JMU welcomes Southern Miss and is ready to turn the page

HARRISONBURG, Va. (WHSV) – When Southern Miss steps onto the field at Bridgeforth Stadium for the first time, it will also be the first time Reed Stringer takes the field as head coach.

Stringer is the interim coach after Will Hall was fired Sunday.

“The one thing we’re going to focus on going forward is that it’s about us,” Stringer said. “We're beating ourselves right now. We're not playing the kind of football we're capable of playing and a lot of that is because we're not taking care of ourselves.”

Southern Miss is 1-6 and has lost five straight games.

Given their recent struggles, JMU head coach Bob Chesney expects the Golden Eagles to play desperate.

“They’re going to come here excited,” Chesney said. “Their coaches will take the reins from those offense, defense and special teams. I am sure we will experience many tricks and risks. I think it’s the nature of the animal when something like this happens.”

Three different quarterbacks have played for Southern Miss this season, but it looks like they've settled on Ethan Crawford as the team's signal-caller. Last week against Arkansas State, he was 15 of 23 passing for 187 yards. Crawford also injured his legs and ran 87 yards for two scores.

“He’s a phenomenal athlete,” JMU linebacker Jacob Dobbs said. “I think their offensive line plays together. You can see how their offense has evolved over the course of the year based on the different quarterbacks they use.”

Last week's performance at Georgia Southern was disappointing for JMU to say the least. Despite four turnovers, the Dukes' offense scored just seven points en route to a 28-14 loss. Barnett was under pressure for most of the game and was sacked six times.

“I know I'm with a group of people who hate losing more than they hate winning. I’m particularly part of that,” Barnett said. “It’s really easy to put that in the background and know that we have to take the lead.”

A sold-out crowd is expected at Bridgeforth Stadium for Homecoming weekend as JMU prepares to play in front of its fans.

“There’s obviously energy in The Valley on game days,” Chesney said. “Before game day, we need them more than ever,” Chesney said.

Kick-off is on Saturday at 3 p.m

The opponent's outlook is presented by Toyota

Injury report

• Chesney provided a number of injury updates during his weekly press conference. Running back Ayo Adeyi continues to recover from an injury sustained against Gardner-Webb. JMU's head coach indicated that Adeyi will redshirt this season, adding that the running back plans to return to JMU in 2025
• Offensive lineman Tyshawn Wyatt continues to build strength in his leg, which resulted in a season-ending injury last season against Old Dominion. Chesney did not provide a timetable for his return
• Wyatt isn't the only offensive lineman injured. Carter Sweazie and Riley Robell both missed Saturday's game at Georgia Southern. While Robell is still listed on JMU's depth chart, Sweazie was replaced and Quincy Jenkins was added
• Kicker Noe Ruelas did not travel to Georgia Southern, but Chesney hopes he will be available Saturday against Southern Miss
• Defensive lineman Chris Fitzgerald left Saturday's game at Georgia Southern with a cart in the second half. Chesney didn't seem concerned about the significance of the injury and said he was “fine.”

The injury report will be submitted by Augusta Health

50 Nifty

• Offensive lineman Cole Potts and linebacker Jacob Dobbs each started their 50th career game at Georgia Southern last week. Potts tied the JMU record for most starts, equaling JMU Hall of Famer Tony LeZotte, who started all 50 games of his career from 2004 to 2007. Potts will set the new record when he takes on Southern Miss.
• Potts started 43 games at Holy Cross before making seven starts to begin the 2024 season at JMU

Sales continue

• JMU leads the nation in turnover margin, total revenue and interceptions. The Dukes rank first in the FBS with a turnover margin of +2.29.
• JMU also leads the nation with 15 interceptions. The defensive line has produced four interceptions, the last coming from Immanuel Bush at Georgia Southern

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