JMU and Virginia Meet for First Time in 40 Years Saturday in Charlottesville

HARRISONBURG, Va. – James Madison football travels over the mountain to Charlottesville for the first time in four decades when it takes on Virginia out of the Atlantic Coast Conference on Saturday, Sept. 9.

Kickoff from Scott Stadium is set for 12 p.m. and will be televised nationally on ESPNU. Pregame radio coverage on the Morris Insurance & Financial JMU Radio Network begins at 10 a.m.

Saturday will also serve as the "UVA Strong" football game, as announced by the University of Virginia, and will be the 500th game ever at Scott Stadium.

James Madison (1-0) vs. Virginia (0-1)
Saturday, September 9, 2023
Kickoff: 12:00 PM ET
Charlottesville, Va. | Scott Stadium

Game Information
Online: ESPNU
Radio: WSVA 92.1 FM/550 AM
Listen: Morris Insurance & Financial JMU Radio Network
Live Stats
JMU Game Notes

BEEN A LONG TIME COMING FOR JMU VERSUS VIRGINIA

Saturday marks the fourth meeting all-time between the teams, with UVA leads 2-1 - all in Charlottesville.
The squads have not met in 40 years, with the previous meeting occurring Sept. 17, 1983 - a 21-14 Virginia win.
JMU captured a historic 21-17 triumph at Virginia on Sept. 18, 1982, for its first of two all-time wins over the ACC.
In the inaugural meeting, UVA won 69-9 on Oct. 13, 1979, which is JMU's all-time largest margin of defeat.
This weekend's matchup is also JMU's 12th versus the ACC, as it's 2-9 against the league. In addition to the 1982 win at UVA, JMU stunned Virginia Tech, 21-16, on Sept. 11, 2010, in Blacksburg.

JMU AGAINST THE COMMONWEALTH

Entering Saturday, the Dukes have won 17 straight games against teams from around the state of Virginia.
All-time, JMU is 96-61 against in-state squads.
The Dukes have faced 15 teams from Virginia, dating back to its 1972 inaugural season.
The Dukes have played William & Mary (27-17) more than any other state team, at 44 games, and have faced Richmond (21-18) 39 times and Liberty (12-6) on 18 occasions.
The Tribe was the last state team to beat JMU in a 44-41 triumph on Oct. 31, 2015, in Williamsburg.

DUKES RUN AWAY FROM BISON IN HOME OPENER

JMU's rushing attack and strong second-half defense propelled the Dukes to a 38-3 victory against Bucknell in the season opener on Sept. 2 at Bridgeforth Stadium.
The Dukes out-gained Bucknell 436-208, which included a 261-62 margin in the run game. In the second half alone, JMU held the Bison to just four total yards, highlighted by negative six in the fourth. Meanwhile, JMU, which led 17-3 at the break, scored 21 unanswered while gaining 249 yards in the latter half.
Kaelon Black led the offense with 125 rushing yards on just 12 carries (10.4 avg.). Jordan McCloud entered at quarterback in the second half, throwing for 144 yards and two touchdowns. Reggie Brown caught a career-long, 57-yard touchdown pass from McCloud and finished with 77 receiving yards, a team high.
Defensively, JMU held BU to 3.6 yards per play and 1.8 per rush. Taurus Jones had nine tackles with 2.0 for a loss and a sack, while Mikail Kamara tallied career highs of six stops, 2.5 TFL and a sack.

DOMINANCE ON THIRD DOWN

Following week one's performance, JMU extended its streak of holding opponents under 50% on third down to an impressive 35th consecutive game.
Bucknell managed just 3-of-15 (20%) on third down. Since moving up to FBS, JMU has allowed just 47 third-down conversions, as the 12 teams played are just 47-of-170 (28%).
Last season, one team came close to 50%, as Louisville finished 6-of-13 (46%).
The last team to finish right at 50% was North Dakota State in the 2019 FCS championship game.
The last team to finish better than 50% on third in a game was NC State on Sept. 1, 2018, which was 11-of-16. Since then, JMU's defense has gone 61 straight games not allowing a team over 50%.

DUKES RECEIVING VOTES IN BOTH POLLS

Following its week-one triumph, JMU held on to its votes in both major college football polls.
The Dukes received one vote in both the AP Top 25 and the US LBM Coaches Poll.
JMU also received a vote in each poll in the preseason.
JMU is one of three Sun Belt teams to receive votes from both the media and coaches, joining Troy and Texas State.

BROADCAST INFORMATION
Television: ESPNU
Online: Watch ESPN
Listen: Morris Insurance & Financial JMU Radio Network

On the radio – WSVA 92.1 FM/550 AM
Online: The Varsity Network

Broadcast Talent

ESPNU: Roy Philpott (pxp), Roddy Jones (analyst), Taylor McGregor (sideline)
Radio: Dave Riggert (pxp), Drew Painter (analyst), Corey Spector (sideline)

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