#2 JMU Battles #3 Weber State Saturday for Spot in National Title Game

Saturday, December 21

Harrisonburg, Va.

6:30 p.m.

James Madison University

Weber State

#2 JMU Battles #3 Weber State Saturday for Spot in National Title Game

12/17/2019 1:00:00 PM | Football

Press Luncheon Game Notes

HARRISONBURG, Va. – Second-seeded James Madison gets set for a huge showdown against third-seeded Weber State on Saturday, Dec. 21 in the semifinal round of the FCS Playoffs, with the winner advancing to Frisco, Texas, for the national championship game. It's the second meeting between the programs.

Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. at Bridgeforth Stadium and will be televised nationally on ESPNU. 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 5:30 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 this season. The Dukes are 19-13 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 now in five postseason trips, going 4-0 in both national title runs, 3-1 in 2017's national runner-up finish, 2-1 in 2008 when it reached the semifinals and 2-0 in the current run. The Dukes are 11-4 at home in the postseason, while also going 6-8 on the road and 2-1 in neutral-site games.

DUKES AGAINST THE BIG SKY
Saturday marks JMU's fourth meeting against a Big Sky Conference team, all of which have come in the postseason. This marks the second time in three seasons WSU has visited Bridgeforth Stadium. JMU is 2-1 against the Big Sky, upending Weber State 31-28 in the 2017 quarterfinals while also splitting two playoff games against Montana. JMU defeated the Griz 31-21 in the 2004 national championship game while falling to Montana 35-27 in the 2008 national semifinals.

RECORD 10 DUKES NAMED HERO SPORTS ALL-AMERICANS
James Madison placed a program-record 10 athletes on the 2019 HERO Sports FCS All-America Team. Ron'Dell Carter and Liam Fornadel earned First Team All-America status. Second Team members included Ben DiNucci, John Daka, Dimitri Holloway and D'Angelo Amos. Making the Third Team were Percy Agyei-Obese, Mac Patrick, Adam Smith and Ethan Ratke. JMU has never produced more than seven All-Americans on a single team, as it beat the previous records from the 1994 and 2008 Sports Network (STATS) All-America Teams and 2016 HERO Sports All-America Team.

ACTIVE STREAKS ENTERING SEMIS

13-game win streak - second longest active in FCS
11 straight wins at Bridgeforth Stadium
8 straight home playoff wins
15 straight home non-conference wins
26 straight games with foes under 50% on third down
Held opponents to under 100 rush yards in 8 straight
Out-rushed opponents in 18 straight games
Scored a rushing TD in 19 straight games

HISTORICAL REFERENCE TO START
JMU's extended its win streak to 13 with its win versus Northern Iowa, marking a historical achievement. JMU has started a season with at least 13 wins in its first 14 three times, including three times since 2016. In each previous instance, JMU advanced to the national championship game, as it began 13-1 in 2016 and 14-0 in 2017. JMU also completed the CAA slate 8-0 this year for the fourth time in school history, as it also accomplished the feat in 2008, 2016 and 2017.

LAST TIME OUT FOR THE DUKES...
JMU turned in its first postseason shutout in school history, setting multiple defensive records in a 17-0 win against #6 Northern Iowa in the quarterfinals. The Dukes held UNI without a rushing yard and to only 114 yards of offense - both playoff program records. JMU gained 189 yards on the ground, led by Percy Agyei-Obese's 124 yards and a touchdown.

Ben DiNucci passed for 157 yards and a score. Brandon Polk had seven catches for 59 yards and a TD. This season is the first that JMU has ever produced a 1,000-yard rusher and 1,000-yard receiver in Agyei-Obese and Polk. Dimitri Holloway had a career-high 3.5 tackles for loss and John Daka made two sacks in the win.

SCOUTING WEBER STATE
The Wildcats enter Saturday's semifinal with an 11-3 record following a 17-10 comeback win vs. Montana. Weber averages 28.8 points per game while conceding 20.1 to its foes. Offensively, WSU gains 345.4 yards per game, which is last in the Big Sky. It averages 156.6 on the ground while passing for 188.8 per outing. Josh Davis leads the rushing attack with 1,075 yards and 11 touchdowns, averaging 6.3 per carry.

Jake Constantine has thrown for 2,037 yards and 13 touchdowns with 10 interceptions. Devon Cooley, who has 56 catches for 691 yards and five scores. Defensively, Weber leads the Big Sky in scoring defense while also ranking 14th in the FCS in rushing defense (113.5). WSU has a Big Sky-best 17 interceptions and 44 sacks and holds foes to 32.3% on third down. Conner Mortensen leads the Wildcats with 91 tackles, while Adam Rodriguez has 14.0 TFL and 10.5 sacks. Jay Hill is in his sixth year at the helm, holding a 47-29 record. He's guided Weber to three straight Big Sky titles and a school-record four straight playoff berths.

LAST TIME JMU AND WEBER MET...
Ethan Ratke drilled the game-winning, 46-yard field goal as time expired to lift JMU to a 31-28 win over Weber State back on Dec. 8, 2017 in the FCS quarters. JMU trailed 28-20 with 3:14 to play before Bryan Schor connected with Riley Stapleton on a 40-yard touchdown with 2:08 to play. After a Trai Sharp two-point conversion, JMU's defense forced Weber into a three-and-out, setting up the game-winning drive.

JMU ON ESPNU THIS WEEK
The Dukes and Wildcats can be seen live nationally on ESPNU or by streaming through ESPN3 and the Watch ESPN app. Digital options include Roku, Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV. Chris Cotter will be on the call for play-by-play and will be joined by Mark Herzlich on color commentary and Paul Carcaterra down on the sideline.

JMU SPRINT BROADCAST NETWORK
Saturday's game can be heard online on the JMU Sprint Broadcast Network or on airwaves at WSVA 550AM and 92.1 FM. Online listening options include MadiZONE free audio and the TuneIn app.

Dave Thomas is in his fifth season as the play-by-play man for the Dukes and is joined by Clint Estes on color commentary and JMU student Allie Barefoot down on the sidelines. The pregame show begins this Saturday at 5:30 ahead of the 6:30 p.m. kickoff. Hear interviews with Head Coach Curt Cignetti, coordinators Shane Montgomery and Corey Hetherman and players plus much more.

WHAT'S ON DECK
The winner of JMU and Weber State advances to the 2020 NCAA Division I Championship Game at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas. The victor will face the winner of North Dakota State and Montana State on Jan. 11 at noon ET (11 a.m. CT) on ABC.