It’s time for our weekly JMU football report card. With the Dukes beating Ball State 63-7, it was a good week for just about every unit on the team. 

Our grades reflect JMU’s dominance. As a reminder, we use Pro Football Focus grades to help with our report card analysis.

Offense: A+

How’s 513 yards, eight offensive TDs, zero turnovers, and no punts? I’d say pretty good!

Ball State’s defense is very bad, as the Cardinals have allowed at least 34 points in every game this season. Still, JMU did what it should against a bad defense.

JMU threw for 286 yards and ran for 220 more. Several runners performed well, as the team averaged 6.47 yards per carry. Wayne Knight led the team with 63 yards on six carries, and Jobi Malary pitched in 50 yards on five carries. Alonza Barnett gained 44 yards on the ground to go with his 280 passing yards. JMU’s quarterback finished the game with an absurdly impressive six touchdowns, which come on the heels of a seven-touchdown performance last week. He’s a star.

Once again, the offensive line was fantastic. The group finished with a run-blocking grade of 88.4, per PFF. That’s the Dukes’ best single-game run-blocking grade since moving to the FBS level. A 77.1 pass-blocking grade was plenty respectable, too. 

Tight end Taylor Thompson played exceptionally well, too. He caught five passes for 91 yards and a touchdown, and he earned a PFF grade of 89.8. Only Barnett posted a better grade.

If the Dukes execute like they have the last two weeks, they’ll win the Sun Belt title going away. If they can execute even close to how they have the last two weeks, they’ll have a great shot at being the league champion.

PFF MVP: Alonza Barnett, 92.9 grade

Defense: A

Three turnovers points and only seven points allowed? That’ll do!

JMU’s defensive scored as many touchdowns as it allowed, with DE Eric O’Neill intercepting a pass and returning it for a score. The defense looked solid Saturday. There’s still room to improve as tacklers, but the unit is continuing to grow under coordinator Lyle Hemphill, and Saturday’s PFF tackling grade of 72.3 was better than I expected. 

The defensive line is becoming increasingly dominant each week, and the secondary does a fantastic job of generating interceptions. CB Terrence Spence is up to three on the season, and S DJ Barksdale made an incredible play on a ball to snag his first career INT.

O’Neill and Barksdale were PFF standouts, with each player earning grades above 90. Linebacker Taurus Jones also played well, receiving a 76.6 grade across 20 snaps. Jones was JMU’s highest-graded run defender Saturday.

PFF MVP: Eric O’Neill, 92.4 grade

Special teams: B

The unit was solid, and it didn’t need to do a lot. The Dukes didn’t kick any field goals, but they did miss an extra point. They made up for it by faking an extra point early in the game for a successful two-point conversion.

Overall, the unit was solid, but it wasn’t asked to do much Saturday.

Coaching: A

Not only did JMU avoid a post-UNC letdown, but the Dukes also game planned well for Ball State. They generated turnovers against a young QB with elite potential within the MAC. Offensively, they threw and ran the ball at will without risking major injury to key players.

Barnett only had a few designed runs, and running back George Pettaway only received four carries. The Dukes rotated guys well, ensuring they’d limit snap counts for key players while also scoring in bunches. I was impressed with JMU’s focus and execution, and keeping guys like Pettaway from unneeded contact felt smart.

Photo courtesy of JMU Athletics Communications