By LeMont Joyner
After blowing out Stony Brook University last week, Hofstra got pummeled by #1 James Madison 56-0 in all three phases of the game. The game began as the Pride got their first break early on the opening kickoff to James Madison. JMU kick returner Patrick Ward fumbled the ball, which was recovered by the Pride at the Dukes 41-yard line. However, the offense sputtered and was forced to punt. Pride’s punter Shane Casciano had his punt blocked, which was returned for a TD by Corwin Acker. From this point James Madison simply took off. On the next possession for JMU, senior quarterback Rodney Landers (7/13, 92 yards, 3 TDs, 13 car, 133 yards, 1 TD) capped off a 10-play 80-yard drive with a 3-yard touchdown run by senior running back Eugene Holloman (10 car, 56 yards, 1 TD).
“That’s the best football player we’ve seen all year,” said Coach Cohen referring to Rodney Landers, “No question. No doubt about it.” Landers terrorized the Pride by scoring three touchdowns all in the second quarter. Landers threw two touchdown passes, one consisting of a 49 yard bomb to wide receiver Griff Yancey, (3 rec, 46 yards, 1 TD) and had a 45 yard touchdown run with 5:05 left in the first half to give James Madison a 35-0 halftime lead.
Despite the blowout, there are still reasons for optimism for the Hofstra Pride. The Pride committed only two turnovers all game, both of which occured in the fourth quarter when quarterback Corey Christopher (21/34, 128 yards, 2 int) began to force his throws in an attempt to make something out of nothing. Wide receiver Aaron Weaver tallied a career high in catches of nine for 47 yards. Also, the Pride controlled the game clock for a longer period of time than James Madison, which usually translates into victories. Nevertheless, the Pride were a measly 1/15 on 3rd down conversions, and by giving up too many big plays on defense early in the game, the Pride simply dug themselves into a hole that no football team could overcome. “They’re an impressive football team,” Coach Cohen stated, “We were outplayed in every facet of the game: offense, defense, special teams, coaching.” Hopefully, the Pride can overcome this loss and not allow one game to define a season.