Tag: James Madison

Notre Dame women’s basketball gets third easy win vs. James Madison

The Irish continue to prove how deep they are.

The early part of Notre Dame’s schedule was set up in such a way that it seemingly wouldn’t be challenged early on. So far, that has proved to be the case. After cruising to easy wins over Mercyhurst and Purdue, the Irish continued that trend with a 92-46 victory over James Madison.

For the third time in as many games this season, the Irish (3-0) proved to have far more talent than their opponent, even with injuries tightening their rotation at the moment. That rotation might be tightened further after a hard knock to the floor caused [autotag]Liatu King[/autotag] to leave the game early in the fourth quarter with a head injury. Hopefully, she won’t be lost for very long if at all.

The Dukes (3-1) took their lone lead on a 3-pointer early in the first quarter. Most of the time though, the Irish had double the points of the Dukes or close to it. While the Irish were their usual strong selves on both ends, the Dukes did themselves no favors by making only 15 field goals and shooting a putrid 21.7% from the floor:

[autotag]Hannah Hidalgo[/autotag] had a typical game of 24 points, six rebounds and four steals. [autotag]Olivia Miles[/autotag] also played typically with 16 points, six rebounds and eight assists.

[autotag]Kate Koval[/autotag] quickly is becoming an early contender for ACC Rookie of the Year. A night in which she had a line of 14 points, 16 rebounds and six blocks will do that.

King scored 11 points before she went out, and [autotag]Cassandre Prosper[/autotag] also had 11 points to go with seven boards off the bench.

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Notre Dame’s Olivia Miles one of five national players of the week

Another honor for her.

Notre Dame guard [autotag]Olivia Miles[/autotag] already was named the ACC Player of the Week for the first week of the season. That only proved to be the beginning though.

Miles has been named one of five national players of the week by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association. Joining her are Oklahoma’s Raegan Beers, Rutgers’ Destiny Adams, UCLA’s Lauren Betts and Norfolk State’s Diamond Johnson.

To say Miles has wasted no time announcing her return after missing all of last season with a knee injury is an understatement. She achieved a triple-double in the season opener against Mercyhurst and scored 17 points against Purdue, three of them coming on a shot from beyond half-court at the third-quarter buzzer.

In this young season, Miles is averaging 18.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 6.0 assists a game. She will have a chance to improve on those numbers in the Irish’s next game Wednesday against James Madison. That will be followed by a contest Sunday against Lafayette.

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Defense takes a massive step backwards in Tar Heels’ blowout loss to James Madison

The Tar Heels’ defense turned in one of its worst defensive efforts of head coach Mack Brown’s tenure on Saturday afternoon.

I finally thought that after hiring defensive coordinator Geoff Collins in the offseason, the UNC football team finally fixed its long-standing defensive issues.

Those issues largely looked long-gone in the Tar Heels’ first three games, as they allowed 47 total points and 769 combined yards to Minnesota, Charlotte and NC Central. There were some defensive lapses, as to be expected with even the best units, but also plays North Carolina made it wouldn’t have in season’s past.

On Saturday afternoon at Kenan Stadium, James Madison exposed all the defensive issues we feared in years’ past.

The Dukes racked up 611 total yards and scored seven offensive touchdowns, with quarterback Alonza Barnett having a hand in all seven, en route to stomping the Tar Heels 70-50.

“Our defense, who played great all spring, all preseason and played outstanding for the first three games, looked awful today,” UNC head coach Mack Brown said. “We had communication problems, we had missed tackles, we had guys wide open for a touchdown.”

North Carolina had a manageable 11-point deficit entering the second quarter, but 28 points essentially put the game out of reach and gave JMU a halftime advantage too large to overcome.

JMU kicker Noe Ruelas added a pair of long field goals, hitting from 50 and 44 yards. The Dukes also scored a pair of defensive touchdowns, blocking a first quarter Ben Kiernan punt and taking a Jacolby Criswell pass 33 yards to the end zone.

The Tar Heels now head back to the drawing board, hoping to solve a regressing unit before opening up ACC play at archrival Duke next weekend.

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New UNC starting QB Jacolby Criswellhas solid game in first start despite turnovers

Jacolby Criswell provided the UNC football team with one of its only positives in a blowout loss against James Madison.

There were hardly any positive takeaways for the UNC football team after Saturday’s poor excuse of a game against James Madison.

The Tar Heels allowed JMU to rack up 611 yards and score 70 points against them. The Dukes scored seven offensive touchdowns, with quarterback Alonza Barnett accounting for all seven (five passing, two rushing), while their defense added two more touchdowns on a blocked punt and pick-six.

If there even was one positive takeaway for North Carolina on Saturday? New starting quarterback Jacolby Criswell, who – despite losing a fumble and throwing a pair of interceptions – threw for a career-high 475 yards and three touchdowns.

Criswell shined particularly on his two first-half touchdown throws. He connected with tight end John Copenhaver for a 35-yard score in the first quarter, then opened up the second quarter scoring when he connected with his starting tight end, Bryson Nesbit, for a 34-yard catch-and-run.

“He made some great throws,” UNC head coach Mack Brown said about Criswell. “Just unbelievable throws. That’s the first real game he started since he’s been here. He started, I think, 4 years ago or something. Played one half. But he made some unbelievable throws today and he’ll just get better and better. And he saw a whole lot of looks, they (JMU) blitzed him a whole lot. He was the one bright spot for sure.”

https://twitter.com/GrantHughesNC/status/1837581914246729967

Criswell’s third and final touchdown pass went to freshman Jordan Shipp, with the freshman catching a 5-yard, over-the-shoulder pass for his first career score.

It’s extremely difficult to think of positives after a game like today, but knowing that North Carolina found its starting quarterback is something to be happy about.

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PHOTOS: Tar Heels get routed by James Madison in first loss of year

Despite the rumblings of a hard-fought game, the photographs of this game prove different.

North Carolina football’s undefeated season has come to an end as the team was routed by James Madison at home this week. The game looked tough from the start. The offense was clicking, but the defense was far from put together.

From interceptions to onside kickoff returns, UNC was letting James Madison have its way on the field today. The game ended 70-50 in favor of JMU as they pounded their way to 388 yards through the air and 223 yards on the ground.

UNC had 475 passing yards and 141 on the ground. This game is all around something that the Heels will need to remember and work on for next week.

These pictures prove how tough of a day it was for UNC.

Former UNC football QB Drake Maye back in Chapel Hill

Drake Maye made his long-awaited return to Chapel Hill on Saturday.

Saturday was an absolute letdown for the UNC football team, which got smacked around by James Madison in the first half en route to a 53-21 halftime deficit.

North Carolina turned the ball over four times, including a pick-six for JMU’s last score of the first half. After showing signs of life early offensively, UNC only scored seven second-quarter points. JMU’s offense scored 38 first-half points, while its defense blocked a punt for a touchdown and recorded a pick-six

While the on-field product was bad, the Tar Heels had a special visitor on the sidelines.

That special visitor was Drake Maye, North Carolina’s 2022 ACC Rookie and Player of the Year, who the New England Patriots chose third overall in this year’s NFL Draft.

Maye impressed during NFL preseason action to the point where his head coach, Jerod Mayo, hinted at Maye possibly being New England’s starter. More recently, Maye made his regular season debut in garbage time against the New York Jets.

If only Maye played defense, the Tar Heels certainly could’ve used him today, as UNC allowed over 400 yards in the first half ALONE.

Maye was in Heisman Trophy contention each of his two seasons (2022 and 2023) in Chapel Hill, only for those campaigns to be undone by North Carolina’s signature, late-season collapses.

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Tar Heels commit too many mistakes early, get blown out by James Madison at home

Saturday afternoon was all kinds of embarrassing for the UNC football team.

I don’t think anyone in Kenan Stadium, or those watching on TV, expected the outcome of Saturday’s UNC-James Madison football game.

The Dukes presented the Tar Heels a significantly tougher challenge than Charlotte or NC Central, but nonetheless, they’re a team the Tar Heels should beat.

JMU ended up being too much of a challenge for North Carolina, dominating the game throughout and winning 70-50 in a game that left many questioning if Mack Brown should still be in Chapel Hill.

The Dukes generated 609 yards of offense, scoring NINE touchdowns and converting two fields goals (50 and 44 yards). JMU quarterback Alonza Barnett accounted for 487 yards of offense and seven touchdowns himself, with five of those coming in the first half.

The Dukes’ defense was anything but stellar, allowing 50 points but they forced five Tar Heel turnovers. UNC starting quarterback Jacolby Criswell, backup QB Conner Harrell and wide receiver Christian Hamilton all fumbled, while Criswell threw a pair of interceptions

Despite all that went wrong for North Carolina, including those turnovers, its offense played fairly well otherwise.

Criswell shined in his first start, throwing for 474 yards and three touchdowns. Omarion Hampton led the Tar Heels’ rushing attack with 139 yards and three scores, while tight ends John Copenhaver and Bryson Nesbit combined for 133 receiving yards and two touchdowns.

JMU exposed a ton of UNC weaknesses today – and I’m genuinely concerned for the rest of the season.

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Tar Heels to see a heavy dose of former running back in Saturday football clash with JMU

It’ll be interesting watching George Pettaway in a James Madison football uniform on Saturday. Can UNC players slow down their former teammate?

Another game day at Kenan Stadium is almost here, with the North Carolina Tar Heels preparing to face the James Madison Dukes, in Week 4 college football action on Saturday at 12 p.m. ET

UNC will be rolling into the final game of its homestand with Jacolby Criswell at starting QB, with head coach Mack Brown announcing the news earlier Friday. You can also count on another big game from running back Omarion Hampton, while the North Carolina defense hopes to continue proving itself as a top unit.

JMU enters Kenan Stadium 2-0 and off a bye week. In terms of players, though, there’s a name the Tar Heels are very familiar with.

That player is running back George Pettaway, who played at UNC in 2022 and 2023, before hitting the transfer portal this offseason. Pettaway didn’t find a ton of success in Chapel Hill, totaling 93 rushing yards and two touchdowns, but he currently leads the Dukes with 114 yards and a score.

Take a look at what North Carolina defensive coordinator Geoff Collins had to say about his players facing Pettaway:

“He was a big topic of conversation,” Collins told InsideCarolina’s Evan Rogers. “Obviously, the guys are familiar with him, have a great deal of respect for him. Like him a lot, dynamic in the backfield. And when they move him out in different spots, out in space, a lot of teams will do that and it’s just a decoy. When they do that with Pettaway, it’s real. I mean, he had that long touchdown right before the half against Charlotte. Other things out in space that he’s doing, he’s an impressive athlete and everybody has a great deal of respect for him.”

There’s no doubt the Tar Heels will be excited to see Pettaway before kickoff, but once that initial whistle sounds, it’s all blood, sweat and tears.

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Game time announced for UNC-James Madison Week 4 college football clash

If you’re planning to attend or watch the UNC-James Madison football game, you can now plan around kickoff time.

The North Carolina Tar Heels are enjoying a 2-0 start to their college football season, with a close win at Minnesota and a closer-than-expected victory against Charlotte in their back pocket.

UNC kicker Noah Burnette played hero in the Week 1 victory, converting all four field goal attempts and his lone extra point try, while the North Carolina offense looked more like its usual self with nearly 500 yards against Charlotte.

The Tar Heels are now preparing to welcoming North Carolina Central, fresh off its first victory of the season, to town on Saturday, Sept. 14 for a 6 p.m. kickoff.

For its third home game in a row – the following weekend on Saturday, Sept. 21 – UNC will host Sun Belt power James Madison. Kickoff time for this battle was previously TBA, but that changed on Monday afternoon.

Just as the clock passed 12 p.m. noon on Monday, Sept. 9, we learned that North Carolina and JMU will start their Week 4 battle at the same time.

This will be the Tar Heels’ first 12 p.m. kickoff of the season. UNC and Charlotte faced off at 3:30 p.m. ET last weekend, then UNC and NC Central kickoff at 6 p.m. ET this coming weekend.

The Dukes, who won their first two games this season (against Charlotte and Gardner-Webb), will enter Chapel Hill fresh off a bye week. JMU last came to Kenan Stadium in 2016, when North Carolina laid down a 56-28 beating.

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Report: Wisconsin pursuing former James Madison star forward

Report: Wisconsin pursuing former James Madison star forward

Wisconsin is among the schools that have reached out to former James Madison star forward Terrence Edwards Jr., according to a report from 247Sports’ Luke Chaney.

Edwards averaged 17.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 2023-24 for the Dukes, doing so on 46% shooting and 34% from three. He put up 14 points, five rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block in James Madison’s 72-61 NCAA Tournament win over the Badgers.

Related: If Wisconsin decides to move on from Greg Gard, who could it target as its next head coach?

The 6’6″ forward would fill the possible void left by A.J. Storr, who recently declared for the NBA Draft while maintaining his college eligibility.

Wisconsin is included among the schools that have reportedly reached out to Edwards along with TCU, Vanderbilt, Mississippi State, Xavier and Oregon.

Greg Gard has work to do in the transfer portal as he works to reload entering a 2024-25 season that is pivotal to his tenure as head coach. Wisconsin has not made the Sweet Sixteen since 2017, and desperately needs a team good enough to make a deep postseason run.

For more on Wisconsin’s roster and transfer portal activity, check out Badgers Wire’s ongoing 2024 transfer portal tracker.

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