Jordan McCloud threw a career-high five touchdown passes — three to Elijah Sarratt — and No. 24 James Madison rebounded from its only loss to rout Coastal Carolina 56-14 on Saturday. Transitioning from FCS to the bowl subdivision, the Dukes (11-1, 7-1 Sun Belt) were turned down twice by the NCAA in a bid for a waiver that would make them eligible for the league title game next week as East Division champions — and potentially a New Year's Six bowl invite as the top Group of Five team. The school said in a statement earlier this week that loss “changed the landscape in terms of the nature and timing of our legal options, including the diminished viability of a lawsuit against the NCAA.”
Series record: James Madison leads 4-1 and has won the last four. The Dukes made an appeal to the NCAA this week for remediation from the rule that requires a two-year transition to the highest level of college football before conference championship and bowl game elibility is afforded. The NCAA says the rule ensures that teams are prepared for that jump, and JMU clearly has been more than ready.
Jordan McCloud accounted for six touchdowns and No. 23 James Madison pulled away with four touchdowns in the second half for a 42-14 win over Georgia State on Saturday. “I thought we played an outstanding second half, took it to them,” James Madison coach Curt Cignetti said. McCloud, a senior quarterback, completed 28 of 36 passes for 307 yards and four touchdowns and rushed 13 times for a career-best 104 yards and two touchdowns to help the Dukes (9-0, 6-0 Sun Belt) extend their winning streak to 12 games, the fifth-longest in the FBS.