Had James Madison held its originally scheduled practice to open training camp Friday, Adeeb Atariwa likely wouldn’t have made the decision he opted to make.

“I definitely think it would’ve made a difference,” Atariwa said.

On Friday, Atariwa told the Daily News-Record he put his name in the NCAA transfer portal primarily because the FCS season doesn’t appear as if it’ll happen. The 6-foot-3, 277-pounder was a starter at defensive tackle for the Dukes in each of the past two seasons.

His decision came just hours before JMU announced the suspension of a fall season and its intent to pursue a spring campaign.

“I wanted to finish my career off here,” he said. “But we were supposed to start today and we were all ready for it, so it was kind of a shock. We were all hanging onto the hope that we’d still be having a season whether it’d be fragmented or not, but it’s not looking like that.

“So it was shocking and I wasn’t expecting it, so I had to move forward and think about some other things.”

Atariwa and his JMU teammates arrived in Harrisonburg on July 6, and since were preparing daily for training camp with strength and conditioning drills. But late Thursday, through assistant athletic director Kevin Warner, JMU said it wouldn’t begin practice Friday, “Based upon developments on the national scene.”

On Friday, the Big Sky Conference and the Pioneer League officially announced it wouldn’t hold its respective fall seasons, pushing the FCS below the 50 percent threshold of necessary playoff-eligible participants in order for the NCAA to sponsor a postseason for the subdivision. JMU’s conference, the Colonial Athletic Association, had already bailed last month on trying to hold a season this fall and left the Dukes on their own to pursue a schedule as an FCS independent.

“The last 24 hours, like everyone else, I’ve been waiting for the NCAA to decide if we’re playing or not,” Atariwa said. “Hearing that we’re not [starting], it saddened me. So I have to figure out what’s best for me and my education.

“It’s been really hard to make this decision,” he continued, “just because I have loyalty to JMU and I have been there for four years, but it’s something I felt I needed to do.”

Atariwa is a graduate transfer and would be eligible to play right away at his next stop. He said he hopes interest from the FBS level picks up quickly and he can settle on a new place to play soon, especially considering most FBS programs had already started practice or were starting practice on Friday.

For the Dukes, Atariwa was a wrecking ball in the middle of their defensive front. He tallied 52 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and a blocked kick last season.

The Dominion High School product was part of JMU’s 2016 national championship team and helped the Dukes return to the FCS title game in 2017 and in 2019.

“One thing I’ll miss is all the big games that we’ve won,” Atariwa said, “because wherever I go I don’t think I can top that with JMU being such a win-heavy program.”

Atariwa said he’d miss his JMU teammates most and the coaching staff, too. He praised Dukes coach Curt Cignetti and the assistant coaches for understanding the difficult decision he felt was necessary.

Like punt returner and safety D’Angleo Amos, who entered the transfer portal on Wednesday, Atariwa has NFL Draft hopes. The NFL hasn’t moved its draft yet and Atariwa said playing this fall is his preference because it keeps those aspirations alive.

“I just don’t know how things would go if we had a season in the spring,” he said, “and that’s kind of why I had to make the move. I know it’s the same thing with D’Angelo, too, so it’s just something that’s needed.”

Atariwa said he spoke with Amos about his decision to enter the transfer portal and that, “[Amos] had some good advice for me since he was in the same boat as me.”

The door is open for Atariwa to return to JMU if he can’t find an opportunity that fits him best, but if he has suited up for the last time as a member of the Dukes he said he’s thankful for his four years in the program.

“I’ll always cherish my memories from JMU,” Atariwa said.