James Madison doesn’t feel as if apologies are in order for crashing the College Football Playoff field.
It’s not the fault of the Dukes that the system was set up in a way that five-loss Duke could emerge as the Atlantic Coast Conference champion and open the door for 12th-seeded James Madison to claim a spot and face fifth-seeded Oregon on Saturday in a first-round game at Eugene, Ore.
“Outside critics can say whatever they want, we made it to this position because we earned it,” Dukes standout safety Jacob Thomas said.
James Madison (12-1) is in its fourth season at the FBS level and can’t match Oregon’s reputation and talent. It also will have to deal with the rabid atmosphere that Oregon (11-1) possesses in Eugene.
But that also equates to a major opportunity in the eyes of Dukes quarterback Alonza Barnett III.
“This is an environment you dream of playing in, and if you are who you say you are, you can’t shy down when the lights are bright,” Barnett said.
James Madison coach Bob Chesney will be moving on to be UCLA’s new coach after the magical season ends.
The Dukes, champions of the Sun Belt Conference, were one of two non-power league teams to crash the CFP field. The other is No. 11 Tulane, which visits No. 6 Ole Miss on Saturday.
“A lot of work to get to this point and we’re really proud to be one of the 12 teams in this College Football Playoff,” Chesney said. “It’s rare, you know, for teams in the Group of 5 to make it, and I think to have two in here is pretty exciting.”
James Madison’s loss this season came at ACC foe Louisville, 28-14, on Sept. 5.
As for Oregon, its lone loss came against No. 1 playoff seed Indiana, 30-20 in Eugene on Oct. 11.
The Ducks rebounded with six consecutive victories, five by double digits, including a 42-27 victory over then-No. 15 Southern California on Nov. 22.
“I think you always feel the pressure in moments, especially when we had a hiccup early against Indiana,” Oregon coach Dan Lanning said. “We didn’t have any room to leave any indecision for anybody afterwards. Our guys really approached that with each game. It has a life of its own, we had to attack it.”
Oregon’s Dante Moore finished the regular season with passing-yardage outputs of 306, 257 and 286 yards. The third-year sophomore is being mentioned as a probable top-five NFL draft pick should he enter his name in the 2026 draft.
“Of course, everybody keeps asking me questions, but there’s not a decision yet,” said Moore, who has passed for 2,733 yards and 24 touchdowns against six interceptions. “I don’t know. I’m just glad to be here and play JMU this upcoming week.”
The Ducks have been hearing all week that they are on their way to an easy victory — they are favored by three touchdowns at multiple sportsbooks — but Lanning isn’t buying into that.
“Obviously, they have done an exceptional job all year,” Lanning said of the Dukes. “You talk about one of the few teams that’s top-10 offense and top-10 defense. You watch their offense and they create explosive plays all over the board. … Defensively, they create a lot of issues, a lot of different looks.”
Barnett has passed for 21 touchdowns and rushed for 14 more. He has 2,533 passing yards and eight interceptions plus 544 yards on the ground.
Dukes running back Wayne Knight has rushed for 1,263 yards and nine touchdowns, caught 37 passes for 379 yards and one score and is the main punt returner (9.5-yard average).
Oregon’s defense is led by linebacker Bryce Boettcher (104 tackles).
