HARRISONBURG – Cornerback Charles Tutt had to use every inch of a leap Thursday morning to intercept a pass intended for James Madison’s tallest receiver during the team’s second practice.

“Riley [Stapleton], man, he’s a 6-foot-5 receiver,” Tutt, a 5-foot-10 junior, said after the session. “You definitely have to put your body on him because he’ll try to go over the top of your head.

“So I put my body on him and then I high-pointed the ball and boxed him out at the same time, so he wouldn’t be able to go over top of me.”

Tutt’s interception came during the Dukes’ team period and was the on-field highlight of the day.

And for more on Thursday’s practice, here are today’s notes:

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- The overall highlight for the Dukes came via a roster addition. JMU added its second offensive line transfer in as many days as ex-South Carolina offensive lineman Pika Leota joined the squad. He can begin practicing on Friday.

- Maryland transfer EJ Donahue was added on Wednesday.

- Leota has four years of eligibility remaining. Offensive line coach Bryan Stinespring said Leota is more of a tackle and Donahue is more of a guard.

- Stinespring said the biggest difference between this year’s camp and last year’s camp for the offensive line is that last year the coaching staff knew what the starting unit would look like. Stinespring said JMU has to use all of this August camp to “establish the best five.” He said he has a few offensive linemen taking reps at multiple positions across the front because he wants to see where they fit best.

- Sophomore right tackle Jahee Jackson, who’s taken most first-team snaps so far at the position, said he thinks having played right tackle in high school has helped him through the first few days of camp.

- Jackson played some left tackle during spring football when JMU needed someone to fill in for the injured Aaron Stinnie. Jackson played guard last fall.

- At corner, Tutt said, “It absolutely matters to him,” whether he starts or not. Last season JMU used as many as five corners in a game at the same time and always use a rotation when the opposing offense required JMU to mirror them with only two or three corners at the same time. He’s taken reps with the first-team defense the past two days and said he’s happy with how he’s played, but admits, “There’s a whole lot of camp to play out.”

- Tutt was also among a group of players catching punts early in practice. Safety D’Angelo Amos, wide receiver David Eldridge, wide receiver Jamir Hudson, wide receiver John Miller, cornerback Jimmy Moreland and wide receiver Robbie Walker all took turns catching punts. Here’s video of Eldridge, the Virginia transfer:

- Freshman Harry O’Kelly was doing the punting in the video. O’Kelly and redshirt freshman Jeremiah McBride both punted when JMU wrapped up practice with a special teams period.