Sophomore Jordan Anderson rushed for 162 yards and two touchdowns in a career-performance that fueled a 31-7 victory for the James Madison football team over Richmond at Bridgeforth Stadium on Saturday.
The Dukes advanced to 4-1 this season and picked up their second win in the Colonial Athletic Association.
The Spiders’ defense gave up 297 yards on the ground to a powerful rushing attack of Anderson and redshirt freshman Jauan Latney, who added a total of 98 yards and a score.
The game looked to be going the Spiders’ way early when a punt was blocked and taken into the red zone by DeShawn Holmes on JMU’s first drive. Richmond converted with a run from running back Kendall Gaskins.
This was the last time the Spiders would score in the contest as the Dukes tallied a total of seven sacks.
JMU answered a 7-0 deficit with a 62-yard drive that ended with a 5-yard score for Latney to even the score in the second quarter. When JMU got the ball back after a quick three-and-out, the Dukes responded with another rushing touchdown. This time it was on a 10-yard quarterback scramble by redshirt freshman Jace Edwards.
Trailing 14-7, Richmond attempted a fake punt on its opening drive in the second half. The disciplined JMU defense intercepted punter Nick Hicks’ pass and took the ball to its own 30. Anderson broke a couple of tackles and ended the drive with a 45-yard score, giving JMU the 21-7 lead.
In the fourth quarter, Anderson followed his blockers down the field for his second touchdown of the day for 49 yards.
JMU will host Maine next Saturday to conclude its three-game home-stand.
Tigers ousted by Terps
Towson was handed its first loss of the year by Maryland on Saturday, a defeat that can be put on the Tigers’ inability to hold onto the football.
Maryland handled Towson 28-3 in a game where the Tigers had four turnovers. Towson sophomore quarterback Peter Athens showed some signs of inexperience this week when he threw two picks.
In a messy first half, Towson came up with no points after numerous missed chances. The Tigers committed various penalties in critical situations and put all the momentum on the Terrapins’ side early.
On Towson’s second drive, it could not convert on a fourth-and-one when running back Terrance West was pummeled for a 4-yard loss.
On its next drive, trailing 7-0, halfback Dominique Booker had three chances to score on a first-and-goal from the 2-yard line. Booker was stuffed all three times, so instead of seven points, the drive resulted in three when kicker D.J. Soven knocked down a chip shot.
This would be the first and last time Towson would score. The second half was full of miscues for the Tigers on the offensive and defensive side of the ball.
At the beginning of the third quarter, Maryland scored its second rushing touchdown of the game on a 5-yard score from Justus Pickett. The rushing attack of Maryland clicked all game with a total of 198 yards and two scores.
In the fourth quarter, it was all Terrapins. Quarterback Danny O’Brien threw his two touchdown passes of the game in the final frame for insurance points to seal the victory. O’Brien had a solid performance with 123 yards in the air.
The Tigers look to rebound from this loss next Saturday when they host the Spiders in a conference game.
UNH tops Holy Cross
Kevin Decker threw a 60-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Justin Mello with over one minute remaining to seal a 39-32 win for New Hampshire on Saturday.
In the home opener for the Wildcats, Decker posted career numbers with 352 passing yards and four touchdowns. The quarterback led his team to its third-straight win and its first win in the conference.
On the opposing side, quarterback Ryan Taggart of Holy Cross had an excellent game of his own, completing 40 passes for 412 yards and two touchdowns.
This game was filled with offense as each team had over a total of 500 yards.
Holy Cross trailed the Wildcats at half by a score of 18-10. The Crusaders rallied behind Taggart and he tied the game with just 2:30 remaining in the contest when he scrambled for a 13-yard touchdown.
Mello caught his second pass of the day from Decker and rushed into the end zone with 1:10 left to give the Wildcats a lead that they would keep.
Other key contributors for UNH were running back Dontra Peters, who rushed for 104 yards and wide receiver Mickey Mangieri, who had six receptions for 102 yards and one touchdown.
UNH takes on Villanova in a matchup of two Wildcats next Saturday at Cowell Stadium.
Christopher Corso can be reached a [email protected].
