Alonza Barnett tore his ACL on Nov. 30 against Marshall, Phil Steele’s 2025 college football preview confirms.

The recently released magazine, plus a social post from Steele, gives us some insight into when JMU football’s 2024 starting quarterback could return to action. Let’s break down what we know about the situation.

The facts

• Barnett tore his ACL
• ACL tears typically take about 9-12 months for full recovery
• If Barnett had surgery on Dec. 1 (it might’ve been after that date, depending on swelling), a nine-month recovery would make him ready to play on Sept. 1. JMU’s season opener comes Aug. 30 vs. Weber State
• Chesney believes Barnett is ahead of schedule in his recovery

Steele posted on X (in a reply to one of our posts) that he’s been told Barnett is “ahead of schedule and could be ready for fall camp.” He lists Barnett as JMU’s projected starter, but he does that in large part because he’s the team’s returning starter. Steele says regardless of who starts at QB in Week 1 (Matthew Sluka and Camden Coleman are the other options), he thinks JMU should be the Sun Belt East favorite.

The hints

• JMU added two high-quality transfers

Look, there’s no reason to add Sluka (UNLV’s starter at the beginning of 2024 after a stellar career under Chesney at Holy Cross) and Coleman (13-1 as a two-year starter at Richmond) if you believe Barnett is 100% ready to go for Week 1. Sluka and Coleman likely committed to JMU under the impression they’d be the two guys battling for the 2025 starting gig.

Additionally, Barnett has two years of eligibility left and a bright future ahead of him. It would be shocking to see JMU rush Barnett back from injury with two other potential starters on the roster. It seems likely the Dukes would take a cautious approach to bringing back a player with plenty of football left in his future, given their new depth at the position.

• Chesney hasn’t shared a firm timeline for return

While Chesney has said Barnett is ahead of schedule, the quarterback’s initial recovery timeline was never shared. Did the training staff expect Barnett to be ready to play after nine months or after 12? We’ve heard that Barnett might not be cleared for full contact until September or later, even if he’s ahead of his initial schedule. 

• Tyshawn Wyatt

The ex-JMU lineman suffered a serious leg injury during the late stages of the 2023 season. JMU then hinted that he was recovering well throughout the 2024 offseason and during the early portion of the season. Yet, he never played a snap for JMU in 2024 and now plays for UVA.

We’re not saying Barnett is an apples to apples comparison — his injury is different than Wyatt’s quad tear — but JMU’s current coaching staff isn’t forthcoming with injury information. Chesney telling the media that Barnett is progressing well doesn’t guarantee that the QB will play a single snap in 2025. Running back Ayo Adeyi missed most of the 2024 season after battling injuries in the first two games of the year. Adeyi’s absence came despite Chesney hinting a couple times that he’d be back in 2024 before eventually admitting the North Texas transfer was done for the season and would redshirt.

We’ve seen this coaching staff allow veterans to take a year off to recover from serious injuries, especially when it preserves eligibility at a deep position group.

Our take

It’s great that Barnett, who has stuck with JMU despite being benched in 2023 and dealing with injuries in 2024, is recovering well. At his best (7 TDs in a road win against UNC), Barnett is one of the most electric quarterbacks at the Group of Five level.

But we’d be surprised if he’s JMU starter on Aug 30. The Dukes added Sluka and Coleman for a reason, and ACL tears typically take 9-12 months of recovery.

Even if Barnett is fully healthy for Week 1, he’s not an obvious pick as the best QB on this roster. Sluka was one of the best FCS quarterbacks under these same coaches at Holy Cross. Coleman is coming off a special season at Richmond and his top two receivers transferred to JMU this offseason, too. Sluka and Coleman have been practicing and lifting throughout the offseason while Barnett works on getting back to full health. The other two QBs have a clear advantage in the competition, making it unlikely Barnett is the guy for the season opener.

We don’t expect Barnett to start in 2025. It’s possible he becomes available as an emergency QB late in the season, but realistically, Barnett will try to use a medical redshirt to preserve his two years of eligibility with Sluka and Coleman as the team’s top two QBs.

Anything is possible and Barnett has won two JMU QB competitions as an underdog before, but we’re expecting Sluka or Coleman to start for the Dukes against Weber State in late August.

Photo courtesy of JMU Athletics Communications