JMU, Montana go head to head again

All of the players have changed. The game is being played in a different location. Not to mention it is a different round of the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs.

But one thing remains the same when top-seeded James Madison (12-1) meets No. 4 seed Montana (13-1) tonight in Harrisonburg in an FCS semifinal.

The coaches.

When JMU and Montana squared off for what was then the Division I-AA title in 2004, Mickey Matthews was the Dukes' head man and Bobby Hauck directed the Grizzlies.

The two veterans will be patrolling the sidelines and barking instructions at their players again, with a berth in the Dec. 19 FCS championship in Chattanooga, Tenn., on the line.

"We really hit it off when we went to Chattanooga [in 2004]," Matthews said. "We enjoyed each other. We spend a lot of time visiting at the [coaches] convention. We've actually shared some ideas about how to run a program, because we don't compete against each other that often."

The Dukes defeated Montana 31-21 four years ago for their only national title. The Grizzlies have won a pair of FCS crowns (1995 and 2001)

"The true test of any program is consistency," Matthews said. "It's hard enough to win a national championship, but the most difficult thing is to compete for it every year. He's right there every year. They do a great job. They line up right. They play hard. I like everything about the way he runs his program."

Montana has made the playoffs for 16 straight years, and Hauck has been at the helm of his alma mater for the past six.

"Mickey is a great guy," Hauck said. "As a coach, you root for the good guys. You cheer for the guys you know that do things right and do a good job."

Both coaches will suspend that relationship tonight and try to beat each other. The Grizzlies will do it with a balanced attack, while JMU will depend heavily on the feet and arm of senior quarterback Rodney Landers.

"He's one of the leading rushers in the nation," Hauck said of Landers, who ranks seventh in that category with an average of 130 yards per game. "There's a reason why he's got the numbers he has. He carries the ball a lot. He's a great football player. Nobody has stopped him this season. But the thing that makes [JMU] so hard to stop is he's not the only weapon."

The Grizzlies rely on their QB quite a bit, too, but senior Cole Bergquist throws the ball much more than he runs with it. Bergquist has passed for 2,747 yards and 25 TDs. Tailback Chase Reynolds has rushed for 1,413 yards and 19 TDs behind an offensive line that averages over 300 pounds.

"Their offensive line is so big we need two screens to get them all on the screen when we're watching the tape," said Matthews. "It's obvious they're improving every week, and I think they probably played their best game on Saturday. They're peaking in December, and that means they're going to be hard to handle when they come in here."

Montana has won nine in a row since losing to Big Sky Conference foe Weber State, while the Dukes have reeled off 12 straight since dropping their opener at Duke.

"It's probably going to be our speed and quickness against their size," Matthews said.
Contact John Packett at (804) 649-6313 or .