JMU, Conference USA, and other September Shenanigans

About 9 days ago, I started hearing some JMU-to-Conference-USA rumors. No big deal. Rumors fly all the time.

About two days ago, though, I was still hearing them. In my experience, these rumors sweep over social media like wildfire, and are extinguished by the wet reality of truth in a matter of days. So to be hearing them a full week later was... notable.

Then, this afternoon, after a long day of pretending to build an online portfolio and mooching food off of relatives, my former Breeze Sports co-editor Wayne Epps Jr. directed me to this page on the CSN message boards. The ethos doesn't exactly jump off the page at you, but the fact that this potentially informed person was echoing other things I heard was enough to make me sit up off the couch, pause my second Skyrim play-through, and make a few phone calls. The Stormcloak Rebellion can wait.

Before I did anything, I confirmed some information I've been sitting on for a while, as long as did some research into some other topics. They are as follows:

• The Carr Report is completed, and has been for some time.
  
  Many of you have heard about a feasibility report headed to the JMU Board of Visitors that will supposedly recommend or advise against a move for the Dukes to the Football Bowl Subdivision. What you might not know is that this report has been complete for several weeks. While a few members of the Athletic Department have seen bits and pieces, the only person that I know of who has seen the report in its entirety is athletic director Jeff Bourne, and he will be the one to present the report to the BoV next Friday, October 4. It is that same Friday that JMU supposedly will announce its move to the C-USA, if you buy into the rumors which are currently circulating.

• JMU has an open-ended offer from the Sun Belt that can be accepted at any time.
  
  Details may have changed since I last heard about this, but the gist of it is that the Sun Belt is interested enough in JMU that they have extended an offer to the athletic department that can be accepted at any points. They feel very strongly that JMU can significantly raise the profile of their conference and are showing their faith with a convenient, if desperate, offer. JMU hasn't accepted this offer as of yet, and I would think that, if they were to, they would at least wait until the Carr Report comes down. However, I have a hunch JMU has its sites set higher than the Sun Belt.

• ODU is actively campaigning for JMU to join Conference USA.
  
  I don't like how it looks -- like big brother ODU, who has played football for all of three years and four weeks, is pulling us up to their esteemed level, and oh thank you, blessed sons of Norfolk, for doing us such a favor in our time of need! But at a certain point, I'm guessing Leonardo DiCaprio would have let anyone, even his worst enemy, throw him a lifejacket.. if it meant he could keep making out with Kate Winslet. (Kate Winslet, in this case, is a bigger TV deal.) Both AD Wood Selig and head football coach Bobby Wilder have been on the record in the media, trying to pressure their new conference into adding JMU. It's hard to ignore their logic: JMU makes for natural rivals with Marshall, ODU, and ECU. And Charlotte, if they ever get any good. Based on last Saturday, that rivalry might be a ways off, though.

• Conference USA officials have experimented with a 16-team conference model, and have made trips to JMU in the recent months.
  
  I'm still working on nailing down exactly when officials were on campus, but I do have credible information that they were here and came away impressed with the facilities. And why wouldn't they be? A brand new athletics park, an engaged campus, a premier FCS football stadium, and let's not forget the sexy, ninth-ranked DC market to slip their grubby little hands into.

So what does all that add up to? Well here's what it likely doesn't mean: an imminent decision to move to Conference USA. After a long talk with one notable source in the Athletic Department, it would be wholly irresponsible for the BoV to hear the Carr Report and vote on a cataclysmic Athletics move all in the same day. Furthermore, the BoV hasn't scheduled a vote on anything in the near future, and the University can't announce a move without approval from the board.

But the most damning reason why you shouldn't expect any big JMU news next week is because they're too invested in their own success. As much as JMU may need to move up to stay viable in the long term as an athletic program, it almost certainly won't force its own teams into an ineligible season when its Men's Basketball, Women's Basketball, and Softball teams have legitimate chances to win their conference.

That doesn't mean you won't see a move up this year. JMU has until June 1 to announce any intentions to swap conferences, which leaves a nice 2-4 week period after all the conference tournaments where JMU can announce any C-USA plans, for next year, penalty free. Even if the decision comes internally by next Friday, I expect no official announcements will come in the immediate future. Given that the suddenly resurgent men's basketball team has a chance to defend its title and return to the NCAA tournament, it's hard to imagine the school throwing that opportunity away.

The Glorious Return of... The Hangover

BEFORE WE GET THIS YEAR'S FIRST HANGOVER STARTED: I have taught myself how to embed tweets into my blog posts. You are about to drown in a torrent of my own self-absorbed hilarity. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.


#19 JMU 38, Central Connecticut State 14

On one hand, I'm kind of surprised the Dukes only rang up 38 points against CCSU, a team whose defense was leakier than the Flying Dutchman last year. It's supposedly improved this year. So is West Virginia's. I digress.

It's hard to really take a lot away from this game, not only because of the opponent, but because of the way the game, particularly the second half, unfolded. But some of the things I saw that I liked:


-The play-calling. My goodness, the play-calling. I am a cow over the fucking moon with the play-calling. There were sweeps, dives, screens, and, wait for it, passes 10+ yards down the field! Most importantly, it was all very well mixed together, it was at pace, and it was executed, to the most part, with a high degree of efficiency and effectiveness. This is what a non-stagnant offense looks like. For too many years now, JMU has coasted by on poor play calling because of the caliber of athlete the program attracts. I won't get all worked up over one game against a directional school from a state the size of large Arby's, but Mike O'Cain clearly passes his first test. If Mickey gives him that sort of creative control over the offense all year, this team will make the playoffs. It's that simple.

-Let's stick with the offense. Birdsong is bull-headed, which I think is mostly a good thing. He said something sort of poignant in the post-game press conference along the lines of 'I'm 240 pounds, and if I can go one-on-one with some DB, I'm going to run his ass over.' I'm paraphrasing here, but the takeaway was starkly unlike the typical QB towline of Slide first, ask questions when you miss the first down line later.

For the most part, I think this is a good thing. Maybe it means MB doesn't know his own value to the team; maybe it doesn't. And while it's true JMU is startlingly barren behind Birdsong at quarterback, what this probably just means is that Mike is big, he knows it, and his legs are just a potent a weapon on offense as his arm is.

-Dae'Quan Scott, God love him, actually said after the game that he felt it was the worst game of his career. Child, please. You had 197 all-purpose. You ran a punt back 57 yards for a touchdown. And, oh yeah:

Breaking #CAAFB news: Dae'Quan Scott is first CAA Special Teams Player of the Week. CB Taylor Reynolds is first Rookie of the Week. #JMU
— Chase Kiddy (@ckiddysports) September 2, 2013

Yeah, I break news occasionally. So what? This moment is about Dae'Quan. Stop trying to take this away from him, cynical reader.

-There were ten caught passes. Eight players registered a reception. That is all.



-On defense: Dean Marlowe and Stephon Robertson were, well, they were Dean Marlowe and Stephon Robertson.

Dean Marlowe with a filthy, ball-hawking pick sets #JMU up onA doorstep for its 5th touchdown of the evening. Dukes in complete control.
— Chase Kiddy (@ckiddysports) September 1, 2013

Robertson led the team in tackles, along with redshirt freshman Gage Steele, part of the much-heralded #1 recruiting class. We all know Robertson is a beast, but Steele is a new commodity. It seems his natural position is middle linebacker, like what Robertson plays, but JMU has moved him to weak-side LB because, let's be real, a freshman isn't unseating an All-American.

-The defense was so lights out in the second half that offense basically didn't play. Let's recap:

On the opening drive of the second half, CCSU throws an incomplete on third and 4. Blue Devils punt the ball. Scott returns ball for touchdown.

Next possession: thanks to an offside penalty, CCSU moves up from 3rd and 9 to 3rd and 4. Commence Bridgeforth getting loud as hell. Two consecutive false starts push Blue Devils back to 3rd and 14. Blue Devils QB Andrew Clements, now getting desperate, launches a prayer 20 yards down the field, which became said filthy, ball-hawking Dean Marlowe interception. JMU kicks field goal.

Next possession: On third and 10, Clements again launches one, this time 30 yards downfield. Same result: picked off by quarterback-turned-cornerback Taylor Reynolds, returned for a touchdown.

Next possession: Look, the JMU defense is only human. They've literally been on the field the entire third quarter thus far, and they're staring down the barrel of yet another possession. CCSU runs 13 plays and 8 minutes off the clock... yet they only make up 35 yards. Even when they're tired, this defense is pretty good, it seems.

-The Crowd! Hell Yes! Go crowd go! Be all that you can be!

The student section was rocking the entire first half and into the third quarter. The north end zone was also filled out, which is where I often see some of the more lackadaisical fans/empty pockets. The only empty parts I saw were in the upper decks, which is acceptable for CCSU. I get it. ESPN has a bigger campus than Central Connecticut. Fine. As long as we're full for big home games (looking at you, Villanova), my bitching will be at a minimum.

Tonight's attendance: 23,541.
— Matthew Stoss (@MatthewStoss) September 1, 2013

Given the circumstances, I find this to be acceptable.



Obviously I'm nitpicking, and I thought overall JMU turned in a solid performance on Saturday, but briefly, some of the things I wasn't so fond of:

-There was no pass rush. AGAIN. JMU recorded 8 tackles for a loss, but if you look where they're coming from, it's a lot of linebackers and safeties, and not so much from guys coming unchecked up front. That being said, Defensive End and FOTB Tyler Snow was held out with a hamstring issue. I'm told he's doubtful to play at Akron, which is a major loss for another FCS upset bid. Mickey called him after the game "the most solid player" on JMU's defense. Big words when you have conference POY's in your linebacking corp. Still, I'm convinced that the pass rush will improve when Snow does.

-Hold onto the ball. Put gorilla glue on your fingers and rip them off at the end of the season. Wear Andre's ridiculous grippies (mandatory The League reference: check). Just hold on to the ball, for God's sake.

-Not crazy about bend, don't break coverage against CCSU. We have superior players and athletes all over the field. We can afford to cover receivers a little more tightly.

-We have GOT to figure out how to cover tight ends. JMU has been straight up bad covering tight ends ever since I got to Harrisonburg, and there were signs of that trend continuing. Teams know this about JMU by now. I don't know if it's mixing schemes or double-coverage, but we've got to do something other than just let tight ends crush us over the middle for 15 yards at a time.

-Stupid fans. I have ranted about getting fans into the game and leaving early. Now, I need you all to educate yourselves!

At the #jmu game, standing between the women's basketball team and two girls who don't know when offense switches to defense.
— Chase Kiddy (@ckiddysports) August 31, 2013

Now they're yelling things like 'watch left side!' Because, I guess, they think it makes them sound sporty. WBB just quietly observing.
— Chase Kiddy (@ckiddysports) August 31, 2013

We all need goals, I guess.



West Virginia 24, William & Mary 17

TOUCHDOWN MOUNTAINEERS. And my blood pressure comes off defcon 5.
— Chase Kiddy (@ckiddysports) August 31, 2013

AND THE WEST VIRGINIA DEFENSE ENDS A GAME!! #thingsIhaventsaidinawhile
— Chase Kiddy (@ckiddysports) August 31, 2013

Second year since 2011 #WVU trails FCS team at half, then shuts them out in second half. Will have full reaction on blog tomorrow.
— Chase Kiddy (@ckiddysports) August 31, 2013

That's pretty much all I have to say on that, lest I relapse back into a rage-fueled state of fanaticism that can't process a blue and gold number being less than a green and gold number, much less the implications of an A-gap blitz on a passing down.


I probably have a couple of quips left in me, but honestly, it's just lots of making fun of Virginia Tech. Oregon State lost? That's going to turn into me making fun of Virginia Tech. Kansas State lost? Nope, Virginia Tech. JMU is playing Akron next week? Nope, Virginia Tech.


I'll have the pregame up Friday evening, and I'm shooting for my annual 10 Things: NFL predictions midweek. Until then, may you tailgate preparations be swift and just.

Sunday Showcase: No Thanks, Sun Belt

(The following is part of a summer mini-series that will showcase old Breeze columns regarding JMU football that are still relevant. The series will reach its apex in mid-August, when I release my 2013 JMU football primer, forecasting the successes and failures of the 2013 team and commenting on the state and direction of the program.)


The Name: No Thanks, Sun Belt

The Date: April 4, 2013

The Idea: Conference realignment is an undeniable, unignorable problem that must be addressed, lest JMU fall into the bowels of irrelevance that FCS football seems destined for. As more and more championship subdivision powerhouses make the jump up, is the southern-centered Sun Belt really the right move for a burgeoning program in Harrisonburg, Virginia?

The Unedited, Original Version:


Let's play a word association game. When I say Sun Belt, you think of ... what?


I think of seventh grade history with Mr. Douglas. The Bible Belt. According to the lazy college student's bible (aka Wikipedia), the Bible Belt is "an informal term for a region in the south-eastern and south-central United States in which socially conservative evangelical Protestantism is a significant part of the culture and Christian church attendance across the denominations is generally higher than the nation's average."

So it makes sense, then, that the Sun Belt Athletic Conference has a pair of schools in Alabama, Arkansas and Louisiana.

Unfortunately for the Sun Belt, that's about all that the conference has, as six member institutions (Denver, Florida Atlantic, Florida International, Middle Tennessee State, North Texas and Western Kentucky) have left or announced that they will soon leave since the beginning of 2012.

But the Sun Belt has a plan. The conference will restock on Football Championship Subdivision powerhouses, loading up on meaty carbs like Georgia Southern and (Cr)App State. Whoops, how'd that parenthetical sneak in there? I suppose old habits die hard.

And, as reported by SB Nation, the embattled Football Bowl Subdivision conference has JMU next in line for an invite, should the Sun Belt suffer another departure.

Woah, now. Home girl say what? JMU is going to be in a conference with Idaho and New Mexico State? I've got some concerns.

JMU fans everywhere are losing their minds with excitement, demanding that JMU Athletics join hand in hand with the Sun Belt and sing Kumbaya. The Colonial Athletic Association is crumbling into that little ball of lint you found in your pocket during your cousin's wedding last summer, and JMU, sooner or later, is going to need a lifeboat off the Titanic.

Could this be a message from God, to JMU, to join the Sun Belt? We are, don't forget, talking about the Bible Belt.

Unfortunately, it is my firm theological belief that, even in Ordinary Time, God doesn't care where JMU plays its football. While the Sun Belt holds an uber-sexy annual matchup with Appalachian State (go Google "Rodney Landers," kids) and a move to FBS could instantly renew the potential juggernaut that is the Old Dominion-JMU Royal Rumble, it's probably not the right conference for JMU academically, culturally or geographically.

For example, the vast majority of JMU alumni live north of the North Carolina-Virginia border up into New England. Why would we play in a football conference that exists almost solely south of that border?

JMU's peer institutions are schools like William & Mary and Drexel. Should we replace them with Texas-Arlington and South Alabama?

That's all prologue to the shitstorm of Title IX implications a move to FBS would cause JMU. We'd need to add 22 new football scholarships alone, which would require 40 or 50 new scholarships for female athletes in turn. JMU would need to explore adding more sports into the mix, just at the theoretical baseline of playing in an FBS conference.

Unless Johnny Alger and Jeffrey Bourne plan to go Bonnie and Clyde on the Harrisonburg Savings and Loan -- I guess you can decide which one gets to be Bonnie -- I'm not sure where JMU can come up with this money. Don't forget, that's all on top of financing new building renovations, combatting tuition hikes and addressing the ignored-for-far-too-long salary issues of professors across the board.

I'm not saying JMU should sit on its laurels and do nothing but watch conference realignment pass it by. If anything, this administration's perceived apathy and disinterest in realignment is what has fans so worked up about a potential move in the first place.

What I am calling on all fans to do, whether you are a wide-eyed freshman or a seasoned 25-year alumnus, is not to speak out of ignorance. JMU finds itself in a tenuous situation; at some point in the near future, JMU athletics must land somewhere, or at least drastically shift the perception of the CAA as a dying brand by adding strong (read: not the College of Charleston) members to the conference.

But none of that makes it acceptable to buck at the first carrot dangled in front of this administration's faces. My rule of thumb: If it sounds like a gay man's fashion accessory, it's probably not the most viable of conference choices for JMU.

JMU has months, maybe even a couple years, to hammer out a financial action plan of how to handle a jump to the FBS level. Whether it's in the Sun Belt or a more apt location (like potentially the Mid-American conference), these challenges must be recognized and appropriately game-planned for.

At some point FBS football is going to come calling. As a community, we can't say "no" forever.





The Reception: While I did get plenty of laughs at the "gay man's fashion accessory" and the "Bonnie and Clyde" jokes, this column did not play well with a lot of alumni. Somehow, lots of JMU graduates got ahold of this column and didn't seem very fond of it. Some of the public responses:


"This reads like a message board rant. Let's not masquerade as a sports writer with unreadable opinion pieces like this. " -Richard Sines, Charleston, SC

"Speak for yourself. Most Alumni want this move. We are the ones that fund this University...   You've got it all wrong young college student. You take the better job, and then leave that job when the MAC comes calling." -Christopher McGowan, JMU alum

"Not to burst your lofty bubble, but from way out here on the west coast, we lob Virginia along with the rest of the 'Bible Belt.' Can you say Lynchburg?... GO SPARTANS!" -Chuck Gruber, San Jose State

"Hey Duke Fans! You all belong in the ACC.... for obvious reasons... natural fit... AND, with Maryland leaving, the DC Market is devoid (or soon will be), devoid of of [sic] an ACC Team. Its all about the money." Jeff Butchko, JMU alum/Clemson fan



Of course, I can't respond to anyone who ever gives me feedback. And I certainly wouldn't stoop to the level of entertaining some of these ridiculous responses...

Oh, who the fuck are we kidding? Yes I will.


-Chuck: Lynchburg hasn't been relevant since Jerry Falwell was alive. Stick to procuring 19th century French Merlots for the private selection of the winery that I'm sure that you own. Or better yet, continue to support that great University of yours. Is a San Diego State grad really the one to be giving advice on how to be relevant in sports?


-Jeff: while I admire the optimism, how many times has your mom had to tell you to stop drinking and posting things on the Internet? Do it again, and she's probably going to take away your computer privileges.

-Christopher: I agree completely with you, sir. Let's just say, to hell with it, jump to the Sun Belt, and then jump somewhere else when we get a better opportunity! I don't know why I didn't think of this earlier. It's a rather genius plan, because we don't need to spend any time worrying about geographic or cultural fits, whether or not it's the right plan short or long-term for the university. Let's just do it! And figure out the consequences later.

And the student-athletes? Well, who gives half a shit about them, right? I mean, they are just dumb jocks, after all, so just throw them around like they're chess pieces. Send the women's soccer team on a plane to Idaho for three days. Some day, the cost of all those $50,000 trips might be a tax write-off. And the kids will miss class, sure, but they don't need degrees anyway, right? They'll make millions on the professional women's soccer circuit, which is why you always see so many female athletes with zero career ambition. And they can make that class time up when they're ineligible to compete in postseason tournaments. Twice.


-And Richard, oh Richard: it reads like a sports opinion piece, because it is a sports opinion piece. If you'd taken 8 seconds to look into my background as a writer, you'd have realized that I write sports opinion pieces. Not only that, but plenty of people seem to like my tone and carefully formed opinions, including some people over at the Society of Professional Journalists. They gave me this tiny little award that says I may actually know what I'm doing. But hey, let's not masquerade as anyone with any sort of conceivable intelligence, right?


Man, I really shouldn't let that stuff build up for 4 months at a time. It appears I can be somewhat ugly, and perhaps even sarcastic, when provoked.

I do want to recognize one gentleman by the name of Bill McDonnell who called me out on something important. I refer to the Sun Belt as the "first carrot" being dangled in front of our collective faces, which was a sloppy mistake of mine. In truth, at the time this was published, I technically had no idea whether it was the first, second, or 19th carrot dangled in front of JMU. In early April, the JMU/Sun Belt news reverberated loudly through the Valley, and with frighteningly mixed results. (It seems the only thing JMU fans can agree upon is that we can't agree on much of anything.) But if there were other offers, they were quiet. The Sun Belt talks were the only ones loudly made public-- but that doesn't mean they were the only ones in existence.

Where Bill is a bit mistaken is that he operates under the impression that JMU "had many opportunities to move up to FBS over the years and chose not to make the leap. Our administration and athletic director should have been planning for this move many years ago but have done nothing except sit back and let other lesser universities move ahead of us." This, as I have learned, is not true.


The Relevance Today: Realignment hits at the heart of nearly every issue JMU faces in 2013. What Bill and many, many other fans fail to realize is that athletics decision-making is not a static process that occurs in a vacuum. There are plenty of factors, and even more people, outside of athletics that must be considered.

But if you look hard enough, there is a line of events and circumstances that traces back to the group's consistent reasoning for every decision made in the realignment era. This, I know.

But what is that reasoning? And is it still relevant? That is what I hope to delve into next weekend with the conclusion of this mini-series. I'll be making some JMU football predictions for this season, even with one less appendix on the team than this time seven days ago. More importantly, I will reveal some information I have uncovered over the past 4 months that may shed some light on past decisions and could even forecast future ones.

Man, that was some heavy stuff. Is it tailgating season yet? I long for the season where day-drinking is socially acceptable in any parking lot. Someone throw me a beer.

Sunday Showcase: Football Postscript, 2012 (November 29, 2012)

(The following is part of a summer mini-series that will showcase old Breeze columns regarding JMU football that are still relevant. The series will reach its apex in mid-August, when I release my 2013 JMU football primer, forecasting the successes and failures of the 2013 team and commenting on the state and direction of the program.)


The Name: JMU Football Postscript

The Date: November 29, 2012

The Idea: With a potential automatic bid to the FCS playoffs on the line, JMU shit the bed in the second half against ODU and finished 7-4... again. Four years after a national semifinals, fans have only witnessed one playoff appearance. The Class of 2013 will have never have seen a home playoff game. Is it time for a harsh evaluation of JMU's beloved football team on an organization-wide level?

The Unedited, Original Version:

As I sat watching this week’s Monday Night Football game between the Eagles and the Panthers with a few friends from Philadelphia, I started taking mental notes as to why the Eagles are so very bad this year. But there’s so many things inexplicably wrong with this team, it’s hard to find a good starting point.

Injuries to the offense have hampered the Eagles’ runningback LeSean McCoy and quarterback Michael Vick. Even when he is fully healthy, Vick – a signal caller who is as athletically gifted as they come – struggles to make pre-snap reads and seemingly routine throws. He often seems ill-suited to be running an offense at this level.

On defense, a star-studded cast of playmakers underperforms as key personnel aren’t living up to preseason hype. The secondary struggles to cover people effectively, and a supposedly elite pass rush fails to pressure the opposing quarterback nearly every weekend.

Clock management is a constant source of frustration for fans, some of whom are calling for their head ball coach to be fired. Andy Reid is a great guy with a winning record and a history of success in Philadelphia; it seems impossible that such a beloved man who has become the face of an organization could actually be fired.

Hey JMU fans … does this sound eerily familiar?

Everything I’ve just listed is 100 percent true of the National Football League’s most perplexing team, but it also reads a bit like an anatomy of JMU football in 2012. Why is it that a team with literally everything at its disposal can’t even make the playoffs, albeit in the country’s toughest conference? Thousands of fans asked themselves this on a chilly drive home from Harrisonburg two weekends ago, and most are still ruminating on the subject now.

As fans, we have a pathological need for answers that quench our disappointment. Unfortunately, it’s in the fabric of sports that we rarely, if ever, receive them.

Plenty went wrong in the confines of Bridgeforth Stadium this year that has nothing to do with JMU or head coach Mickey Matthews. Injuries up front eroded a pass rush that could have been extraordinary. In my discussions of JMU football with former players and fans, a few keen observers have highlighted the departure of Strength and Conditioning coach Jim Durning as a behind-the-scenes factor in the program’s performance.

The meteoric rise of Old Dominion’s football program has hurt the Dukes in the loss column as well as the recruiting field.

The schedule, while fan-friendly, did very little to beef up the program’s out-of-conference resume, an important factor when the Football Championship Subdivision playoff committee is deciding which girls to ask to the prom.

But Matthews and his staff cannot be absolved of all responsibility. The lack of a forward passing game at JMU has become so publicly mocked, it’s nearly cliché. Calling plays out of the shotgun in short yardage situations has become an inexplicable regularity. The defense, for all its talent, simply couldn’t cover anyone, and incomplete passes were often a result of happenstance rather than actual defensive prowess.

Most damningly, the offense failed to develop an identity as quarterbacks were shuffled and reshuffled like so many decks of cards. Mix in the option, the wildcat, zone-reads, trick plays and numerous other play calls, and it’s unclear as to whether JMU oversees a football program or a Bertie Botts Every Flavored Bean factory.

As a result, JMU message boards are full of young alumni, living in their Northern Virginia lofts, parading on about how Mickey Matthews should be fired as soon as yesterday. They should get back to their cubicle and concentrate on their spreadsheets, because inducing a coaching panic is the last thing the program needs right now.

While the expectations weren’t met and the class of 2013 will graduate without ever seeing a home playoff game, Coach Matthews deserves the trust of this fan base. I’m not a believer in national championships buying free rides, but there just isn’t enough here to trade Coach Matthews for someone who will only see JMU as a stepping stone.

In return, I don’t want to ever hear the words “a lot of teams would kill to be 7-4.” I’ve heard this from coaches, players and fans alike, and it must stop now. While it’s true that Northwestern Wyoming Polytechnical Center would kill for a 7-4 season, we’re not just any team.

JMU is a premiere organization in FCS football, and it’s high time we started acting like it.

 

 

 

 

The Reception: All over the place, as was expected. Like any good base, JMU fans shine resplendent with apathetics and diehards, critics and unconditionalists. Some fans were (and still are) dying to see someone not named Mickey Matthews calling the plays; whether or not this upcoming season will satiate their appetites for pass plays remains to be seen. Some fans believe it to be purely happenstance that JMU hasn't been truly good since 2008. However you see it, there's certainly enough blame to around, from one Linwood Rose all the way down to freshman backup safeties.

Let's all just agree that, if you live in a DC loft, you probably suck.

 

 

The Relevance Today: I've seen Coach Matthews two or three times this summer, and each time it's been at a bar next to my townhouse. We exchange pleasantries each time, and while I certainly won't begrudge ole Mick a beer or three, I hope he realizes how serious the fan base is getting about his job status. I stand by my statement that trading Mickey in for some successful up & comer like, say, Towson's Rob Ambrose, is a waste of nearly everyone's time. While I thoroughly enjoyed meeting Mr. Ambrose last season, and he's a great, well-spoken, and immensely likable fellow... well, if Rob Ambrose is still at Towson in eight years, I'll cheer for Pitt. It's like that, America.

But just because Mickey's staying power is valuable to me doesn't mean he's invincible. Last year's injuries along the defensive line made it clearer than ever to me that JMU needs a stronger S&C program, as I mentioned in the original piece. An alumnus of the 2004 national championship team has made that much clear over on jmusb, and he's hardly the only person to mention that as a former strength that has become a weakness. Pun 100% intended. 

Kidding aside, if JMU didn't have a bona fide Buck Buchanan award contender sitting in the middle of the linebacking corp, who knows what havoc might have been wrought upon the purple-and-gold-clad last season.

And the offense simply must find new ways to be dynamic this season. There's just no way around it. I think Michael Birdsong will be airing it out more this season. JMU will once again have potential superstar Andre Coble back in the mix after he missed last season due to academic ineligibility, but with the departure of centerpiece Brian Barlow, who knows how this group of receivers will fare? A new OC and quarterback might change things, but only if Mickey is willing to loosen up his vicegrip on controlling the offense, and the program as a whole is unafraid to pursue bold play-calling, such as the first half of the ODU game last November.

JMU has the stature, recruiting, personnel, and ability to contend for a national championship, this year and every year. The only question that remains is whether they put it all together, or let it fall apart again.

Well, I suppose there's that tiny question of whether or not JMU will, you know, ditch the CAA for FBS football, forever changing the entire landscape of collegiate athletics as the next big domino to fall in the cascading torrent that is conference realignment. But hey: that's what next Sunday is for, right?

Sunday Showcase: An Absence of Diehards (November 1, 2012)

(The following is part of a summer mini-series that will showcase old Breeze columns regarding JMU football that are still relevant. The series will reach its apex in mid-August, when I release my 2013 JMU football primer, forecasting the successes and failures of the 2013 team and commenting on the state and direction of the program.)


The Name: An Absence of Diehards

The Date: November 1, 2012

The Idea: With a nationally relevant program and the best stadium in FCS football, why the hell do fans, particularly students, suck so much this season?

The Unedited, Original Version:

Is there a kegger somewhere?

We had three home football games in the month of October, and I’ve never quite seen fans leave games early like they have in the last 31 days. The miraculous Justin Thorpe comeback against Towson University was well-watched, sure. There was nary a crowd member in all of 25k-strong Bridgeforth that would have been caught dead leaving that game before the clock reached all zeros.

But William & Mary? From my perch in the press box, I witnessed droves of student fans leaving the game with a tie game at the end of regulation. People are saying “thanks but no thanks” to free football. That is concerning.

Perhaps it was just an aberration. Surely students would stick around for a homecoming game featuring a brand new, starting freshman quarterback?

Naturally, the end result was different than what I expected. The stadium was half empty by the third quarter, and Colonial Athletic Association cellar dweller Georgia State nearly ran out of vaunted Bridgeforth Stadium with a win. Part of the reason for the comeback? JMU’s normally ferocious home-field noise was quiet enough to pass for Sunday mass with Father O’Leary.

What is going on? Why have people suddenly lost interest in the end of pretty tightly contested games? Is something else going on that is distracting students from the boys of fall?

I return to my previous inquiry: Is there a kegger somewhere?

In fairness to you deserters, last Saturday was cold and rainy, and it featured an offensive performance that wafted back and forth between offensively challenged and atrociously hard to watch.

On the other hand, screw fairness. I have a personal 35-point slaughter rule, and I will leave only in the event of a comeback-is-beyond-impossible type of blowout. But until then? Cancel my dentist appointment and bring me a parka because I’m like the US postal service. I’ll be in the stands rain or shine, sleet or hail.

That’s the type of attitude JMU fans seem to be missing this year, that devil-may-care, to-Hell-with-it-if-I-catch-a-cold attitude. I’m certainly not the only avid football fan in Harrisonburg, yet I’ve talked to dozens of alumni who all wonder the same thing.  Where did all the diehards go?

My investigation concludes with the new student ticket system. It’s got to go.

I don’t want to sound like an old man here, but back in my day, getting a football ticket required some advanced planning skills. Tickets went up for grabs on the Monday 12 days before a football game, and when they ran out of seats, it was better luck next time. Maybe instead of doing something futile like “paying attention in your 8AM,” you should have been on your laptop reserving yourself a seat at the Homecoming game.

The result was a palpable desire to snag football tickets on Mondays and a total feeling of being letdown if you were too slow on the draw. That showed on game days, as students were ready to be loud for a full three and a half hours. They were emotionally invested in their tickets and the planning required to obtain them.

Instead, I now watch freshmen prance up to the library half an hour before kickoff to print off a ticket for entry. It’s maddening, and it’s got to stop.

I can’t make people care about JMU football. As much as I’d like, this strongly-worded letter will likely fall on deaf ears, and people will leave the Nov. 17 ODU game early, if they show up at all. The athletic department is likely at a loss too, quietly shuffling papers and whispering as to how they can keep this new breed of student in the stands through the fourth quarter. Should they drop money from the sky like Georgia State does? Would that even work? Probably not.

Maybe they should throw a kegger at halftime.

 

 

The Reception: Putting aside my Boston Marathon sign-off, this is arguably still my most popular column to date. This was part of the portfolio that won me Regional Sports Columnist of the year, and it was well-received by many fans of the program as well as members of both the athletic and alumni outreach/annual giving departments. It's well-documented that I love to receive hate mail, but I don't mind positive feedback either, and this got plenty of it. When The Breeze posted this on its Facebook page -- a rare get for me, because the Breeze Web moderators usually like to distance themselves from my writing style -- it got TONS of likes and comments, sparking a conversation that actually rolled through the ODU game mentioned above. This was the rare column that may have actually had an impact beyond garnering a few laughs with strangers.

 

The Relevance Today: This upcoming season is a critical period for JMU athletics. If the University has any designs of moving up to the FBS level in the near future, JMU fans must show strong support of the programs they claim to care so much about.

JMU plays Akron in September. Some people have told me, "It's only Akron, what's the big deal?" And if you have said that, then Congratulations, ass hole. You are part of the problem. 

Akron is an FBS program -- the third winnable FBS game JMU has played in five years, mind you -- that looks an awful lot like a potential future conference game. If the Dukes go on the road and win in Ohio, that's the sign of a strong program capable of competing and winning at the FBS level. Of course, one win does not an FBS season make, but it's a big statement to the world that Harrisonburg, Va is ready to step up to a bigger stage.

On a larger scale? This season, JMU somehow has managed to snag more nationally televised TV games than any other CAA school. Must be a branding thing, because we certainly don't look better on paper in the preseason. Regardless, Bridgeforth needs to be electric. JMU must show up, stay put, be loud, and be proud to be wearing purple. These are the things that make the loudest statement about the health of our programs. JMU needs that support, now more than ever.

If these things happen, it sends the right messages to an Athletic Department that needs to see more student involvement to justify its big ideas. So put down your beer and remember to yell on third down. This stopped being about a football game a long time ago.

2013 CAA Tournament Primer

(The following is an expanded version of a piece appearing on CAAHoops, CAAZone, and other Colonial Athletic Association hubs around the internet.)

The CAA tournament is developing a nasty little reputation as what might be the best conference tournament in the country that nobody west of Appalachia knows about. And we're less than 24 hours from throwing this party all over again.

But first, let's recognize some realities. The CAA, as a mid-major brand, is losing ground just as fast as it gained it. VCU, a former staple of the Colonial postseason, is now an Atlantic 10 commodity and a nationwide household name. The shell that once was Old Dominion basketball has now played its final game as a Colonial Team. Georgia State is out the door as well, though coach Hunter once said after a game that he might stop in Richmond just to stare longingly at the Richmond Coliseum.

That's all prologue to the APR penalties leveled at UNCW and Towson. The Tigers, who just capped what is literally the greatest single-year program turnaround in Division 1 men's basketball history, would have as good a shot as anyone at hoisting the goods in Richmond on Monday night. Instead, both teams are sitting at home, stuck playing pick-up at the YMCA and watching Law and Order reruns.

With all those familiar faces gone, you might think this CAA tournament feels a little watered down.

Yeah, watered down with flaming vodka.

Remember how the 2012 NBA season felt, with its compressed regular season and streaky hot teams? Welcome to the 2013 CAA championship, where literally any team can win it all. How about the fightin' Sherrod Wrights, who have that one really good player... what's his name again? If seeding holds, Northeastern could win its first CAA tournament title in league history. Or maybe the Tribe can shoot their way past JMU and into the finals conversation. Hey, third times the charm, right? (Mark Selig disagrees.)

Speaking of JMU, all of Harrisonburg must have let out a sigh of relief when they saw how their Dukes were seeded. For a team that never seems to catch a break -- at least not in the Matt Brady era anyway -- they sure caught some in this year's tournament. Teams on JMU's side of the 7-team bracket are a combined 0-5 against the Dukes this season, while 1-seed Northeastern, 4-seed Mason, and 5-seed Drexel are 4-1 against the Purple and Gold.

Does Murphy's Law have a converse? That's right, some of us paid attention in high school Geometry.

I don't typically find myself comparing NCAA basketball to FIFA soccer tournaments, but how about the Group of Death that's been created for the aforementioned Patriots, Dragons, and Huskies? Drexel split with George Mason during the regular season, so we're looking for a Round 3 tiebreaker... and, oh yeah, whoever wins the inevitable slugfest receives the unenviable task of upstaging Northeastern. Yeah, good luck with that one boys.

Truth be told though, the Huskies have looked a lot more mortal through the latter stages of the season. Though it looked almost indomitable in jumping out to a 12-1 start, Northeastern finished the season 2-3. Some people say it's not how you start, it's how you finish.

I don't know anyone that actually says that, but if I run into one in the next 48 hours, I'll be sure to ask them who they've got Sunday night. My guess is they'll bet against the Huskies. Old habits die hard.

Say what you want about the Huskies, but at least they have that first-round bye. Who knows what kind of factor fatigue could play in semifinal matchups.

And while we're on the topic of first-round byes, Delaware will play Hofstra in the opening round on Saturday!

No, I kid. A lot of fans are actually writing off the Pride this tournament, as the sort of exception that proves the "any team could win it" rule. But I'm here to tell you, don't count out the Pride. In their last three games, they handled ODU, nearly upended Delaware but lost by 1, and had Towson on the ropes down in Maryland, leading by as much as 10 early on before losing a close one 67-64. There's no question they could potentially make some noise in the CAA tournament.

Just like every other 20-something with a sports blog, I've got my opinions on who will take this year's tourney. But the truth is that this tournament is nothing short of a basketball equation shrouded in 100% Grade A American sports enigma. Anything can happen. That coveted auto-bid is as up for grabs as it ever was.

One things for certain, going into Saturday's opening rounds. There's only two types of basketball fans who'll be watching the CAA tournament this weekend:

People who have no idea what's going to happen, and bold-faced liars.






Round-by-Round Predictions

Now that I've postured about how this year's conference tourney is wildly unpredictable, I'm gonna work my magic and, well, predict it. If you need to familiarize yourself with the 2013 iteration of the conference bracket, you can find the link over at CAAsports.


Round 1:

George Mason vs Drexel:  Quick! Name a player from George Mason that isn't named Sherrod Wright!

Okay fine, I've used the same joke like ten times this season. But it's a classic, so why switch it up midseason? The painful truth for Fairfax Community College here is that any team that can lock down Sherrod Wright can lock down George Mason. The Patriots can go big(ish) in response to that type of gameplan, but the fact is that the Patriots are woefully inconsistent against teams that lock down the star junior guard. Drexel is one such team that matches up well.

Now, I want to give some credit to GMU here. They fought through a bad matchup to win in Philadelphia for a season split with Drexel. But I don't think lightning can strike twice. Drexel is finally starting to get healthy again, and Bruiser Flint is, in my humblest of opinions, the better coach here. So I'm taking the Dragons in an ugly, borderline unwatchable game.

Pick: Drexel


Delaware vs Hofstra: Look, Bruce Willis wasn't the only one that was a good boy scout. I did my good turn and pumped up the Pride. Ra-ra, black sheep, and something about corn. Or whatever.

I meant what I said -- I think Hofstra could potentially make some noise. Doesn't mean I'm picking them.

Pick: Delaware


JMU vs William & Mary: There's some stuff you just can't explain, like those weird winter rings around Richmond rocks near Belle Isle, how women make decisions, or what the hell type of planetary body Pluto is supposed to be. Equally deserving of belonging on this list: what goes through AJ Davis' head when he steps on a court with Marcus Thornton.

I know Davis has been lot the last half a dozen games of the season, but when he's played against the Pantless Griffins, he's just been downright stupid. Davis set a season-high with 27 the first time he played the Tribe this year, including shooting an Olympian 70% from behind the arc... and for an encore, all he managed was to drop a career-high 36 last weekend, the second-best individual scoring game of an CAA player all season, and more or less single handedly won the game for JMU. And if that sentence was a run-on, well, that's basically the only way to handle writing about AJ Davis right now. Load up on amphetamines and go from there.

Being a senior that has lived through some of the stuff that I have -- like, say, the CAA tournament's all-time greatest individual performance, just off the top of my head -- William & Mary scares the tar out of me. Moreso, in fact, than Delaware and Northeastern do, if we're being honest.

I felt rather foolish feeling that, to be honest. Until I told that to assistant coach and longtime Matt Brady mentor Mike Deane, and he didn't laugh me out of the room. So, hey! There's a win. Or at least a not-loss.

Whatever mythical deities AJ Davis is sacrificing small petting zoo animals to, KEEP DOING IT. IT'S WORKING. AND I'M SORRY I SAT NEXT TO YOU ON THE BUS THAT ONE TIME ALL AWKWARDLY WITHOUT SAYING ANYTHING. TOTALLY WON'T HAPPEN AGAIN.

Pick: JMU


Round 2: Semifinals

Drexel vs Northeastern: I really believe this game will be close. Drexel took NU to overtime in Philly early in the season, and they are a vastly superior team now than they were then. Look for Drexel to go big and pound the boards against a Huskies team that doesn't rebound particularly well -- though in their defense, their poor boarding numbers are largely a function of their great field goal percentage.

It's a shame this year's Drexel squad went through what it did. Injuries aside, it could have been a special team that sought vengeance for what I believe was a bit of an NCAA at large snub last year. Still, even with a retooled strategy and some momentum coming into the postseason, the Dragons run will end here. Northeastern shoots the ball, spreads the floor, and unlike Mason, ultimately has too many potential weapons out on the court at any given moment.

Pick: Northeastern


Delaware vs JMU: It would probably be a bit of an overstatement to say that JMU owns Delaware, but the chickens sure didn't pose much of a threat to the Dukes in Harrisonburg, and it's gonna require years of therapy to scratch the impression of Moore-to-Nation from the minds of those unfortunate souls clad in blue. Rest in Peace, old Joe Flacco. You were so much easier to make fun of.

While Rayshawn Goins almost definitely will not be a factor in the fast-pace, run-the-floor first round W&M game, I expect Goins to have a huge game should JMU and Delaware advance to play each other in the semi's. We're talking 15 & 15, maybe more. As Davis has gotten hot, teams have slowly started to forget about game-planning for Goins. The redshirt senior has owned Jamelle Hagins this season. Meanwhile, his teammate and fellow third team all-CAA honoree Devon Moore will likely lock down CAA leading scorer Devon Saddler in the second half with an effort level that could range anywhere from "swimming the English Channel in March" to "blowing up the second death star."

If Delaware wins this game, honestly, I'm not shocked. The Chicks have loads of offensive talent and are deserving of that second seed. But I've got a Kemba-wins-the-national-championship type of feeling here, and I'm gonna remain a homer. Unashamed.

Pick:  JMU


Round 3: Championship Matchup

Northeastern vs JMU: If you've been over to get JMUSB's take on this -- and I highly recommend you do, because they're great guys and, unlike me, totally grounded in realism -- you probably already know where this is going.

I've been saying it since about 9:01 PM on February 20. JMU played Northeastern to a draw in Boston; I've gotta think the table turns in our favor playing a championship matchup in Virginia. AJ Davis is on a role, JMU has seniors out the ass, and if prompted to actually play for something meaningful, I think the Dukes might actually find a higher gear than they've played with in my four years of being in Harrisonburg. Northeastern is a great team and they're guaranteed an NIT bid -- a tournament which they stand a great chance at winning. But similar to the last three Big East tournament champions, I think all signs point toward JMU stepping into the light just at the right moment and capturing lightning in a bottle.

Pick: JMU, 68-66.




I'll be neck-deep in press releases, statistics, and JMU baseball (wait, what?) for most of the weekend, but hit me on twitter with reactions. Get in on the discussion, and make sure you hash tag #caahoops.

And for more analysis regarding the CAA tournament than this lone ranger can provide you, sidle on over to caahoops.com and my friends there will hit you from all angles. Seriously, you'll be so overloaded with information and analysis, you'll almost wish you hadn't gone there at all.

Almost. But not quite. Stop being such a fifth grader, you L7 weeny.

Consortium II: Gearing up for CAA's

The Consortium returns after a two month absence! I got so much great feedback from the first time around that we decided to do another roundtable on JMU Men's Basketball.

If you've been living under the kissing rock, JMU is tied for second place in the Colonial Athletic Association with three games left in the regular season. The Dukes play first-place Northeastern tonight in Boston. There's your context, now let's get to it.

A brief reminder: our bloggers today are myself, twitter goddess Carleigh Davis (@_carleigh), JMU MBB Breeze beat writer Stephen Proffitt (@JStheproffitt), Executive Editor of 22807 Magazine  Meaghan MacDonald (@megtothemac), and C4G virgin Evan Nicely (the very unoriginal @evan_nicely), making his first appearance here on the blog.

1. On a scale of 1-10, 1 being "the sun came up this morning" and 10 being "Earth-shatteringly shocking," how surprised are you that JMU is in second place in the CAA with three games to play?

Stephen Proffitt: 4. I’m gonna make it that simple. I have been optimistic about this team since the start. The only thing that surprises me is that they’ve done it without their best shooter and arguably one of the CAA’s best shooters, Andrey Semenov (the man is like 49 for his las 101 three’s or something). If asked this question with him active, I’d say a 1. The CAA is off this year and Brady’s combo of freshmen talent and fifth year senior leadership has had great potential since October. Rayshawn Goins said it earlier this year that he’s never been on a team that has been as close on and off the court as this one is. 

Carleigh Davis: Let's go with an 8. Mostly because, last time we discussed JMU men's basketball, I was the largest skeptic of the group. At the beginning, I was really furious with Brady's decision making as the Dukes would drop losses after being ahead at the half. But as the season has gone on, I have found myself in the student section booing refs for badly called games (we remember the Mason game, right?) and checking Twitter obsessively for scores or injury updates. I'm glad they're second in the CAA, but my concern lies in the CAA tourney and whether their ability to pull games out of NOWHERE can withstand the trial of the hardest competition of the season, where everyone's season is on the line.

Meaghan MacDonald: 10! I never thought I would see the day where JMU would be second in the CAA. As a senior, I have seen my share of tragic games, tragic plays and calls and tragic overall seasons. But, when the Dukes have a season like they did last year where even coach Brady hurts himself, I guess you can’t get any lower. I am happy that they’re playing so well, have good team chemistry and getting the most out of their freshman. It’s nice that my last year at JMU the team could end on a high note.

Evan Nicely: 5. JMU is a senior-laden team with talented freshman in a downtrodden CAA that is a shell of itself from the previous years. Without perennial power VCU combined with the shockingly down seasons of ODU and Drexel that we all saw coming after the beginning of the season, I would be much more surprised if they were closer to last. This is a squad that needed to win, to try and save the coaches job and for the seniors to prove to themselves that they can actually win at a school that hasn’t won consistently since the 1980s.

Chase Kiddy: 4. It's gotta be a 4. Because I always knew this team could be this good, maybe even better, if they just got their shit together. They get consistent numbers from Goins and Moore, and then someone else usually give them a big night. If no third player steps up, the Dukes probably lose. If Davis/Nation/Cooke goes off, they almost always win. This team is capable offensively, quite strong defensively, and takes great care of the ball. Couple that with usually unselfish play and underrated coaching, and that makes for a conference contender in a down year for the CAA.

2. Can JMU beat Northeastern tonight?

SP: Yes. Can I move on now? Na, I do think they can win. Northeastern is coming off two straight losses: against Delaware in overtime, which is not a bad loss, but the other was on the road in Trask against the Seahawks. JMU, however is coming off their third CAA sweep of the year on the road in Delaware. Sunday night was the biggest win of the season for the Dukes in my opinion. I’d argue that pretty hard too. While Brady told me today that he thinks any game, “is a coin flip” the amount of momentum they carry from Sunday is big and I think it helps. If they had lost Sunday night, it would be the typical, Dukes road loss, but they changed that. They played like a different road team Sunday night. Their patience really stood out to me. Also their lack of frustration helped keep them in the contest. Multiple times Sunday night, JMU was down double digits, but for once they didn’t let that faze them. Brady said Tuesday they would need to shoot the ball with consistency. Brady also needs A.J. Davis to have a strong impact off the bench. He’s become a key bench player and I think they may have finally found a good role for him. If Davis and Goins can dominate offensively, and Devon Moore can sew all the patches together, they stand a shot against the Huskies. Northeastern is also a terrible rebounding team averaging just over 30 so if the Dukes can control the boards, their chances go up too.

Brady likes to think his freshman are the keys to road wins, but I say if the big three, Davis, Goins, and Moore can play like they did Sunday (Combined for 54 of 72 JMU points) they should be southbound one game out of the CAA lead.

CD: This is difficult. Northeastern is coming off of two back-to-back losses, one in overtime against Delaware. They may be bloodthirsty looking for another win to go 13-3 in the conference. They are 6-7 at home, however, but we know the Dukes can't perform as well on the road. I think the Dukes will lose a very close game, with a final score within 4 points.

MM:  The Huskies lead the series against JMU all-time 10-3 and 3-1 in Boston. JMU is 2-8 away. They are coming off consecutive losses for the first time in months but they are hungry for first place and will put their best foot forward in this game. I think the Dukes will give Northeastern a real fight, if they can get some action from leading scorer Rayshawn Goins and Devon Moore. But the Huskies lead the CAA in scoring offense, field goal percentage and steals and will force JMU to play smart and play clean.

EN: This is a very hesitant yes. I did not believe this team could go on the road and beat Delaware, a team it was behind in the standings, and they did. Despite an atrocious road record, I think this JMU team has had its youth become a little more mature and gotten stellar production from senior guard Devon Moore who has been playing out of his mind recently. Northeastern is also slumping and I believe is feeling the pressure of the No. 1 seed slipping away. JMU wins, but it’s going to be a really close one.

CK: It all depends on the status of Joel Smith. He's the leading scorer on a team that thrives on offense, and he's been limited the last couple games, so it's no surprise Northeastern is suddenly on a losing spree. I think JMU might have exorcised some demons with that incredible win over Delaware (a team that beat Northeastern last week, by the way), and I think they play with a swagger and a force they have rarely exhibited on the road this season. 55% chance they upset the Huskies in Boston.

3. BradyWatch: Last time around, the general consensus was that Brady needed to pull a 20-win season out of his ass to merit keeping his job. Brady is now 4 wins away from achieving that mark. Has his position markedly improved over the last two months?

SP: Yes. First off he’s shown he can properly manage what he has. Besides using Semenov as an excuse for losses, he’s explaining how the Dukes came out victoriously. Does he still need to finish out the season strong and “cause damage in Richmond” as Towson coach Pat Skerry said they were capable of? Yes.After Wednesday the Dukes get Georgia State at home and William & Mary on the road. Although they had a bad loss on the road to the Panthers back in January, I expect them to take care of business on senior day. If you count the Hampton loss (yes that still happened) with the Georgia State loss, the Dukes are 9-4 since then. I only really say that two of those losses are bad too: at Towson and at Drexel. The other two were at George Mason and home against Mason. (JMU is historically terrible against the Patriots no matter how good they are).

CD: Brady. I still don't think I like Brady. Somehow he has managed to coach a bunch of freshmen (or maybe Devon did) and pull out some wins. Do I think 20 wins should allow him to keep his job? No. I still think we could hire someone amazing to come in and teach our Dukes how to play better basketball and put more W's up so that when someone hears JMU basketball, they don't laugh in your face because your program, and your coach, are a joke.

MM: I think Brady’s mark has improved overall. I don’t know if he can get all four wins but what he has done with the team this year compared to last year is incredibly impressive. The team did lose some key seniors, but his recruiting helped fill the void and put together a bench of promising talent. His recruiting has always been questionable in the past but this year may make skeptics take another look at his basketball philosophy. Plus adding Deane to the staff doesn’t hurt either. He has a remarkable relationship with the players, strong work ethic, knows how to out together dynamic plays and has the resume to back it up. Brady will be the coach of JMU next season thanks to the players and staff he brought in.

EN: I still think his job is as much up in the air as it has been and won’t be decided until after the confetti has fallen in Richmond. I feel like most people believe the ceiling for JMU as a program is higher than it actually is at this point. NCAA births almost every year is about as realistic as finding Jimmy Hoffa’s body right now. This is the first winning CAA record since the 99-00 season. The four years before Brady, JMU’s record was 25-89. Brady gave JMU their first winning record in nine years, and is 83-79 overall. That speaks for itself in my books. He can win at JMU, but there are still doubts to if he can win consistently enough to keep Jeff Bourne happy.

CK: Last week, I might have said no- especially because my last answer was so nebulous. I still think only concrete stuff like winning the CAA tourney will definitively secure Brady's job. But I also believe when people reflect on the season, they'll remember the dunk call that won the game over Delaware, and that probably shifts the conversation in Brady's favor.

More than anything, I'm inclined to agree with Evan, who stated JMU's four-year record pre-Brady. JMU basketball hasn't been electric in a while. Do we expect all that to get turned around, 100%, in five years? If so, the athletic department is much more out of touch than I've grown to believe in the last couple years. That's what I wrote in a column last February, and I'm sticking by that.

4. JMU will close out its season at Northeastern, at home vs Georgia State, and at William & Mary. What seed will JMU carry into the CAA tournament in March?

SP: I predict they roll into RVA with the second seed behind Northeastern. If they win at Northeastern, I predict they will win out. No one says I’m correct on that, but that’s my opinion. I predict the Dukes win out and finish 13-5 with number two seed.

Northeastern should win out depending Wednesday’s result. The Huskies play at Georgia State and back home against ODU. Remember though the Panthers were the team that finally broke NU’s perfect streak in conference. Huskies were 8-0 CAA before Ron Hunter brought some dirty south magic to Boston. I predict the Huskies finish 2-1 with a loss to the Dukes. 14-4, number one seed.

Towson faces Drexel, Mason on the road, and Hofstra. I predict they go 2-1 over this stretch with a loss to the Patriots on the road. Tigers finish 12-6 tied with the third seed as they hold the tiebreaker over Delaware. (Tigers swept Blue Hens)

Delaware plays at home against Drexel, on the road at UNCW and Hofstra before finishing the regular season at home against George Mason. I say the ‘Hens go 3-1 finish 12-6 in conference with fourth seed. (I say they lose to Mason on senior day at home)

CD: This is tough. It really depends on if we can beat No. 1 in the league to have 11-5 standing in CAA. If we lose, and Towson beats Drexel like they should, we should have a 3 or 4 seed going into the tournament which is significantly better than last year..

MM: 3-4 seed. JMU will lose tonight, win against Georgia State and lose to William and Mary. The Dukes’ away record is too strong to ignore and discount.

EN: I think JMU will head to Richmond as the number 2 seed in March. I think that even if they win both games I just don’t see Northeastern dropping their last four games in what would be a choke-job for the ages. JMU will just miss out on the bye but a number 2 seed could still see them make the short run at the title.

CK: I'll go with third. While I give JMU decent odds to beat Northeastern tonight, I'd be taking the optimism wayyyyy too far to suggest JMU will win out,  and Northeastern will blow a two-game lead with three games to play. That's just too much to bank on. I think it's far more likely that JMU could beat Northeastern, but lose to William & Mary, who has really owned JMU in Williamsburg the last few seasons. Not that it matters much — in the CAA tournament, the two and three seeds are nearly identical situations. Plus, as it is now, the one seed probably has to play George Mason. Who wants to deal with that?

5. Where will JMU's season end?

SP: This is tough, I could see this team running the table in Richmond and sneak into the NCAA tourney and maybe even get Semenov back into the lineup depending on another evaluation. He could be active by Richmond.   I could also see them losing on Saturday (based on their Richmond history) in their first game inside the grungy Coliseum.  

All in all I think it unfortunately ends somewhere in Richmond most likely Sunday. In 2011 they got a CBI invite, but they had some key wins, one being at VCU. JMU was the last team to beat the Rams before their Final Four run. The team has no big wins this season that amount to anything in the eyes of tourney holders so it’s either win out in RVA and find yourself with an at large or start prepping for next year. There won’t be any film crew inside the Convo on selection Sunday ready to capture the Dukes’ reaction with an at large bid.

CD: JMU's season will come up short in the last game of the CAA tourney. I just don't think it's possible for this team to hang on tight and play well enough to win the CAA. And, if they do, then they will be out of the NCAA in the first game. I can't say I'm a believer of these Dukes yet, but I wish them well.

MM: NIT. I love seeing my team playing so well and hope for the best, however I am realistic. The Dukes lost games that they shouldn’t have lost this year and time to time can make silly mistakes.

EN: JMU’s season, if it ends as a number two seed as I said, they will end up in a postseason tournament not named the NCAA tournament. Despite having more than enough depth and talent to win, JMU has not played well in the CAA tournament under Brady and have lost to teams that they shouldn’t have, like UNC-Wilmington last year. I hear the CBI giving JMU a phone call again just like they did in 10-11.

CK: Remember that part about taking the optimism too far? Well, fuck that guy. JMU will win the CAA tournament  and make its first NCAA appearance since I was a toddler. To me, they look a little bit like 2013 VCU, and while I'm not saying JMU will go to the Final Four or anything crazy like that, I do think they are getting hot at the right time, and can carry their run through the end of the CAA tournament. Brady keeps his job, and everyone gets a happy ending. Watch for the movie from Disney in 25 years.