SDSU Offense Poses Challenge For Dukes

HARRISONBURG — For the first time this season, James Madison’s defense is looking to bounce back to form.

The Dukes surrendered 21 second-half points to Weber State this past Friday in the FCS playoff quarterfinals. The 28 total points allowed were double the most JMU had given up in a single game all season entering the contest against the Wildcats.

“We looked back on the game and said, ‘These are the things we need to improve on,’” JMU senior defensive tackle Simeyon Robinson said. “But we weren’t really giving the score that much attention as far as compared to what we did during the regular season. But we know we have to learn from the mistakes and improve on them.”

And top-seeded JMU’s defense, a unit that was No. 1 nationally for scoring and total defense at the end of the regular season, gets an even tougher test Saturday at 4:30 p.m., when fifth-seeded South Dakota State visits Bridgeforth Stadium for the semifinals.

“Going to be the biggest challenge that we’ve had,” JMU coach Mike Houston said. “The top tight end in the entire nation, [projected] first-round NFL draft pick [senior] Dallas Goedert and he’s easily the best player offensively that we’ve faced this year.

“Then you look at the other side with the wideout, [senior Jake] Wieneke, he’s 6-4, projected as like a fourth-round pick and then you look at the quarterback [junior Taryn Christion], dual-threat quarterback.”

The trio of standouts provides the Jackrabbits with offensive firepower. South Dakota State is third nationally in scoring offense, averaging 38.8 points per game.

Wieneke, who has already been tabbed to play in the East-West Shrine Game after the season, is a four-year starter and three-time All-American. One catch against JMU will give him the all-time FCS record for consecutive games with a reception.

Goedert, who will play in the Senior Bowl, is a two-time All-American and leads all of Division I with 1,068 receiving yards for a tight end this year.

“You get a special player every five years, I mean a really special player,” South Dakota State coach John Stiegelmeier said. “The NFL, that type of thing.

“We’ve got three of them on our football team right now and how that aligns, why it aligns, who knows? [Goedert] was a walk-on, one was a full scholarship, one was a partial scholarship.”

Wieneke said the way Christion can run or pass effectively, along with how Goedert creates mismatches, often opens opportunities for him.

A Maple Grove, Minn., native, Wieneke is second in all of FCS for touchdown catches with 15 this year.

“He’s a freak with how big and fast and strong he is, and he’s got the best hands I’ve ever seen out of anyone,” Wieneke said.

“It’s so much fun to see the plays that he makes and they should be surprising, but they’re not because I’ve seen those plays every day in practice for four years now.

“Taryn as well. He can run. He’s super fast. He’s so smart, too. He can make any throw on the field and knows what he’s doing and knows what the defense is doing.”

Stiegelmeier said opposing defenses often have to pick who to defend — Goedert or Wieneke — or if they’re going to commit an extra player guarding against Christion’s ability to escape the pocket.

South Dakota State (11-2) has scored at least 30 points in six of the last seven games, and during the team’s seven-game winning streak, the Jackrabbits have converted 30 out of 31 red-zone opportunities, scoring 26 touchdowns and kicking four field goals.

Throughout the year, JMU (13-0) has tried to match its defenders one-on-one against opposing receivers and tight ends.

Overall, man coverage in the secondary has worked for the Dukes as first-team All-American senior safety Jordan Brown and second-team All-American junior cornerback Rashad Robinson are tied for the nation’s lead with seven interceptions each.

Junior cornerback Jimmy Moreland also recorded a key pass breakup to get Weber State off the field late in the fourth quarter, forcing a punt and ultimately setting up the game-winning drive.

“My corners are all small, short guys and they’re all big, tall guys, so it’ll be difficult,” Houston said. “You’ll see us do some different things in coverage this week and we’ve done a good job of playing in a lot of multiple coverage situations throughout the year.

“We’ll mix man, zone and some hybrid stuff, so I think you’ll see us use a variety of things this week to try and slow them down.”

Wieneke said his approach to playing against man coverage is simple.

“Just got to do my job,” he said. “If I’m blocking, it’s to block my guy. If it’s running a route, it’s to win my matchup. That’s what it is in man coverage. It’s one-on-one, me against the defender.”

The tight end, Goedert, is questionable for Saturday’s semifinal, according to Stiegelmeier.

Goedert exited his team’s quarterfinal win over New Hampshire by limping off the field with an injury.

“He’s got a fairly serious injury that he’s only got a week to prepare,” Stiegelmeier said. “We’ve got an unbelievable medical staff, but it’s not 50-50 right now.”