JMU Decimates Wagner 87-3 (9-12-26)
Photos and article by Ben Bowman
Headline Photo Credit: JMU athletics
Harrisonburg, VA-Traveling down to Harrisonburg, Va from Staten Island, NY, the Wagner Seahawks hoped to sink their talons into the Dukes giving James Madison their first loss of the season. The Seahawks had bounced back from a 7-28 loss to Robert Morris, with a strong victory last week over Southern Connecticut State by a score of 31-7. That win gave them a record of one win and one loss coming into today’s contest.
On the other side of the gridiron, James Madison kicked off their season last week with a mediocre win over in-state rival, Liberty, by a score of 23-13 under new head coach Billy Napier. Today’s match might not be the proving ground with a lesser-known opponent, but JMU fans are hoping Coach Napier can solidify himself in this newest chapter of JMU football in the Sun Belt Conference.
From the booming fireworks, to the glorious sounds of the JMU Marching Royal Dukes, to the roars of the students, and cheers of the fans, the energy was felt throughout Bridgeforth Stadium as the home team ran out onto the field.
From the coin toss to the final whistle, today’s matchup between James Madison Dukes and the Wagner Seahawks was totally one sided, the purple side!
Wagner’s first series began with a penalty that put the Seahawks behind the sticks even before the first snap. Their first series ended with a blocked punt by JMU #43 M. Halbert who also picked it up and ran the ball in for a JMU TD. Unbeknownst to any of the 25,028 fans attending today’s game, Wagner’s first series definitely foreshadowed what was in store for the Seahawks.
However, the Seahawks began to show some promise as they moved the ball through the air. However, JMU continued to find themselves getting in their own way via penalties, which aided Wagner by assisting them into field goal range for their young kicker. Their only points of the game came by the leg of #43, J. DiSalavatore, a freshman, who successfully kicked a 40 yd FG. By the end of the first quarter, JMU was ahead of Wagner by a score of 21-3 and never looked back.
James Madison was firing on all levels today. Their defense, offense, and especially the special teams unit made the purple and gold streamers rain down. The Wagner offense was held to only 24 yards rushing and 41 yards passing by the end of the 1st quarter. As for the stats for JMU, they looked very lopsided due to the amazing job by their special teams unit. James Madison rushed for 29 yards and had 52 yards in the air.
By the end of the first half and with a dominant lead of 42 to 3, James Madison football began to pick up right where it left off last season. Even with only possessing the ball for 10:41 of the first half, the Dukes were able to complete 7 of their 12 passes for a total of 89 yards and rushed for 97. Penalties were their weak link as they were flagged 4 times for a total of 50 yards and went 4/6 on 3rd-down conversions. As for Wagner, they finished the first half with a total of 141 yards on offense, 40 rushing and 101 passing. They struggled to convert on 3rd downs only being able to convert 4 out of 10. Wagner connected on 11 of 20 passes. They did lead the possession game with 19:19 minutes in the first half.
As the second half started, the hopes of Wagner defeating JMU were leaving just like the fans from the stadium. By the end of the game, James Madison ended up adding 45 more points making the final score 87 to 3.
JMU rushed for a net total of 290 yards compared to Wagner’s 86. The leading rusher for JMU was Nick Herman with 8 attempts for 132 yards and 2 touchdowns while George Pettaway found paydirt 3 times in today’s contest. JMU’s passing game was in the hands of three quarterbacks. Camden Coleman, who started the game, ended up going 12/18 for 171 yards and threw a touchdown. Arrington Maiden also got a look while completing 7 of 8 passes for 111 yards and 2 touchdowns. First-year player Tanner Vibabul, saw some action going 1 of 1 for 16 yards. These quarterbacks kept Wagner’s defensive backs busy by spreading the ball to 11 different receivers. Defensively, JMU’s corner, #23 Ken Willis led the team with 7 tackles. But it was the special teams that stole the show with a total of 520 all-purpose yards and 7 touchdowns.
Wagner’s offense was led by redshirt freshman quarterback #10 Ben Newman, who threw for 101 yards and completed 11 of 20 passes to 8 different receivers. Their leading receiver was redshirt junior #1 Zion Fowler-El, who caught 4 of 6 passes for 45 yards, while 7 others caught the ball for 118 yards in the air. The Seahawks’ ground attack was led by sophomore #28 Uriah Moats-Maynard who had 14 attempts for 33 yards along with 5 others who ran the ball for a total of 86 yards. On the defensive side for the Seahawks, several of their players recorded 4 tackles each (#4 LB Brenden Leal, #11 DB Evan Dukes, #12 LB Eli Hiscock, #17 DB Ernest Blackshire).
Good luck next week to both teams as they both head out west to the Golden State as James Madison travels to play San Diego State, and Wagner will be heading to the University of California, Berkeley. May this week’s practice help both programs keep moving in the right direction this season.
