Harrisonburg, Va. — After scoring 70 points last weekend against North Carolina, the James Madison University football team returned home on Family Weekend with the offense still clicking. JMU redshirt sophomore quarterback Alonza Barnett III went 20-for-28 with 280 yards with five touchdowns through the air as the Dukes offense put up 63 points to push past Ball State, 63-7, on September 28 at Bridgeforth Stadium in Harrisonburg.
“A great win. A good team effort, overall team effort,” James Madison head coach Bob Chesney said. “It was really good to see some other guys step up and play some football.”
It was a record-setting afternoon for JMU. The combined 133 points between the last two weeks is the most points ever scored across a two-game stretch in JMU history. Sophomore safety DJ Barksdale had his first career interception, redshirt junior Eric O’Neill had his first career pick six, and sophomore wide receiver Yamir Knight had the first two touchdowns of his collegiate career.
JMU senior tight end Taylor Thompson led his team with 91 yards receiving on five receptions and a touchdown, while redshirt sophomore Wayne Knight, brother of Yamir, had 63 yards rushing, as Barnett led the Dukes with 77 yards and a touchdown tacked onto his passing totals.
Ball State lost by just three points last week to Central Michigan in the closing seconds, but this week the Cardinals did not fare any better. Redshirt freshman quarterback Kadin Semonza had a passing touchdown and 168 yards to go with his three interceptions. Junior tight end Tanner Koziol hauled in all nine balls thrown his way to tie his career record in receptions and ended the game with 91 yards.
JMU opened the game with the ball and went 2-for-2 on third downs to put themselves in position to score on their first drive. A 11-play, 66-yard drive ended with Barnett finding Yamir Knight in the end zone for a 12-yard touchdown.
“[Coach Chesney] said ‘when adversity comes, the ball is going to find you, you’re going to have a career day’,” Yamir Knight said. “And it ended up happening.”
On the ensuing drive, Semonza threw up a ball to open tight end Christian Abney, but the ball tipped off his hands and into the open arms of JMU senior cornerback Terrence Spence, who returned the ball 40 yards to the Ball State 35.
Five plays later, redshirt sophomore George Pettaway was into the end zone on a 24-yard rushing touchdown that put the Dukes up 13 only seven minutes into the game. Chesney and his Dukes kept Ball State on their toes after a direct snap to Thompson was good for a two-point conversion.
The next was the only drive for the Cardinals from Muncie, Indiana that resulted in points. They went 75 yards by running only seven plays and taking up three minutes of the clock. Semonza capped off a 7-play, 75-yard drive by finding Koziol for a contested 15-yard touchdown reception.
On the ensuing JMU drive, facing a 4th-and-4 from the Ball State 35 yard line, Barnett found redshirt junior tight end Logan Kyle for 30 yards and a first down inside the five. On the next play, senior receiver Omarion Dollison was wide open in the back of the end zone for the touchdown which re-extended the Dukes’ lead to 15 as the first quarter drew to an end.
Early in the second quarter, JMU redshirt senior defensive lineman Khairi Manns sacked Koziol for a 7-yard loss on 4-and-20 to give JMU the ball back on the next drive.
James Madison started their possession of their own 41 but effectively moved the ball until a 3rd-and-17 put the Dukes in a tricky situation. Barnett, however, had an answer as he showed off his running skills, taking a keeper past the first down marker. Four plays later and a quick screen pass to Yamir Knight resulted in a 10-yard touchdown, giving the Dukes a 29-7 lead heading into the half.
“I just think about it from the defensive perspective, [my rushing ability]adds an extra element to the game that they have to prepare for,” Barnett said. “I’m willing to do whatever for this team to win, so if it makes the game better or easier, then I’ll do it.”
The Dukes opened up the second half with O’Neill jumping a pass by Semonza and taking it back to the house that got every fan on their feet with streamers in the air. Four minutes after that, JMU was back in the purple painted endzone as redshirt senior receiver Cam Ross made a defender miss and ran 26 yards for the score..
“We did that exact play in practice on Thursday, and the same result happened,” O’Neill said. “It felt natural for me to make that play, and it was awesome.”
Barnett scored his first rushing touchdown of the afternoon with 7:19 left in the third quarter, taking a 18-yard scamper. The fans were singing into the fourth quarter and the Dukes responded as Thompson got his touchdown on a 22-yard reception.
“I put all black on today. A lot of people talking about that like I was attending a funeral, which it kind of was,” Thompson said. “[My performance] brings a lot more confidence that I think I have for myself every game.”
James Madison starts Sun Belt Conference play next weekend as they travel to compete against Louisiana-Monroe on October 5. Ball State returns home looking to pick up their first Mid-American Conference win against Western Michigan.
“We talk about it before the game and all week long,” Chesney said. “It’s not about yourself: it’s about your team, then it’s your teammate, then it’s yourself.”