSHIRE 41-24 IN FOOTBALL HOME OPENER

Saturday, September 8

Harrisonburg, Va.

3:30 p.m.

James Madison University

1-1 , 1-0

New Hampshire

0-1 , 0-1

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

New Hampshire

James Madison

9/8/2007 4:00:00 AM | Football

Box Score

HARRISONBURG, Va., Sept. 8, 2007 – Junior quarterback Rodney Landers (Virginia Beach, Va./Tallwood) ran for 128 yards and two touchdowns and threw for 241 yards and a score to lead James Madison to a 41-24 football victory over New Hampshire in a battle of nationally ranked teams Saturday at JMU's Bridgeforth Stadium/Zane Showker Field.

Landers, making his second college start, ran 20 times, scored on carries of nine and six yards, hit on 14 of 22 passes and connected with senior tailback Eugene Holoman (Virginia Beach, Va./Bayside) on an 11-yard scoring strike. Landers' 369 yards of total offense marked for the first time a JMU player had surpassed the 300-yard total offense mark in a game since Justin Rascati (2004-06) had 305 total yards in a 65-7 win over Delaware State Sept. 17, 2005.

Lander's nine-yard scoring run came with 20 seconds left in the first half and pulled JMU into a 17-17 tie. His six-yard touchdown run pulled the Dukes into a 24-24 tie with 6:25 left in the third period, and the scoring pass to Holloman put JMU in front to stay, 31-24, with 1:29 left in the third period.

JMU's offense compiled 526 yards (285 rushing, 241 passing), including 320 yards during the final half. New Hampshire finished with 432 yards (79 rushing, 353 passing) but didn't score after taking a 24-17 lead on the initial drive of the second half.

JMU drove 66 yards in seven plays to tie the score late during the first half, but New Hampshire needed only five plays to go 73 yards for a touchdown and take a 24-17 lead on the opening possession of the third period.

The Dukes then squandered a scoring chance, bobbling a snap on a field goal try after moving to the New Hampshire five, but JMU got the ball back two plays later following junior cornerback Evan McCollough's (Springdale, Md./C.H. Flowers) four-yard interception return to the Wildcat 32.

From there, the Dukes needed only four plays to pull even. Landers had carries of 17 and seven yards to start the series and scored from the six after a two-yard Holloman run.

JMU held New Hampshire to a single first down on the following series and then went 68 yards in seven plays to go in front to stay on the Landers-to-Holloman touchdown pass. Landers hit sophomore wide receiver Rockeed McCarter (Philadelphia, Pa./Roman Catholic) on a 35-yard pass early during the drive.

New Hampshire got as far as the JMU 29 before punting on the following series, and JMU went 79 yards in 10 plays before settling for an 18-yard field goal by junior Dave Stannard (Midlothian, Va./Clover) and a 34-24 lead with 8:30 left in the game.

New Hampshire then got a pair of first downs to reach the JMU 44, but Dukes junior cornerback Darrieus Ramsey (Yorktown, Va./Grafton) stopped the drive with an interception at the 21, his second interception of the year. JMU senior tailback Antoinne Bolton (Virginia Beach, Va./Ocean Lakes) all but sealed his team's win six plays later with a 49-yard touchdown run and a 41-24 Dukes lead with 4:05 left.

Holloman ran 26 times for 98 yards and Bolton five times for 66 yards for JMU. Sophomore tight end Mike Caussin (Springfield, Va./West Springfield) had four receptions for 96 yards and McCarter four for 87 yards for the Dukes.

Senior linebacker Justin Barnes (Columbia, Md./Oakland Mills) had 19 tackles, senior safety Nick Adams (Virginia Beach, Va./Kellam) 11, and junior linebacker D.J. Brandon (Raleigh, N.C./Enloe) 10 for JMU.

New Hampshire got a 353-yard passing effort from reigning national player of the year Ricky Santos, who completed 36 of 47 passes. Three Wildcats finished with seven catches, including Scott Sicko (81 yards), Keith LeVan (66 yards and score) and Robert Simpson (53 yards).

Santos hit Mike Boyle on an 18-yard touchdown pass for the game's first points and LeVan on a three-yard scoring play for a 17-10 New Hampshire lead with 1:16 left in the first half. He scrambled 26 yards for a touchdown to give his team its 24-17 lead with 12:54 left in the third quarter.

The victory evened JMU's record at 1-1 while New Hampshire fell to 0-1 in the Colonial Athletic Association opener for both teams.

JMU hosts Virginia Military Institute in a 6 p.m. game and New Hampshire travels to Marshall next Saturday (Sept. 15).

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