Even if it comes in the spring, a senior season of high school football provides plenty of benefits for college-bound players.

Just ask James Madison coach Curt Cignetti.

“Truthfully when you look at the guys we have [committed],” Cignetti said, “and we have a lot from the state of Virginia, they all need that season in terms of their development as a player and as a student.”

On Monday, the Virginia High School League executive committee voted to hold a condensed prep football schedule in the spring that runs Feb. 15 through May 1 as part of its revised sports calendar due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Cignetti, during a Zoom press conference with reporters earlier this month, said he wanted high school programs to be able to have the chance to take the field this spring if the fall wasn’t going to allow for it.

“What I would say about high school football is this,” Cignetti said. “It doesn’t appear that they’ll be able to play football in the fall and I sure hope they get their season in during the spring. I know how many young people just love sports and learn so much from playing sports. There are so many great lessons with playing sports.”

JMU currently has 10 pledges in its 2021 recruiting class, with five coming from within the Commonwealth.

That means those five – Battlefield (Haymarket) linebacker Matt Binkowski, Northside (Roanoke) tight end Zach Horton, Stone Bridge (Ashburn) linebacker Skylar Martin, Prince George offensive lineman Jaelin Montgomery and Warwick (Newport News) safety Messiah Russell – won’t play this fall, and the Dukes’ staff won’t have the traditional in-person opportunities to scout commits or targets in Virginia on Friday nights before either signing date in the recruiting cycle.

The early signing period begins Dec. 16 and the regular signing period begins Feb. 3.

“I thought we’ve done a really good job recruiting,” Cignetti said, “because my gut told me there’d be no summer camps and that this class would be put together on tape more so than any other class. And I think we did a nice job of evaluating, selling our brand and picked up quality commitments.

“But I’ve actually kind of hit the pause button – except for maybe a position or two – and we’ve got good prospects that have wanted to come, but have had to go to other places. Because I don’t know when the season is going to be played. Is it going to be played in the fall? Is it going to be played in the spring? Depending on when it’s played, your roster management changes.”

To this point, the Dukes are planning on forging their own path as an FCS independent this fall while their league, the Colonial Athletic Association, has opted to cancel its fall slate and instead explore a possible spring season.

Of the five JMU commits from Virginia, Binkowski and Horton had said as recently as a few weeks ago – shortly after the VHSL revealed none of the three models it would eventually vote on included a fall prep football season – that they were still considering enrolling early with the Dukes for spring practice. Though, Horton said if there was going to be a high school football season held in the spring, he would like to finish out his career with Northside then.

JMU’s 2021 recruiting class sits inside the Rivals Top 100 team rankings, at No. 98.