Chasing perfection: James Madison looks to extend undefeated season at Georgia State

ATLANTA — James Madison had made quite an impression moving up to college football’s top division, even if the No. 23 Dukes won’t be rewarded for it.

Coach Curt Cignetti insists his undefeated team isn’t fretting over NCAA rules that make it tough for teams transitioning from FCS to FBS.

As they complete that two-year process, the Dukes are ineligible for a bowl game and won’t get a chance to play for the Sun Belt Conference title — no matter how many games they win.

“We’ve been dealing with all this kind of stuff here for a while now,” Cignetti said. “We should be pretty accustomed to staying focused on the things that affect how we play on Saturday, which is the key to success. This week will be no different.”

The Dukes (8-0, 5-0 Sun Belt) will look to extend their perfect season when they head to Atlanta to face the Georgia State Panthers (6-2, 3-2), who are coming off a prime-time loss to rival Georgia Southern.

“Certainly, we’ve got a little chink in our armor,” Panthers coach Shawn Elliott conceded.

James Madison had a tougher time than expected last week in a 30-27 victory over Old Dominion.

Cignetti is expecting a better performance out of his team on Saturday.

“Our mindset, our urgency, our sense of excitement, our attentiveness, much better than last week,” he said. “Last week I really detected a … lack of urgency throughout the week. And it showed up in our play. We were consistently inconsistent.”

HOLD THAT LINE

As a transitioning team, James Madison doesn’t show up in the NCAA’s official FBS stats.

But there’s no getting away from how good the Dukes have been up front on defense.

They lead every other FBS team in rushing yards allowed (48.9 per game), sacks (4.88) and tackles for losses (10.25).

“When you look at their front four, they play with extreme effort on every play,” Elliott said. “We all see the same schemes week in and week out. But their guys just get off blocks, make plays, and play extremely hard.”

RUNNING PANTHERS

Georgia State will need to get its running game going to have any chance of knocking off the Dukes.

The Panthers rank among the top 25 nationally in rushing yards per game (191.1), averaging 4.8 yards per carry.

Marcus Carroll leads the way with 1,060 yards, making him just the second 1,000-yards rusher in school history. He is coming off a career-high 208 yards against Georgia Southern.

While Carroll is a handful, Cignetti pointed to dual-threat quarterback Darren Grainger as the key to shutting down the Panthers.

“We have to keep Grainger in the pocket and put pressure on him,” the Dukes coach said. “We can’t let him out of the pocket.”

GSU GOALS

Georgia State’s goals took a big hit with the 44-27 loss to Georgia Southern.

But Elliott pointed out that his team, which is already bowl eligible, still has a shot at reaching the Sun Belt championship game - even though they’ll need some help from other teams.

“All those things we talked about on Aug. 1, when we took field for the very first time, every one of those scenarios are still in play,” Elliott said. “A chance to set the the school record for most regular-season wins, be the best team in school history, possibly a Sun Belt championship.”

A LOOK BACK

James Madison won a 42-40 thriller when the teams met a year ago for the first time as Sun Belt rivals.

Elliott brushed off any suggestion that his team is looking for payback.

“Totally different teams, totally different plays, different concepts,” he said. “It means nothing for us that we played them close and almost came away with the win. ‘Almost’ might be the dumbest word in the dictionary. We’re playing the 23rd ranked team in the country, and that’s motivation enough.”