EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW (2025): Louisville v. James Madison

Pregame Prep: Things to Know Before the Game

• Kickoff: Fri. Sept. 5th, 7 p.m. ET
• TV / Radio: ESPN2 / 93.9 The Ville
• Weather: Highs in the mid 80s, lows in the high 50s; slim chance of rain / thunderstorms
• Odds: Louisville -13.5, O/U 57.5 (FanDuel)
• Uniforms: Louisville (white helmet / red jersey & pants); James Madison (all white kit)

Previous Game (Louisville v. JMU): 2022

Tied 10-10 at halftime, Louisville outscored James Madison 24-0 in the second half to roll to a 34-10 over the Dukes. The Cardinals were led by 100-yard games from both Tiyon Evans (ten carries, 126 yards, TD) and Jawhar Jordan (17 carries, 117 yards) on the ground, while Malik Cunningham had an efficient outing with 223 passing yards and three touchdowns on 14-of-20 passing. Tyler Hudson also had a 100-yard game as a receiver (six rec., 142 yards, TD), as Louisville’s defense held James Madison to 193 total yards.

Notable Numbers

• Louisville leads the all-time series 1-0.
• Louisville is also 33-32-1 all-time against teams currently in the Sun Belt Conference.
• Since joining the ACC in 2014, Louisville is 20-3 against Group of Five / FCS schools. Their only losses were to Houston twice (2015 & 2016), and Air Force (2021 First Responders Bowl)
• Louisville has rushed for 200+ yards in five of its last six games, dating back to November 2nd, 2024 against Clemson. They’ve also averaged over six yards per carry in five of those games.
• JMU has won its last two games against ACC opponents, including a 70-50 win over North Carolina last season.
• Last week, Caullin Lacy scored on a 93-yard punt return touchdown, his fourth different touchdown in his Louisville career. He had both a rushing and receiving touchdown against Washington in the 2024 Sun Bowl, and a kick return touchdown against Miami (FL). The last Louisville player to score a touchdown four different ways was Charles Gaines, who scored on a receiving touchdown in 2012, and had a kick return, punt return, and interception return touchdown all in 2013.

First Down: Meet the 2025 James Madison Dukes

Since their last meeting in 2022, head coach Curt Cignetti left JMU to take the head coaching job at Indiana, leading the Hoosiers to their first CFP appearance last season. Former Holy Cross head coach Bob Chesney took the leap from FCS to take the vacancy at James Madison, leading JMU to a 9-4 record in 2024 with a Boca Raton Bowl win over Western Kentucky.

James Madison is 1-0 with a 45-10 win over Weber State last week.

Second Down: JMU Offense Breakdown

James Madison had concerns about their quarterback spot to start the 2025 season, when Alonza Barnett III suffered a torn ACL in last year’s regular season finale against Marshall. They brought in UNLV transfer Matthew Sluka as a contingency plan in case Barnett had to redshirt the 2025 season, but Barnett was cleared days before their season opener against Weber State.

Against Weber State, JMU decided to platoon both Barnett and Sluka at quarterback throughout the game. Louisville will likely see the same on Friday, with Barnett being the primary quarterback and Sluka taking snaps as a wildcat quarterback. Barnett had an efficient 2024 season, completing 60% of his passes for 2,598 yards and 26 touchdowns with just four interceptions. Barnett is a more than capable runner (135 carries, 442 yards, seven touchdowns), but Sluka is a more natural runner with the occasional threat to throw. Sluka also has familiarity with head coach Bob Chesney, as he played under him at Holy Cross, leaving as the school’s all-time leader in passer rating (147.4), and was second all-time in both rushing yards (3,583) and touchdowns (38).

Along with their quarterback duo, JMU also returns their top two rushers from last year in George Pettaway and Wayne Knight. They also get Ayo Adeyi back after a season-ending injury early last season, he had a 1,000 yard season in his previous stop at North Texas. Pettaway is a patient runner that can bounce runs outside and get big gains. Knight is similar to Pettaway with more speed, and he can also be an impact player on kick returns as well.

James Madison saw an overhaul in both their receiver group and the offensive line, but based off what I’ve seen from the Weber State game, questions are still out moreso for the former than the latter. The Dukes do appear to have found playmakers though with Michael Scott and Iowa State transfer Isaiah Alston. Scott has the ability to make plays in space and should be utilized as a gadget player often in the offense. Alston is a big target at 6’4″ and had a touchdown reception last week v. Weber State.

Players to Watch:

• QB Alonza Barnett III (60% completion, 2,598 yards, 26 passing TDs, seven rushing TDs, four INTs in 2024)
• RB George Pettaway (162 carries, 980 yards, five TDs in 2024)
• RB Wayne Knight (77 carries, 449 yards, two TDs in 2024; seven carries, 89 yards, TD last week)

Third Down: JMU Defense Breakdown

New defensive coordinator Colin Hitschler hopes to continue the momentum that the Dukes have had on defense since transitioning to the FBS. JMU has led the Sun Belt in total defense two of the last three seasons (2022 & 2024), and they also had a monstrous +20 turnover margin last year (#1 in FBS).

To do that, JMU has some returning talent as well as a bevvy of transfers making the leap from FCS to FBS. Safety Jacob Thomas headlines the returning JMU players, after earning All-Sun Belt Second Team honors last year. He already has one interception from last week and if Louisville has more issues with errant passes, Thomas could be on the receiving end of those. DJ Barksdale’s return gives JMU another veteran in the secondary, he’ll likely start as a nickelback in JMU’s 4-2-5 scheme. JMU’s secondary is very disciplined and sticky in coverage, and they got three interceptions last week against Weber State. Louisville will need to avoid turnovers against the Dukes to keep JMU from springing a surprise upset.

Trent Hendrick returns at linebacker to give the position a leader, making 18 career starts for the Dukes. Hendrick is a solid player that can make plays against the run.

As mentioned, JMU leaned heavily on the FCS ranks to fill their roster needs. Edge rusher Xavier Holmes (Maine) comes to Harrisonburg after a productive career with the Black Bears, logging 23 career starts with 20 TFLs, 8.5 sacks, three forced fumbles, and an interception. Linebacker JT Kouame-Yao (Division II Shepherd), and defensive backs Curtis Harris-Lopez (Holy Cross) and TJ McGill (William & Mary) all arrived in the portal and should be other starters to keep an eye on.

Players to Watch:

• LB Trent Hendrick (seven tackles, TFL last week)
• S Jacob Thomas (three tackles, INT last week)
• DL Xavier Holmes (72 tackles, 12.5 TFLs, six sacks, two FFs last season w/Maine)

Fourth Down: Keys to the Game

When Louisville has the ball…

With possible heavy rain and thunderstorms looming around the corner on Friday, I wouldn’t be surprised if Louisville decides to lean on their running game more against JMU.

If Louisville decides to air it out on Friday, the key here will be trying to get plays against tight coverage. Miller Moss had his moments last week, including a fantastic touchdown pass to Duke Watson on a wheel route. But he’ll need to make throws in tight windows against a very disciplined, very deep James Madison secondary.

When JMU has the ball…

It’s a cliché expression in football, but it’s all going to start with the offensive line for JMU. The Dukes only returned two starters from last year’s group, and they’re tasked this week with trying to create lanes against a veteran Louisville front. If they can set the edge and keep guys like Clev Lubin or AJ Green blocked, JMU does have the athletes to bounce runs outside and get big chunks of yardage. That could also open opportunities for Barnett or Sluka to get chunk yardage on quarterback keepers and keep Louisville’s defense from keying on their running backs.

Where Louisville can really win the battle at the line of scrimmage is on the interior. If Louisville’s interior defensive lineman can plug their run fits and keep JMU from getting chunk plays, forcing the Dukes into third-and-long will be huge. Barnett is a capable passer and JMU does have solid players outside, but forcing the Dukes into third-and-long situations will keep them from utilizing their run game.