NORFOLK, VA (WTKR)- For the second straight year it went down to the wire and for the second straight year, Old Dominion's showdown with James Madison ended in a three point loss.
Alonza Barnett III threw for a touchdown and rushed for two more, leading JMU past the Monarchs, 35-32, Saturday night at S.B. Ballard Stadium.
Mistakes doomed ODU during the contest. The Monarch defense jumped offsides on two JMU fourth down attempts, giving the opposition a fresh set of downs with which to work. Colton Joseph threw an interception that led to Duke points and the silver and blue offense was just 1-of-11 on third down conversions.
"I have to get it fixed in order to give ourselves a chance," head coach Ricky Rahne said after the game. "Bottom is we didn't really ever give ourselves a chance to win that game because we just made too many mistakes."
After Wayne Knight got the scoring started for the Dukes with a two-yard rushing touchdown on the opening drive, Old Dominion answered. Joseph scored his first of three rushing touchdowns from 15 yards out on the Monarchs' first possession, tying the game at 7-7.
JMU scored the next 11 points, but ODU stormed back. After a huge blocked punt by Monarch special teams, Aaron Young scored on a three yard rush to pull the silver and blue to within 18-14. The Dukes would connect on a field goal, but Old Dominion drove the ball down and tie things up at 21-21 on a Joseph 10-yard rush. Ethan Sanchez would add a field goal to put ODU in front, 24-21, at the half.
The second half is where things shifted. Old Dominion struggled to move the ball and JMU took the lead back on a 68-yard pass from Barnett to Yamir Knight late in the third quarter. Barnett would add his second rushing touchdown of the evening with 2:30 remaining in the game to put the Dukes up, 35-24.
Old Dominion did not fold. The Monarchs drove down and scored for the first time in the second half on Joseph's third touchdown on the ground and converted on the two-point conversion, but they could not recover the onside kick, ending their hopes of a comeback.
Joseph was 9-for-21 through the air with an interception and was sacked five times. He added 35 yards on the ground and the three scores. Aaron Young rushed for a career-high 116 yards and a touchdown, while Diante Vines pulled in six receptions for 89 yards.
The Monarchs fell to 4-6 on the season, 3-3 in Sun Belt play. They're now in familiar territory, needing to win both of their final two games to clinch bowl eligibility. Old Dominion will host Marshall next Saturday at 7:30 PM.
