HARRISONBURG, Va. (WHSV) – After an early Week 3 bye, James Madison football is set to return to action this weekend.
While the timing of the bye may have felt premature, head coach Bob Chesney said it couldn’t have come at a better moment.
“I think it’s good rest for our guys,” Chesney said. “We had a bunch of players that were pretty sick and guys who were banged up. Hopefully they had the chance to recover, get back here and now it’s time to get back into game week.”
The Dukes entered the break following a 28-14 loss on the road at Louisville. A key emphasis for Chesney moving forward is discipline, after JMU was flagged for 95 yards in penalties against the Cardinals.
“We’ve got to clean up the penalties,” Chesney said. “You can’t give up nearly 100 yards in penalties in a game and expect to win against anybody.”
Despite the challenges, Chesney praised the energy and competitiveness his team carried throughout the off week.
“Our competitiveness was excellent during that bye week,” Chesney said. “I love the way that we competed against each other, and that’s what it’s really about. It’s just iron on iron, sharpening each other.”
JMU opens Week 4 on the road Saturday, Sept. 20, against Liberty.
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