GREENVILLE, N.C. – James Madison never felt like an underdog, and likely will never feel like one this season.

The top-ranked FCS Dukes took down FBS East Carolina in a convincing 34-14 victory on Saturday at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium, to the surprise of no one within the JMU football program.

“We didn’t talk internally at all about an FBS opponent,” JMU coach Mike Houston said. “We talked about East Carolina and them being another team on our schedule.

“And our kids firmly believed we’d win this ball game coming in here.”

Cardon Johnson was the story of the game, rushing for a career-high 265 yards and two touchdowns in the win. He said he felt JMU had no reason to feel it couldn’t beat ECU.

“They say FBS, FCS and how it might be a different competition level,” Johnson said. “But I think we proved that it’s not especially if you have the players and the good coaches to put you in the right system.”

*****

- For James Madison, the win was its second over an American Athletic Conference school in the last three years. The other came in 2015 at SMU.

- East Carolina paid JMU $300,00 for its trip to Greenville, N.C. The loss to JMU snapped the Pirates’ 25-game winning streak against FCS opponents.

- JMU is now 6-20 all-time in games against FBS competition.

- The win Saturday for JMU also pushed its longest-active winning streak in Division I to 13 games.

- Johnson’s previous career single-game best for rushing was his 165 yards against Elon in 2015. He became the first individual rusher to eclipse 200 yards against ECU since Da’Rel Scott of Maryland did it against the Pirates in the 2010 Military Bowl.

- Johnson, who returned from an Achilles injury he suffered late last season, said he felt more comfortable as the game went on. He had touchdown runs of 85 yards and 80 yards in the third and fourth quarter.

- Houston said he couldn’t have been happier for Johnson.

- The second-year coach of the Dukes said he thought JMU’s dominance in the trenches was the difference in the game. JMU rushed for 422 yards as a team. ECU rushed for only 80 yards.

- JMU’s defense became the first to shutout East Carolina in the first half since Sept. 15, 2007 when Southern Miss led ECU 14-0 at halftime.

- Sophomore defensive lineman Ron’Dell Carter said it’s difficult to keep an opposing offensive line that has bigger size from pushing downhill. Carter said especially when you have to do it for four quarters. The Rutgers transfer added he thought the JMU defensive line and linebackers played together as one unit.

- Carter played some defensive tackle in pass rushing situations while Andrew Ankrah and Darrious Carter lined up at end. Houston said that was by design to get three speed rushers instead of two on the field at the same time.

- Senior safety Raven Greene came up with one of the four turnovers JMU forced. He had a fumble recovery. He said he thought the Dukes’ defense played collectively as one from the defensive line to the cornerbacks.

- Both Carter and Greene said they were in awe of Rashard Robinson’s end zone interception. Greene said he was closest to Robinson on the field when it happened, and said, “I went bonkers.” Carter said he couldn’t see it from where he was on the field so he just thought it was an incompletion but that as he was coming off he saw the offense coming on, so he knew something good happened. He quickly turned his head to watch the replay on the scoreboard.