Fifth-Seeded JMU Welcomes Colgate for FCS Second Round Matchup

Saturday, December 5

Harrisonburg, Va.

1 p.m.

James Madison University

Colgate

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Fifth-Seeded JMU Welcomes Colgate for FCS Second Round Matchup

12/1/2015 4:00:00 PM | Football

HARRISONBURG, Va. - James Madison will make its second straight postseason appearance and the 12th in its 44-year history when it hosts Colgate on Saturday at 1 p.m. in the second round of the FCS playoffs. The game will be streamed live on ESPN3 and the Watch ESPN app and can be heard on the JMU/nTelos Wireless Sports Network. JMU's run through the 2015 playoffs is presented by Excel Heating and Cooling.

This will be the first meeting between JMU and Colgate.

JMU TO FACE THE ORIGINAL MADISON UNIVERSITY
Colgate was known as Madison University from 1846 until 1890, when the name was changed to recognize nearly 70 years of continuous involvement by the Colgate family. The school is located in Hamilton, N.Y., in Madison County.

HOW THE DUKES GOT HERE
JMU earned a first-round bye and No. 5 overall seed for the FCS playoffs after going 9-2 during the regular season with a 6-2 mark in the CAA, to be crowned co-champions. The Dukes bolstered their resume with a win at FBS foe SMU back in September and going 4-1 on the road.

HOW THE RAIDERS GOT HERE
Colgate won its first playoff game since 2003 last weekend with a 27-20 victory at New Hampshire in the first round. James Holland scored a career-high four touchdowns as the Raiders won their sixth straight and eight out of nine. 'Gate opened up a 27-6 lead early in the fourth quarter but UNH made a late run, scoring a pair of touchdowns and driving for a third until Sean Goldrich was intercepted by CU's Tyler Castillo with 3:39 to go.

EVERETT WITHERS FAN AND PRESS LUNCHEON

LEE VOTED CAA'S TOP OFFENSIVE PLAYER
Quarterback Vad Lee was voted the 2015 CAA Player of the Year to cap off his career at JMU. Lee's Offensive Player of the Year was the 16th major conference award ever by a JMU player as he became the third player in history to earn the top offensive player and first since Rodney Landers in 2008.

Lee was one of 10 Dukes to earn All-CAA honors as five were named to the First Team. Joining Lee on the All-CAA First Team were Brandon Ravenel (WR), Mitchell Kirsch (OL), Andrew Ankrah (LB) and Taylor Reynolds (CB). Four Dukes were recognized on the All-CAA Second Team in Cardon Johnson (RB), Deane Cheatham (TE), Alex Mosley (DL) and Raven Greene (S). Gunnar Kane (P) was also named to the All-CAA Third Team.

DUKES ROLL ON INTO DECEMBER
For the first time since 2011, JMU is playing football in the month of December. After receiving a first-round bye, JMU cemented its sixth season expanding into December. It is also the first time since the 2008 season that Bridgeforth Stadium will host a December playoff contest.

SETTING OFF FIREWORKS EVERY WEEK
The JMU offense is moving at a pace unmatched in program history this season. Through 11 regular-season games, the Dukes have gained 6,047 yards of total offense (549.7/game), scored 493 points (44.8/game) and picked up 313 first downs (28.5/game), all on pace for single-season program records. On Sept. 26 at SMU, the Dukes scored on five of their nine drives in the second half and racked up a program-record 729 yards on 85 plays, besting the previous record of 713 set back on week one against Morehead State. With the 604 yards of offense at Elon on Oct. 17, JMU has gained 600+ yards in five games during the 2015 campaign.

ONE OF THE NATION'S BEST
JMU leads FCS nationally in two categories this week: total offense (549.7) and third-down conversions (55.3%). The Dukes also rank second in both scoring (44.8) and first downs (313), fifth in completion percentage (66.6%), sixth in rushing offense (284.4) and seventh in red-zone offense (90.3%).

Individually, Cardon Johnson ranks seventh in FCS with 6.9 yards per carry. On the defensive side of the ball, Andrew Ankrah is third with 0.45 forced fumbles per game and eighth with 0.95 sacks per game. Rashad Robinson ranks third with three fumble recoveries while Taylor Reynolds is seventh with 1.5 pass defends per outing.

SCOUTING COLGATE
The Raiders enter the second round of the FCS Playoffs with an 8-4 record after defeating New Hampshire 27-20 on the road in the first round, their sixth win in a row. Colgate went 6-0 in the Patriot League, earning the conference's automatic bid.

Colgate led the Wildcats 27-6 with 12:16 left in the game and held off a 14-point New Hampshire rally in the fourth quarter. The Wildcats were in good position after recovering a fumble in Colgate territory, trailing 27-20 with 4:29 to play, but Tyler Castillo's interception secured the win for the Raiders. It was the first playoff win for Colgate since 2003 when they made a run to the national championship game, eventually losing to Delaware.

The Raiders lead the Patriot League with 34 sacks, 24 of which come from the starting defensive line of Pat Afriyie (9.5), Brett Field (8.0) and Alex Campbell (6.5). Afriyie leads the Patriot League and is fourth in the nation with five forced fumbles. Kyle Diener leads the team with 109 tackles, third-best in the Patriot League.

Sophomore tailback James Holland is the leading scorer on the Colgate offense, tallying 78 points on 13 rushing touchdowns. He found the end zone four times in the win over New Hampshire. The Raiders have four rushers with over 450 yards on the season. Holland (532) is joined by Jake Melville (837), Demetrius Russell (544) and John Wilkins (448). The latter three all have over 1,000 career rushing yards.

Colgate is led by Dan Hunt, who is in his second season as head coach where he has compiled a 13-11 record after going 5-7 during his inaugural season at the helm. He was named 2015 PL Coach of the Year after leading the Raiders to a 6-0 mark in conference play this season.

TALE OF THE TAPE

James Madison		Colgate
44.8	Scoring Offense	24.3
27.3	Scoring Defense	26.3
+17.5	Scoring Margin	-2.0
265.4	Passing Yards	190.8
284.4	Rushing Yards	196.8
549.7	Total Offense	387.6
55% (89/161)	3rd Down Offense	44% (78/176)
45% (76/169)	3rd Down Defense	44% (81/172)
50% (6/12)	4th Down Offense	68% (27/40)
47% (9/19)	4th Down Defense	58% (11/19)
90% (56/62)	Red Zone Scoring	73% (36/49)
27/10/12	Sacks/INTs/Fumble Recoveries	34/10/10

CAA STANDINGS

School	CAA	Overall
No. 5 James Madison	6-2	9-2
William & Mary	6-2	9-3
No. 7 Richmond	6-2	8-3
New Hampshire	5-3	7-4
Towson	5-3	7-4
Villanova	5-3	6-5
Stony Brook	3-5	5-5
Delaware	3-5	4-7
Elon	3-5	4-7
Maine	3-5	3-8
Albany	2-6	3-8
Rhode Island	1-7	1-10

GAME LIVE ON ESPN3
JMU's playoff game against Colgate will be available live on ESPN3 and the Watch ESPN app. Go to ESPN3.com and cable/satellite subscribers can watch all eight FCS second-round games with their subscription login.

JMU NTELOS WIRELESS SPORTS NETWORK
All 11 regular-season games, as well as any potential postseason matchups, can be heard online on the JMU nTelos Wireless Sports Network or on local airwaves at WSVA 550AM and 92.1 FM.

Dave Thomas is in his first season as the play-by-play man for the Dukes and calls alongside color commentator Clint Estes at home while Curt Dudley provides analysis on the road.