Published Nov 14, 2020
PUSHING FORWARD
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Greg Madia  •  DukesofJMU
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Left Tackle Gillespie 'Grateful' To Be Back With Dukes

The longer he sat, the more his agonizing thought lingered.

“After the natty, I had a sick feeling in my stomach,” James Madison fifth-year senior left tackle Ray Gillespie said. “I just couldn’t go out like that.”

Gillespie is one of three returning starters to JMU’s offensive line for its postponed season that’ll take place in the spring and he said his goal for the unorthodox year is to help the team make another run toward an FCS crown.

At the time of his stewing queasiness, though, Gillespie’s problem was he had previously decided to step away from the Dukes following their national runner-up 2019 campaign. He was already on the roster for four years and even though he still had one season of eligibility left, simply planned to move on.

“That caught me off guard,” JMU coach Curt Cignetti said. “I was surprised by that and I didn’t think he was making the right decision.”

To be fair, Gillespie didn’t know if he was making the correct choice either.

He said in the winter months on the heels of the Dukes’ loss to North Dakota State, he continued to workout on his own in spite of no longer having the responsibility to do so. He watched his former roommate of four years and ex-JMU defensive tackle Adeeb Atarwia, who left the program in August to transfer to the University of Virginia, come and go from the Dukes’ offseason strength and conditioning drills.

Gillespie said Atariwa kept bugging him to return to the team.

“I was looking at all options and just trying to see what my next step would be,” Gillespie said. “It turned out football was where I needed to be.

“Adeeb was always in my ear about coming back to be part of it. … He was always talking to me, like, ‘Dude, you need to come back,’ so he put the words in Cignetti’s ears also.”

And by the time Gillespie reached out to Cignetti in March, according to the Gillespie, the second-year coach knew his left tackle wanted to rejoin the program.

“[Cignetti] talked to some of the [assistant] coaches,” Gillespie said. “And I’m really grateful that they let me come back whenever we were going to come back to school. I’m just really grateful for that.”

Now, it’s Cignetti, his staff and Gillespie’s teammates who are thrilled to have the multi-year starter back in his role. Gillespie’s return gives the Dukes a pair of bookend tackles they can count on. Right tackle Liam Fornadel was an All-American last season.

Between Gillespie, Fornadel and left guard Truvell Wilson, JMU has three offensive linemen who have combined for 69 career starts.

“We gave [Gillespie] the opportunity to prove himself all over again,” Cignetti said. “And he’s stepped up, put on good weight, is playing really well and I think he’s got a chance to be an exceptional player for us this year.”

Wilson, the man that lines up next to Gillespie on the front, said: “Having somebody experienced at left tackle is always a good feeling. Playing the tackle position is a big job and knowing that we’ll have somebody that’s been here for five years and knows the offense is a confident feeling.”

The chemistry among the left-side-of-the-line teammates, Wilson said, is only growing after playing alongside each other last season.

“Raymond is an enjoyable guy to be around,” Wilson said. “He plays very hard and I like to feed off of that energy sometimes. He goes out there and gives it his all every play.”

Gillespie insists he’s made strides to improve, too. He said when he ultimately decided to continue on with the Dukes, he realized he wanted to return as a better player.

The 6-foot-5 product of Atlee High School said he used most of his time at home during quarantine to bulk up.

He estimates he’s put on 35 to 40 pounds and now weighs 298 pounds. Going into the championship bout against North Dakota State, he was listed at 275 pounds but was even lighter then.

“My mom and dad helped me out,” Gillespie said with a laugh. “They helped me out a lot.

“I was working out and eating the right things. I was eating three meals a day and snacks. Eggs, chicken, rice, vegetables. High protein, good carbs and vegetables.”

He said during fall practices, which wrap up today for the Dukes with their final scrimmage, he’s noticed how the added weight is boosting his play on the field. Gillespie noted, “The strength in my body weight has helped me stay in front of the defender and not get pushed around as much.”

The former preferred walk-on said he is eager for JMU’s eight-game spring slate to begin in February, so he can showcase his upgraded skills and hit another opponent again.

And this spring won’t be Gillespie’s last season with the Dukes either.

He said he is going to stick around through the fall of 2021 since all fall sports athletes were given a blanket waiver to retain a year of eligibility due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“This is something I don’t want to walk away from now and I just want to enjoy it,” Gillespie said.