CFP Appearance Highlights 2025-2026 JMU Athletics Achievements

HARRISONBURG, Va. – James Madison's inaugural appearance in the College Football Playoff stood atop another banner year of department achievements as the university closed the books on one year while quickly turning the page to 2026-2027.

Overall, JMU achieved three conference championships and NCAA appearances, highlighted by football hosting and winning its first Sun Belt Championship to claim the final spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff. Women's basketball reeled off 12 straight wins to capture its second Sun Belt title and vault to the NCAA Championship, while lacrosse also got hot at the right time to claim the American Conference Championship. Volleyball joined the title celebrations with a Sun Belt regular season championship. Football, women's basketball and lacrosse were joined by swimming and diving, cross country and track and field as sport programs also represented in NCAA postseason competition.

"As we expect annually, it was another successful year for James Madison Athletics, highlighted by our December appearance in the College Football Playoff, making the NCAA Women's Basketball Championship in March, and advancing in lacrosse in May," Director of Athletics Matt Roan said. "I'm proud of our student-athletes, coaches, staff and supporters across all of our sports for all we collectively had to celebrate this year. We strive to be elite in all that we do, which is why I'm even more excited for what's ahead in 2026-27 and beyond."

Football put the exclamation point on its FBS transition, reeling off 11 straight wins en route to the Sun Belt Championship in just the second season of eligibility for the Dukes. JMU became the first Sun Belt school and first institution from Virginia to qualify for the CFP. JMU finished the season nationally ranked in the AP Poll for the first time, closing at No. 19.

Seven Dukes were decorated as All-Americans, five in the Fall with women's soccer's Ginny Lackey, volleyball's Kennedy Louisell and the football trio of Wayne Knight, Trent Hendrick and Pat McMurtrie. Spring added Olivia Rongo and Payton Root of lacrosse. Lacky, Louisell, Hendrick (Defensive) and Rongo (Defensive) were Conference Players of the Year, joined by football's Alonza Barnett (Offensive). Volleyball's Lauren Steinbrecher and football's Bob Chesney were awarded Coach of the Year accolades.

JMU maintained its balance between elite athletics and elite academics with a 3.197 grade point average across all student-athletes. The Dukes also posted a 90 NCAA Graduation Success Rate and a 992 single-year Academic Progress Rate. JMU led the Sun Belt with seven sport programs posting a perfect 1,000 multi-year APR score while 12 of the 17 had a 1,000 single-year score. Overall, 108 student-athletes graduated, 74 achieved President's List and 228 were named to the Dean's List. JMU set a department record with 10,820 collective hours of community involvement.

2025-26 By the Numbers/Department Snapshot

475 student-athletes
.565 winning % all sports
127^th in Learfield Director's Cup final standings, third in Sun Belt
3 conference titles
2 conference regular season titles
6 NCAA appearances
3.197 Department GPA
90 NCAA Graduation Success Rate
70% Department Federal Success Rate
12 of 17 programs achieved perfect 1,000 single-year APR
7 of 17 programs achieved perfect 1,000 multi-year APR scores, best in Sun Belt
992 department single-year APR
74 President's List and 228 Dean's List Student-Athletes
108 Graduates (23 Fall 2025, 79 Spring 2026, 6 anticipated Summer 2026)
5 Sun Belt 1A FAR Academic Excellence Awards (undergrad degree 3.80+), 125 SBC Commissioner's Award (3.5+ GPA previous academic year), 109 SBC Academic Honor Roll (3.0-3.49 GPA).
425 JMU Athletic Director Scholar-Athlete honorees across Fall and Spring
683 student-athletes achieved a 3.0 semester grade point average in at least one semester (includes duplications)
10,820 department record hours of community service, including 8^th of 100+ Division I Helper-Helper schools and third in the Sun Belt
7 All-Americans
32 College Sports Communicators Academic All-District
5 Conference Players of the Year
2 Conference Coaches of the Year
3 Conference Rookies/Newcomers of the Year
14 former student-athletes had their first professional opportunities.

Accomplishments

JMU teams have compiled a 189-144-11 cumulative record for a .565 winning percentage. Over the past 11 years combined, the Dukes have won at a .625 clip across all sports with each season at .548 or higher.
JMU finished sixth in the Sun Belt's Bubas Cup standings, which calculates the best overall institution for competitive success, as measured by Sun Belt-sponsored sports. JMU's score was boosted by first place and a championship in football (15 points), first place in volleyball (14 points) and a championship in women's basketball (12.5 points). Additionally, JMU earned 10 points each in women's soccer and men's golf, eight points in cross country and 7.5 points in women's tennis and softball. The Bubas Cup reflects only Sun Belt sports, thus does not reflect a fourth-place finish in field hockey in the MAC or a lacrosse championship in the American.
James Madison placed 127^rd in the LEARFIELD Director's Cup standings for the 2025-2026 competitive year. JMU ranked third among Sun Belt schools (Texas State 93, Arkansas State 96) and 19^th among Group of Six schools. The award measures team qualification and advancement in NCAA Championships.
Four teams appeared in national polls in the 2025-2026 school year with football finishing a season nationally ranked for the first time at the FBS level at No. 19 AP and No. 20 Coaches. The Dukes were receiving votes multiple times throughout the season and finally broke into the AP No. 24 spot and Coaches No. 25 spot on Nov. 9. Field hockey joined the NFHCA national poll on Sept. 23 at No. 18, being ranked for the first time since 2022. Women's basketball received votes in the preseason USA Today Coaches Poll, then also closed the year with votes in the final poll. Lacrosse was ranked No. 19 in preseason polls, later dropped, but surged at the end to finish 17^th.
JMU posted an exceptional year recording victories over "Power Four"/Autonomous Conference schools with 15 wins and two ties. Four wins and a tie came vs. ranked opponents, all on the road, with field hockey defeating No. 8 Michigan 3-1, baseball topping No. 13 Virginia 8-7 in 10 innings, softball downing No. 23 Virginia 9-7 and lacrosse knocking off No. 19 Virginia 11-10. A fifth ranked win came in a neutral setting with lacrosse topping Notre Dame 13-12 in the only postseason ranked win. Men's soccer also had a 1-1 draw with No. 5 Princeton at home. The other road tie came early in the fall with women's soccer equaling No. 9 Penn State 1-1. Other triumphs included women's soccer over NC State 3-0 and Maryland 1-0; women's basketball over Virginia Tech 65-56, Boston College 73-53 and Wisconsin 69-50; baseball over Michigan State 4-2; lacrosse over Virginia Tech 13-7 and Vanderbilt 14-9; softball over Penn State 5-3; and women's tennis over Virginia Tech 4-3.
In major professional sports drafts, Luke McGrath was a 18^th-round pick (#547 overall) by the Chicago Cubs in the MLB Draft.
In other pro sports updates, former JMU golfer Neal Shipley clinched a card on the PGA Tour for the 2026 season. Just after the NFL Draft, several Dukes signed undrafted contracts or received camp invitations. Jacob Thomas (Vikings), Nick DeGennaro (Patriots), Elijah Culp (Cardinals) and Xavier Holmes (Patriots) each signed undrafted contracts. Other rookie camp invites included Billy Atkins (Ravens), Trent Hendrick (Browns, Chiefs), Pat McMurtrie (Bears) and Mekhi Rodgers (Colts). Earlier in the year, former football cornerback Terrence Spence signed his first pro contract with the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League. Chase DeLauter had the unique distinction of making his MLB debut in the postseason for the Cleveland Guardians. He then made the 2026 opening day roster and homered twice on opening day, going on to be a consistent starter and leading contributor for the Guardians as a rookie. In addition, Patrick Bauer signed his first pro contract with the Quebec Capitales of the independent Frontier League. Former men's soccer midfielder Aidan Melville was called up to the Puerto Reico Senior National Team for a June international match. Women's basketball program great Peyton McDaniel inked her first contract with Landerneau Bretagne Basket, which competes in the LBWL (La Boulangere Wonderligue). Field hockey's Alice Roeper signed with Haagsche Delftsche Mixed (HDM) Dames 1 in the Netherlands.
Fundraising shattered previous donation records according to final fiscal year 2026 figures for the JMU Duke Club. Total fundraising, which two years prior had not eclipsed $7 million, climbed to $9.49 million for FY26 ($7.74 million FY25). As part of that, the Duke Club annual fund climbed from $5.398 million to $5.84 million. In four years at the FBS level, JMU's donor count has escalated by 8,000 donors from 4,600 in FY22 to 12,657 for FY26. As part of the fundraising, JMU Athletics conducted its third annual giving campaign centered around sport specific giving. Titled "Diggin'Dukes," the day produced $540,495 in giving directed largely toward sport programs from 1,949 donors.
JMU distributed its annual James Madison Athletics (JMA) Awards, with top honors going to Male Athlete of the Year Alonza Barnett of football and Female Athlete of the Year Kennedy Louisell of volleyball. Casey Carter Scholar-Athlete of the Year honors went to men's golf's Vaclav Tichy as well as women's basketball's Peyton McDaniel with each being repeat winners. Male Rookie of the Year was Sahir West of football while Female Rookie of the Year was bestowed upon Bria Byrd of track and field.
In JMU's annual Townebank Royal Rivalry with Old Dominion, JMU narrowly won 9.5-7.5, giving JMU its third win plus a tie in the four years of the competition. The two programs tied for the trophy in 2024-25 (11-11) after JMU won each of the first two rivalry years in 2022-23 (16.5-7.5) and 2023-24 (14.5-7.5).
In September, JMU and Liberty announced the establishment of the "Battle of the Blue Ridge" in football with 10 games scheduled over a 16-year stretch and a victor's trophy to be awarded. JMU won the first meeting of the battle, winning at Liberty 31-13 on 9/20/2025.
On June 10, 2024, JMU announced a sellout of 2025 football season tickets for the third straight year with just shy of 9,000 paid tickets. JMU sold out completely (public & student) for all six home games for the first time in a season. The final season attendance average of 25,134 per game ranked second all-time in Bridgeforth Stadium season history and ranked fourth in the 14-team Sun Belt.
Football posted one of the most memorable seasons in program history, going 12-2 overall (8-0 Sun Belt), hosting and then capturing its first Sun Belt Championship and then advancing to the First Round of the College Football Playoff as the No. 12 seed at Oregon. JMU finished AP Nationally ranked for the first time at No. 19 to go with No. 20 in the LBM Coaches Poll. The Sun Belt recognized Alonza Barnett as Player of the Year, Trent Hendrick as Defensive Player of the Year, Sahir West as Freshman of the Year and Bob Chesney as Coach of the Year. Altogether, JMU boasted 16 All-Conference selections, nearly double any other team in the league. Wayne Knight was named a Second Team All-American by the Associated Press, USA Today, Sports Illustrated and On3. Sahir West was honored as a First Team Freshman All-America selection by The Athletic. Four Dukes were selected as Hero Sports G5 Freshman All-Americans: Wayne Knight, Pat McMurtrie, Trent Hendrick and Alonza Barnett. McMurtrie and Hendrick were also named All-Americans by Phil Steele. Barnett was also named winner of the Bill Dudley Award as the best player in Virginia, one year after being a finalist for the honor. JMU football representatives were nominated for multiple national honors: The Virginia Sports Hall of Fame also bestowed JMU with the honor of "Sports Person of the Year" in the state for its team recognition of representing the Commonwealth in the CFP.
- Bob Chesney was named one of 24 semifinalists for the George Munger College Coach of the Year Award. He was later named one of 12 finalists for the Eddie Robinson Award as national coach of the year. He was one of seven finalists for the Bear Bryant Coach of the Year Award, claiming honors as best Group of Six Coach of the Year.
- Alonza Barnett III was one of 80 players named to the preseason watch list for the Maxwell Award as the best player in college football. He was also selected to the Davey O'Brien Award Watch List among the 36 best returning quarterbacks in FBS football. He then added a Watch List spot for the Golden Arm Award, recognizing on-field talent, character and leadership. In October, Barnett was added to the Manning Award Watch List for college football's best quarterback.
- Defensive lineman Immanuel Bush and offensive lineman Pat McMurtrie were each selected to the preseason watch list for the Outland Trophy, presented to the best interior lineman in college football.
- Bush was also selected to the preseason watch list for the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, presented to the best defensive player in college football.
- Safety Jacob Thomas was selected to the preseason watch list for the Paycom Jim Thorpe Award for the nation's top defensive back. He was also named as a nominee for the Burlsworth Trophy, given to the most outstanding player who began as a walk-on.
- Quarterback Blake Kendall was named to the Weurffel Trophy watch list for community service contributions by a college football player. Similarly, he was named to the AFCA Good Works Team.
- Running Back Jordan Fuller was named to the preseason "Freaks List" compiled by Bruce Feldman.
- Jacob Thomas was named to the preseason watch list for the Chuck Bednarik Award given to the best defensive player in college football.
JMU's season, which included ranked nationally by the AP and Coaches, ranked in the final week in the CFP Top 25, winning the Sun Belt Championship and eventually competing in the College Football Playoff, attracted significant media value. Overall, the CFP postseason achievement drew an advertising value equivalency of $298 million with a total reach of 31.2 billion. There were 10,400 total media mentions, spiking on the Dec. 7 announcement with 1,745 mentions and the Dec. 20 game date with 1,023 mentions. For the full season, JMU football's total advertising value equivalency was $446 million with a total media reach of 86 billion and 34,600 total media mentions. JMU's CFP First Round game at Oregon featured a TV audience of 4.4 million viewers with the game airing on less traditional linear channels TBS/TNT/TruTV and directly against a key Saturday night NFL game (Bears-Packers). Despite the network placement and viewing competition, it was still the most people ever to watch JMU football on TV, topping the 2.686 million who watched JMU face North Dakota State in the 2019 national championship on ABC network TV (1/11/2020). Overall, JMU appeared on national TV for nine of 14 games in 2025 for a total of 28 national TV games in four seasons (out of 51 games) of FBS football. JMUSports.com had 800,000 page views for the month of December from over 350,000 users. Total web views spiked to 122,000 on the day of the CFP game (Dec. 20), 70,000 for the Sun Belt title game (Dec. 5), 60,000 for the CFP selection (Dec. 7) and 48,000 for the Billy Napier announcement (Dec. 6). (Typical December day was 10-15,000) On the day of the CFP game (Dec. 20) there were over 50,000 new, first-time users on the website. Top pages for the month included the football roster (74,000), football schedule (50,000), Billy Napier hiring announcement (25,000) and the CFP selection announcement (11,300). The dedicated CFP feature page drew over 10,000 page views with 8,000 unique users, which ranked among SIDEARM's top performing postseason feature pages. Overall, JMU was the third most viewed website among all SIDEARM websites outside of the Power 4 in the month of December. The jmufootball Instagram account received 32 million total views for the month of December with just over 1 million interactions (likes, comments, saves, shares, reposts). The most viewed posts were SBC Champs (2.7 million views) and CFP No. 12 seed (2.2 million views). The top post for interactions ("Earned" graphic when Duke beat Virginia for ACC title) received 1.2 million views and 43,000 interactions. The Instagram account netted 8,212 new followers in December to reach 105,000 total. On Twitter/X, JMUFootball had 22.7 million impressions in December (444% increase vs. Nov.) and 889,000 engagements (461% increase vs. Nov.) while gaining 7,300 followers (to 94,900 total). The JMUFootball Facebook page had over 13 million views in the month of December, compared to 3 million in November and 2.5 million in December 2024. The page also recorded over 300,000 December interactions, compared to 86,000 the previous month. The account recorded over 1 million impressions on the day of Billy Napier's hiring announcement, 985,000 on the CFP game, 527,000 for the SBC title, 819,000 for CFP selection and 763,000 for content the day after Napier's press conference.
Men's soccer went 1-10-5 in 2025 to finish 10^th place in the Sun Belt (0-6-3).
Women's soccer posted a 9-4-6 record in 2025 and finished fifth in the Sun Belt standings at 5-2-3, second in the East Division. Ginny Lackey was named to the MAC Hermann Trophy Award Watch List during the preseason, putting her on the list of candidates for national player of the year. Lackey was named Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Year. She was also named a Fourth Team All-American and First Team All-Region by the United Soccer Coaches.
Volleyball went 22-9 and 13-3 in the Sun Belt. The Dukes at one point posted a 13-match winning streak and clinched the Sun Belt regular season title, their second in four years in the league, after being picked second in the East Division in the Sun Belt preseason poll. In 16 seasons under Lauren Steinbrecher, JMU has reached 20 or more wins in 10. Steinbrecher was named 2025 Coach of the Year in the Sun Belt, while Kennedy Louisell was named both Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year in the conference. Louisell later added First Team All-Region honors from the AVCA, followed by Honorable Mention All-America accolades.
Field hockey posted a 12-8 overall record and finished fourth in the Mid-American Conference (6-3), including a semifinal finish in the tournament. JMU was ranked as high as 18^th in the NFHCA Poll. Alice Roeper was selected to the NFHCA Watch List as a possible All-Region or All-America candidate. Madelief Molier was honored after the season as a First Team All-Region selection by the NFHCA, while Skyler Brown was also Second Team All-Region. In the spring, Hall of Fame Head Coach Christy Morgan announced her retirement.
Cross country placed sixth in the Sun Belt Championship with Sidney Walters as top finisher in 10^th. Taylor Myers was named SBC Newcomer of the Year after placing 19^th. The Dukes advanced to postseason competition and finished 26^th of 36 squads at the NCAA Southeast Regional.
Men's basketball finished 18-15 and placed eighth in the Sun Belt (9-9), though in a crowded standings the Dukes were just three games back of first and two back of second.
Women's basketball finished 26-9, finishing third in the Sun Belt (14-4) but then capturing the league championship. The Dukes ended the regular season on a nine-game winning streak and carried that into the Sun Belt tournament to win the title and extend to 12 games. JMU then fell to Kentucky in the opening round of the NCAA Championship. JMU received votes in the final USA Today Coaches Poll. Peyton McDaniel was the Sun Belt Championship Most Outstanding Player and was named to the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Midseason and Preseason Watch Lists. Sean O'Regan was named to the preseason watch list for the Kathy Delaney-Smith Mid-Major Coach of the Year Award by Her Hoop Stats. JMU achieved its best final NET ranking (43) since the measure began in 2020-2021 and achieved 26 wins or more for the 17^th time in program history, along with 23 wins or more for the 19^th time in the last 21 years. The Dukes earned their 11^th conference title all-time and advanced to the NCAA Championship for the 14^th time.
Swimming and diving went 2-5 in dual meets and placed seventh in its first American Conference Championship Meet. JMU captured gold on the second day in the 200-yard freestyle relay with the team of Alex Volk, Emory Hill, Madison Wimmer and Jamie Cornwell. Two divers advanced to compete in the NCAA Zone meet.
Men's golf finished fifth in the 14-team Sun Belt Championship, just one stroke back of the four that qualify for match play. JMU highlighted its regular season with a pair of third-place finishes at Nemacolin in September and Southern Pines in March.
Women's golf placed 10^th in the Sun Belt Championship. JMU's fall performance was highlighted by a shared title at the Elon Invitational with Bella Flores placing second individually.
Women's tennis went 12-11 during the regular season. JMU finished seventh in the ITA Atlantic Region rankings, with Daria Munteanu earning a No. 16 singles ranking along with the doubles team of Brooklyn Hoffman and Sophie Williams placing ninth.
Men's tennis went 13-8 during the regular season. The Dukes ranked eighth in the ITA Atlantic Region rankings.
Softball went 27-24 overall and 13-11 in Sun Belt play to finish in a tie for fifth after being picked to finish seventh in the Sun Belt preseason poll. Kendra Lewis and Peyton List were each selected as First Team All-Region honorees.
Lacrosse went 14-7 overall and 5-1 in the American Conference, winning the league tournament and NCAA automatic qualifier. The Dukes earned a first round NCAA win over Notre Dame, finishing with their highest national ranking of the season at No. 17. Olivia Rongo and Payton Root were each named All-Americans, with Reese Cuviello also earning IWLCA All-Region honors. Rongo was also American Conference Defensive Player of the Year.
JMU baseball finished 13^th in the Sun Belt with a 21-32 overall mark, 11-19 in league play. Max Kuhle was named to the NCBWA Watch List for Stopper of the Year.
Indoor track and field placed 11^th at the Sun Belt Championship.
JMU placed 12^th in the 13-team Sun Belt outdoor track and field championships. Bridget Koller was the top medal winner for the Dukes with a silver in the 800-meter run for the second straight year. Freshman Bria Byrd qualified for the NCAA East First Round in the long jump, finishing 19^th for the best place in program history in the event.
JMU cheerleading finished third out of 14 teams in the UCA College Nationals Small Coed Division IA Game Day category, its best finish since first competing at UCA Nationals in 2023. JMU also finished eighth in Division I-A Small Coed Traditional.
JMU announced various contract extensions and new hires for head coaches: Billy Napier as new football head coach through 2030, Alyssa Parker as field hockey head coach through 2030, Sean O'Regan for women's basketball through 2031-2032, Tommy Baker for women's golf through 2029 and Shelley Klaes for lacrosse through 2032.
In January, AD Matt Roan announced a modernized staff structure with a new collaborative pod system and an overall emphasis on revenue generation, fiscal management and maintaining a commitment to student-athlete success.
JMU inducted its Hall of Fame Class of 2025 on Aug. 29 with a group featuring: women's basketball guard Kirby Burkholder (2010-2014), sprint freestyle swimmer Eva Hannesdottir (2010-2012), diver Kimberly (Helfrich) Solari Brown (2009-2013), former Senior Vice President of Administration and Finance and President Charles King (1996-2021, 2024-2025), men's basketball guard Darren McLinton (1992-1996), baseball relief pitcher Kevin Munson (2008-2010) and football linebacker Stephon Robertson (2009-2013).
JMU faculty member, Dr. Sharlene Richards from the School of Communications, was selected as a finalist for the Sun Belt Faculty of the Year Award.
The Sun Belt also issued its annual student-athlete academic awards in the Fall of 2025. Five JMU student-athletes earned 1A FAR Academic Excellence Awards for earning their undergraduate degree with a 3.80 GPA or higher: Katie Fricke (field hockey), Eli Steadman (baseball), Jaydyn Clemmer (volleyball), Miette Veldman (volleyball) and Emma Klanica (volleyball). In addition, 125 collected Commissioner's Award honors (3.5+ GPA previous academic year) and another 109 on Academic Honor Roll (3.0-3.49 GPA previous academic year).
74 student-athletes were named to President's List and 228 to Dean's List across both semesters of 2025-26 academic year with 74 instances of a perfect 4.0 grade point average for either semester and 17 student-athletes with a perfect 4.0 for the full academic year. Altogether 108 student-athletes graduated (23 in fall 2025, 79 in Spring 2026 and 6 anticipated in Summer 2026). The department posted an overall GPA of 3.197. As part of that average, there were 683 total semesters of a 3.0 GPA registered by JMU student-athletes across the fall and spring. A total of 181 student-athletes were named to the JMU Athletic Director Scholar-Athlete List in the Fall with 244 in the Spring for a grand total of 425.
A total of 32 student-athletes were honored as College Sports Communicators (formerly CoSIDA) academic All-District selections.
According to the NCAA's annual release of graduation data in November, JMU posted the highest federal graduation rate in the Sun Belt both among student-athletes (70%) and among all students (80%). JMU's Graduation Success Rate (GSR) of 90 sat third in the Sun Belt. Five programs posted a perfect 100 GSR: men's golf, women's golf, lacrosse, women's soccer and men's basketball.
JMU Athletics posted a 992 single-year APR score, which exceeds the NCAA revenue distribution requirement of 985. Twelve of 17 JMU programs had a perfect single-year score of 1,000. Men's golf, women's golf, volleyball, men's soccer, softball, lacrosse and swimming and diving were the seven programs to achieve perfect multi-year scores, which was the highest number in the Sun Belt. Both golfs were the fifth year in a row while volleyball was honored for the third straight year and men's soccer and softball were a repeat 1,000.
The JMU Student-Athlete Leadership Program (Dukes Lead) executed many team-based programs to enhance the holistic growth and development of our student-athletes along the following topics: characteristics of a good leader, communication through conflict, emotional intelligence, growth mindset, habit systems, inclusive leadership, and resilience. The program boasted a 100% team participation rate over the course of the academic year. Dukes Lead staff issued 50 DiSC behavioral assessments across sport programs, facilitating two workshops to provide an opportunity for participants to learn more about their behavioral styles and how their individual styles come together in a team environment. Staff welcomed the second cohort of 14 student-athletes to the RISE Women's Leadership Academy; an elite program designed to encourage and empower female student-athletes at James Madison University. In partnership with JMU Compliance, staff executed the Build Your Bag Series, Powered by Truist Momentum, offering 6 in-person financial literacy workshops for student-athletes.

As a part of Dukes Lead, JMU student-athletes shattered department records by participating in 10,820 community service hours from May 1, 2025, through April 30, 2026, attending 5,773 unique commitments of service. The hours were an increase of 1,600 from the previous record the year before with an increase of 800 total commitments.
- JMU ranked 8^th in community impact among all NCAA Division I programs partnering with Helper Helper (3^rd in Sun Belt). As a league, the Sun Belt led all participating Division I conferences.
- Based on the Helper Helper annual report, 11 JMU programs had top 10 finishes within their sport, which matched a department record:
  - Field Hockey – 2^nd (eighth straight top-10)
  - Men's Golf – 2^nd (second straight top 10)
  - Women's Golf – 2^nd (second straight top 10)
  - Cheerleadering – 4^th
  - Men's Soccer – 4^th (fifth straight top 10)
  - Lacrosse – 5^th (fifth straight top 10)
  - Softball – 6^th (fifth straight top 10)
  - Men's Tennis – 6^th (second straight top 10)
  - Men's Basketball – 8^th
  - Women's Soccer – 9^th
  - Swimming & Diving – 9^th
- Jenna Massar of cheerleading ranked third among all female Division I student-athletes with 409.5 hours of community engagement. She led a group of 54 JMU student-athletes who completed a minimum of 30 hours, well above the department benchmark of 10 per athlete.

Sierra Puleo of cross country was named to the inaugural All-Sun Belt Conference Community Service Team. Puleo served as the president and founding member of Run Harrisonburg, a volunteer-driven program that strives to build a future where collegiate athletes join with local communities to ensure team sports are accessible to all kids, regardless of socioeconomic factors.
Blake Kendall of football was selected as a nominee for the 2025 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team®, as announced by Allstate and the Wuerffel Foundation. Sidney Walters of cross country and track and field was selected as a nominee for the Allstate NACDA Good Works Winter Team, as announced by Allstate and NACDA.
Incoming SAAC Co-President Amber Mackiewicz of women's golf was selected as the Sun Belt's national SAAC representative for the 2026-2027 competitive year.
Julia McNeley of volleyball, Carsen Sanders of softball and Jamie Swartz of women's soccer represented JMU at the 2025 Sun Belt SAAC Summer Summit in July of 2025.
Carsen Sanders of softball represented the JMU Student-Athlete Advisory Committee at the Sun Belt Fall Meeting on October 16-17, 2025, in Atlanta, GA. Sanders attended numerous meetings with ADs, FARs, Presidents, and SWAs from each SBC member institution.
Molly Schreiner of field hockey and Avery Robinson of women's golf served as The Hidden Opponent Campus Captains, a 9-month program that provides students with expert-led mental health education, mentor-led advocacy activities, and a supportive community. Campus Captains build their mental health leadership skills, becoming peer supporters and agents of change in their communities.
Marcus Bell, graduate assistant for Student-Athlete Development, was selected for the NCAA Emerging Leaders Seminar-in Indianapolis in February of 2026.
Dukes Lead and SAAC collaborated with The Hidden Opponent, Dukes Excel, and Hilinski's Hope to participate in the annual Student-Athlete Mental Health Week. During a full week of programming and activities, SAAC distributed gear donning a green ribbon for over 10 mental health awareness games.

Kevin White, associate AD for sport programs, was named to the Division I Men's Soccer Oversight Committee with a term through 8/31/2028. He joins Jenn Phillips, senior associate AD and senior women's administrator, who serves as the Sun Belt Conference representative to the NCAA Division I Council, which includes a subcommittee appointment to the Strategic Vision and Oversight Committee.
JMU AD Matt Roan was voted Vice Chair of the Sun Belt ADs committee. He was then also named to represent the league on the NCAA FBS Oversight Committee. Roan also represented the Sun Belt in a mock exercise of selection for the College Football Playoff early in the Fall of 2025.
Former JMU AD Jeff Bourne was selected by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) to be inducted in its 2026 Hall of Fame Class.
Dr. Roger Soenksen retired as the department's Faculty Athletics Representative following 20 years in the role as part of nearly 50 years total working at James Madison University.
In facility projects, JMU installed new premium seating options at Bridgeforth Stadium, with four new field-level suite areas in the South End Zone as well as new chairback seating in the center of the East Side stands.

Award Lists

Conference Champions (3)

Football
Women's Basketball
Lacrosse

Conference Regular-Season Champions (2)

Volleyball
Football

NCAA Appearances (6)

Cross Country
Football (College Football Playoff)
Swimming & Diving
Women's Basketball
Lacrosse
Track & Field

All-Americans (7)

Ginny Lackey – Women's Soccer
Wayne Knight – Football
Trent Hendrick – Football
Pat McMurtrie – Football
Kennedy Louisell – Volleyball
Olivia Rongo – Lacrosse
Payton Root – Lacrosse

Conference Players of the Year (5)

Ginny Lackey – Women's Soccer (Offensive)
Kennedy Louisell – Volleyball
Alonza Barnett – Football
Trent Hendrick – Football (Defensive)
Olivia Rongo – Lacrosse (Defensive)

Conference Coaches of the Year (2)

Lauren Steinbrecher – Volleyball
Bob Chesney – Football

Conference Rookies/Newcomers of the Year (3)

Taylor Myers – Cross Country (Newcomer)
Kennedy Louisell – Volleyball (Newcomer)
Sahir West – Football (Freshman)

Sun Belt Elite Award (2)

Tyler Brown – Football
Peyton McDaniel – Women's Basketball

College Sports Communicators Academic All-District (32)

Kat Cassidy – Women's Soccer
Jordan Yang – Women's Soccer
Jeannette Fieldsend – Women's Soccer
Emily Graeca – Women's Soccer
Ginny Lackey – Women's Soccer
Julia McNeley – Volleyball
Rebecca Watkins – Volleyball
Grace Wenrich – Volleyball
Morgan Suarez – Football
Patrick Rea – Football
Mekhi Rodgers – Football
Gabe Newhof – Men's Basketball
Peyton McDaniel – Women's Basketball
Bree Robinson – Women's Basketball
Daria Munteanu – Women's Tennis
Zach Fleishman – Men's Tennis
Harrison Lee – Men's Tennis
Aurelien Schmitt – Men's Tennis
Ryan Morgan – Men's Tennis
Kirsten Fleet – Softball
Madison Edwards – Softball
Bella Henzler – Softball
Jonas DeLeon – Men's Golf
Michael Hake – Men's Golf
Alex Seibal – Men's Golf
Vaclav Tichy – Men's Golf
Madelief Molier – Field Hockey
Grace Petzold – Women's Golf
Josie Pell – Lacrosse
Jordan Peterson – Lacrosse
Olivia Rongo – Lacrosse
Lauren Savage – Lacrosse

Other Awards (3)

Wayne Knight – Sun Belt Championship Most Outstanding Player
Peyton McDaniel – Sun Belt Championship Most Outstanding Player
Kaitlyn Carney – American Conference Lacrosse Most Outstanding Player

Calendar