#2 JMU Clashes with #6 Northern Iowa Friday Night in FCS Quarterfinals

HARRISONBURG, Va. – Second-seeded James Madison continues its journey through the 2019 postseason on Friday, Dec. 13 when it hosts #6 Northern Iowa in the quarterfinal round of the FCS Playoffs. It marks the first meeting between the programs.

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. under the lights at Bridgeforth Stadium and will be televised nationally on ESPN2. It will also be streamed through ESPN3 and the Watch ESPN app. The game can also be heard on the JMU Sprint Broadcast Network, with pregame coverage beginning at 6 p.m.

JMU's run through the 2019 playoffs is presented by Excel Heating and Cooling.

FAN & PRESS LUNCHEON

JMU IN THE PLAYOFFS
JMU is making 16th playoff appearance in 2019, which includes a program-record sixth straight berth. The Dukes are 18-13 in the playoffs with a pair of national championships - 2004 and 2016. They also advanced to the title game in 2017, falling just short (17-13 vs. North Dakota State).

This year marks the fourth time JMU has earned a national seed since the field expanded to 24 teams and the fifth time ever. The Dukes were No. 1 both in 2008 and 2017, No. 2 in 2019, No. 4 in 2016 and No. 5 in 2015. JMU has won multiple playoff games in four postseason trips, going 4-0 in both national title runs, 3-1 in 2017's national runner-up finish and 2-1 in 2008 when it reached the semifinals.

The Dukes are 10-4 at home in the postseason, while also going 6-8 on the road and 2-1 in neutral-site games.

DUKES AGAINST THE VALLEY
Friday marks JMU's seventh meeting against a Missouri Valley Conference team, all of which have come in the playoffs. JMU is 3-3 against the Valley, going 1-0 vs. South Dakota State, 1-1 vs. Youngstown State and 1-2 vs. North Dakota State.

The Dukes have now faced a MVFC squad in three of the last four playoffs. This is the second time a Valley program has visited Bridgeforth Stadium. Last time out, JMU forced 10 turnovers en route to a 51-16 win over SDSU in the 2017 FCS semifinals.

NUMEROUS PROGRAM PLAYOFF RECORDS SET IN MONMOUTH WIN
JMU put up big numbers en route to a 66-21 win against Monmouth, setting seven program playoff records in the process. The Dukes recorded the most points in a playoff game, reeling off 66, while gaining the most yards in the 31-game playoff history, with 623 yards.

JMU had the highest team completion percentage (.852), ran the most plays (90), recorded the most first downs (36) and tied records for total touchdowns (9) and points scored in the first quarter (21). Percy Agyei-Obese and Ben DiNucci also turned in individual program records in a playoff game, as Agyei-Obese tied the single-game rushing touchdown mark, with three, and DiNucci completed 84% of his passes on 21-of-25 passing.

ACTIVE STREAKS ENTERING QUARTERS

12-game win streak - second longest active in FCS
10 straight wins at Bridgeforth Stadium
7 straight home playoff wins
25 straight games with foes under 50% on third down
Held opponents to under 100 rush yards in seven straight
Out-rushed opponents in 17 straight games
Scored a rushing TD in 18 straight games
Scored at least two passing TD in 7 straight

HISTORICAL REFERENCE TO START
JMU's extended its win streak to 12 with its win versus Monmouth, marking a couple historical achievements. JMU has started a season with at least 12 wins in its first 13 four times, including three times since 2016. JMU also began 12-1 in 2008 and 2016 and was 13-0 after an FCS quarterfinal win in 2017.

JMU also completed the CAA slate 8-0 for the fourth time in school history, as it also accomplished the feat in 2008, 2016 and 2017. JMU reached at least the FCS semifinals in the previous three instances, making the semifinals in 2008, winning the national title in 2016 and finishing national runner-up in 2017.

LAST TIME OUT FOR THE DUKES...
JMU broke program playoff records for points and total yards, rolling to a 66-21 win against Monmouth in the second round of the FCS Playoffs. The Dukes out-gained MU 623-266, scoring 45 unanswered points to win their 12th straight.

Ben DiNucci passed for 273 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for 66 yards and two more scores. He set the team's playoff record with an 84% completion rate. Percy Agyei-Obese ran for 90 yards and three touchdowns, and Jawon Hamilton had 95 yards.

Riley Stapleton had seven catches for 87 yards, and Brandon Polk had six grabs for 83 yards and a score. After allowing 14 points and 136 yards in the first quarter, JMU's defense gave up just seven more points and 130 total yards over the final three quarters, including -12 rushing yards.

EXPLOSIVE OFFENSIVE NUMBERS
Following JMU's season-high 66 points in the FCS Second Round, JMU now leads the country by averaging 44.1 points per game. The Dukes pace the FCS in completion percentage (71.2%) and rank second on third down (55.7%), first downs (25.08), fewest interceptions (4) and pass efficiency (177.38). JMU is also top 10 in the red-zone (94.2%), total offense (482.6) and rushing (255.7).

SCOUTING NORTHERN IOWA
The Panthers enter Friday's quarterfinal with a 10-4 record following a 13-10 win at South Dakota State. UNI averages 22.5 points per game while conceding 17.7 to its foes. Offensively, Northern Iowa gains 309.1 yards per game, tallying 118.8 rushing and 190.3 passing.

Will McElvain ranks third in the Valley with 190.3 passing yards and 218.6 total yards per game. His top target, Isaiah Weston has 1,053 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns, as he ranks second with 87.8 yards per contest.

Defensively, UNI ranks in the top 10 nationally in seven categories, including seventh in both scoring defense and total defense (294.3). It is also fourth in fumble recoveries (14), fifth in interceptions (18), turnover margin (+1.08) and defensive touchdowns (4) and ninth in rushing defense (104.7).

Elerson Smith leads the Valley with 14.0 sacks and 21.5 tackles for loss, while Jared Brinkman has 7.0 sacks and 14.0 TFL. Bryce Flater has a team-best 121 tackles, and Christian Jegen has 101. Omar Brown has a league-lead six interceptions.

Mark Farley is in his 19th season at the helm, as he's the winningest coach in both UNI and Missouri Valley history, with 159 wins. He was named 2007 Eddie Robinson Award winner and has guided UNI to nine playoff appearances since 2001.

JMU ON ESPN2 THIS WEEK
The Dukes and Panthers can be seen live nationally on ESPN2 or by streaming through ESPN3 and the Watch ESPN app. Digital options include Roku, Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV.

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