#2 JMU Opens CAA Play Saturday at #24 Elon

Saturday, September 28

Elon, N.C.

2 p.m.

James Madison University

Elon

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9/24/2019 1:00:00 PM | Football

Press Luncheon Game Notes

HARRISONBURG, Va. – Second-ranked James Madison continues its three-game road trip by opening up Colonial Athletic Association play on Saturday, Sept. 28 at 24th-ranked Elon.

Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. at Rhodes Stadium and will be streamed on FloFootball (subscribe here). The game can also be heard on the JMU Sprint Broadcast Network, with pregame coverage beginning at 1 p.m.

The 2019 JMU football season is presented by CarMax.

FAN & PRESS LUNCHEON

BREAKING DOWN THE SERIES
JMU and Elon meet for the eighth time this weekend and for the third time in Rhodes Stadium. The Dukes won the first six meetings, before the Phoenix upended JMU in the last meeting with a late touchdown to earn a 27-24 win at Bridgeforth Stadium. JMU has outscored Elon by averages of 41.3 to 14.9 in the series. It has also scored over 50 points on three occasions.

The Dukes are 2-0 all-time at Elon, having never conceded a touchdown to the Phoenix on their home turf. JMU has won the two games by a combined 82-3. Last time the Dukes traveled to Elon, it won 31-3 on Nov. 18, 2017 to capture the outright 2017 CAA Championship.

THE LAST TIME JMU AND ELON MET
Davis Cheek connected on a 15-yard touchdown pass to Avery Jones with 1:17 to send Elon past JMU back on Oct. 6, 2018. It was Elon's first win over JMU and the highest-ranked team the Phoenix had ever beat, as JMU was #2. The loss snapped JMU's 20-game CAA win streak and 19-game home win streak.

The game saw three lead changes in the fourth quarter. Ben DiNucci threw for a career-high 316 yards and a touchdown and Ethan Ratke set the JMU single-game record with four field goals. For Elon, Cheek finished with 286 yards and a score, while Malcolm Summers led the game with 186 rushing yards and a touchdown.

LAST TIME OUT FOR THE DUKES
Ben DiNucci accumulated more than 300 yards and Percy Agyei-Obese turned in a career day on the ground to lead JMU to a 37-14 win at Chattanooga last Saturday. DiNucci was 19-of-25 for 264 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 49 more to pace the offense with 313 yards of offense. Agyei-Obese had 19 carries for a career-high 114 yards (6.0 avg.) and a pair of touchdowns, marking his second career game over 100 yards.

JMU held Chattanooga without a point after the opening stanza, limiting the Mocs to 245 total yards. The rush defense excelled once again, holding UTC to 84 rushing yards and 2.9 per carry. JMU led 23-14, but with the Mocs were threatening in the red zone, D'Angelo Amos came away with the biggest play of the game with his first career interception near the goal line. JMU answered with a 48-yard touchdown by Brandon Polk.

DUKES HOLD STRONG AT #2 IN RANKINGS
After wrapping up non-conference play at 3-1, JMU held strong at #2 in both the STATS FCS Top 25 and AFCA FCS Coaches' Poll. The Dukes garnered four first-place votes from the media, trailing just defending champion, North Dakota State, which took home 153 first-place votes. #3 South Dakota State and #4 UC Davis held their spots, while Weber State rose to fifth.

The CAA once again boasts an FCS-leading six ranked teams this week, including three in the top 10. Following JMU were #8 Villanova, #10 Towson, #12 Maine, #20 Delaware and #24 Elon. JMU has been nationally ranked every week since Nov. 10, 2014 and inside the top 15 every week since the start of the 2015 season. It has also been in the top 10 every week since Sept. 26, 2016.

SCOUTING ELON
The Phoenix enter Saturday's matchup with a 2-2 record following a 49-7 setback at Wake Forest. Elon averages 26.2 points per game while allowing 30.2 to its foes. It ranks last in the CAA in total offense (317.2), 10th in rushing (129.8) and 11th in passing (187.5). The Phoenix are successful on third down, converting at a CAA's third-best 49.1%.

Davis Cheek is seventh in the league with 184.0 passing yards and has yet to throw an interception. The Phoenix have a three-man show in the ground game with Jaylan Thomas (220), Brelynd Cyphers (146) and De'Sean McNair (122) splitting carries. Elon ranks ninth in scoring defense and passing defense (245.0) while also ranking fourth against the run (149.8) and eighth in total defense (394.8). Tony Trisciani is in his first year as head coach at Elon after serving under Curt Cignetti as his defensive coordinator for the 2017 and 2018 seasons. He possesses 23 years of experience, including 13 at CAA Football institutions.

RATKE TIES JMU ALL-TIME RECORD
Ethan Ratke converted on all three field goals to move himself into a tie for first place all-time at JMU in career field goals. He now sits atop the JMU leaderboard with John Coursey (1993-96), who both have 39 career field goals. Ratke also moved into the top 10 of JMU's career scoring department, as he's ninth with 202 career points. He sits just 19 points shy of the top five.

CIGNETTI RETURNS TO RHODES
JMU Head Coach Curt Cignetti returns to Elon for the first time on the opposing sideline, as he brings his Dukes to Rhodes Stadium for the conference opener. Cignetti spent the 2017 and 2018 seasons at Elon, guiding the Phoenix to a 14-9 record and back-to-back playoff appearances for the first time in school history.

In his first season, he guided Elon to a six-win turnaround, going 8-4 and finishing second in the CAA to earn CAA Coach of the Year accolades. Last season, Elon went 6-5, highlighted by its 27-24 win over No. 2 JMU for the first top-five win in Elon football history.

Seven different staff members make their return with Coach Cignetti on Saturday including: Damian Wroblewski, Bryant Haines, Matt Merritt, Mike Shanahan, Ryan Smith, Brian Phillips and James Ferguson.

ACTIVE STREAKS ENTERING THE WEEK
The Dukes enter play on Saturday with a three-game winning streak on the line. They also have defeated three-straight CAA teams (Including playoffs) and have out-rushed their opponents in eight straight games. The Dukes have also out-gained their opponent in nine straight games.

JMU ON FLOFOOTBALL THIS WEEK
The Dukes can be seen online through FloFootball and digitally through the FloSports app. Monthly and annual subscriptions are available and fans can subscribe here. Once subscribed, fans can watch all CAA games, as well as all other FloSports content on the portal. Digital options include Roku, Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV. Taylor Durham will be on the call for play-by-play and will be joined by Matt Krause, who will provide color commentary.

JMU SPRINT BROADCAST NETWORK
All 12 regular-season games, as well as any postseason matchups, 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. The pregame show begins this Saturday at 1 p.m., ahead of the 2 p.m. kickoff.

UP NEXT
The Dukes close out their season-long, three-game road trip on Saturday, Oct. 5 when they fly to Long Island to take on Stony Brook. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at LaValle Stadium.