#1 Dukes Tie CAA Win-Streak Record with 20-10 Win at Delaware

Saturday, September 30

Newark, Del.

3:30 p.m.

James Madison University

5-0 , 2-0

Delaware

2-2 , 0-1

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

James Madison

Delaware

#1 Dukes Tie CAA Win-Streak Record with 20-10 Win at Delaware

9/30/2017 8:05:00 PM | Football

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NEWARK, Del. – Junior running back Trai Sharp rushed for a career-high 185 yards and top-ranked James Madison forced three turnovers to grind out a 20-10 Colonial Athletic Association football victory at Delaware on Saturday at Delaware Stadium.

The Dukes increased the nation's longest win streak to 17 games, which tied the all-time CAA record - set by Richmond in 2008-09. That is also tied for the 13th-longest win streak in FCS history.

JMU improved to 5-0 on the year and 2-0 in CAA play, while the Blue Hens fell to 2-2 and 0-1.

QUICK HITS

Sharp ran for 185 yards on 36 carries, tallying a 5.1 yards per carry average. His long of 59 set up his six-yard touchdown carry in the first quarter.
Redshirt senior Andrew Ankrah recorded his first career touchdown on a 23-yard fumble recovery in the second quarter. He finished with five tackles, including two for loss, and a sack.
Playing in his first game this season, senior linebacker Brandon Hereford recorded a team-high 11 tackles and a sack.
JMU's defense held Delaware to just 229 yards of offense and blanked the host Hens for the final 42:07.
Raven Greene collected his third takeaway of the season with his second interception of the season in the second quarter. He also forced a fumble early in the second half when UD was driving in JMU territory.
Junior kicker Tyler Gray sealed the win with a career-long, 48-yard field goal with 2:50 remaining.

WHERE THE GAME TURNED

Trailing 10-7 after having just punted to Delaware, Andrew Ankrah picked up a fumble on a backwards pass and ran it 23 yards for his first career touchdown, giving the Dukes a 14-10 lead with 6:53 to go in the first half.
On the ensuing drive, Raven Greene picked off UD quarterback Joe Walker with 3:46 to go in the second, resulting in three points off a Tyler Gray field goal in the closing seconds.
That fueled JMU's defense into the second half, where it did not give up any points to the host Blue Hens.

THE DAGGER

After forcing UD into a three-and-out with just under seven minutes to go, Trai Sharp rushed for 23 yards on five consecutive plays to set up a Tyler Gray field goal.
Gray drilled a career-long, 48 yarder from the left hash to put the Dukes up 10, at 20-10 with only 2:50 to play.

TRAI HAS A DAY
Trai Sharp carried the load on offense, tallying 36 of the Dukes' 54 rushes on the day, as he finished with 185 yards. He began his career performance by ripping off a massive 59-yard rush to put the dukes inside the 10. On the very next play, he pounded it in the end zone from six yards out to give JMU a 7-3 lead. It was Sharp's second 100-yard rushing performance of the year and the fourth of his career.

NO DOUBT ON DEFENSE
In the second half, JMU's defense gave up just 79 yards of total offense while holding the Hens scoreless. JMU gave up just four first downs the entire half, along with three straight three-and-outs. This was the fourth consecutive game JMU has held its opponent to under 300 total yards of offense.

PHOTO OF THE GAME - view photo gallery

Andrew Ankrah celebrates after scoring his first career touchdown in the second quarter

UP NEXT

JMU is off next weekend before returning to action on Saturday, Oct. 14 when it hosts Villanova at Bridgeforth Stadium/Zane Showker Field. Kickoff for that matchup, which is this year's "White Out" is set for a 3:30 p.m. start.