Napier begins JMU era with defensive grind over Liberty

HARRISONBURG, Va. — Billy Napier won his first game at James Madison on Saturday, beating a hungry Liberty team 20-13 at a sold-out Bridgeforth Stadium to take the Battle of the Blue Ridge for the second straight year.

Napier knows the standard here demands more than a season-opening win.

“I think we’ve got a group of players that are excited about opening the season with a win at home,” Napier said. “But ultimately I think we have a group that also knows that the ceiling is way up there for this team. And there’s a lot of areas for improvement.”

JMU went 12-2 last season, won the Sun Belt championship and became the first program from the conference to reach the College Football Playoff. Napier inherited that standard.

Liberty came in looking to make its own statement after a down 2025 season. The Flames got a statement from JMU’s defense instead. The Dukes held Liberty to 91 rushing yards on 38 attempts — 2.4 yards per carry — while running just 49 offensive plays and holding the ball for 22 minutes, 38 seconds. They won with defense and special teams, and Liberty’s 12 penalties for 82 yards strangled everything else.

Jayon Harvey led the effort with eight tackles, a forced fumble and a pass breakup.

“Jayon, we’ve been talking about him all throughout camp,” Napier said. “He’s a playmaker.”

Harvey broke up Liberty’s final fourth-down pass with 2:16 remaining to seal it.

The defensive game plan was straightforward. Linebacker Nakian Jackson, a transfer captain making his first appearance at JMU, put it plainly: “Coach (Robert) Bala (defensive coordinator) simply said take away their soul, and that was the run. So once we did that, we just executed.”

Nineteen players made their first career start at JMU. That roster churn is the reality of the transfer portal era, and the defense played like a unit that had been together for years.

George Pettaway opened the scoring with a 7-yard touchdown run in the first quarter, capping a 12-play, 80-yard drive. JC Evans, making his first career start at quarterback, completed 7 of 9 passes for 61 yards and added 69 rushing yards on nine carries. Evans connected with Corey Scott on a 5-yard touchdown that pushed the lead to 17-3 in the second quarter.

“I think back to 2024, Gardner-Webb, and me as a freshman coming out here and remembering the atmosphere, the environment that these fans create,” Evans said. “It was amazing to feel that once again, but this time it’s me running out into that field first.”

Morgan Suarez hit field goals from 46 and 32 yards. Patrick Rea averaged 46.8 yards on four punts, including a 54-yarder downed inside the 10.

Seth Cromwell broke loose for a 51-yard run on his first carry as a Duke — the longest play of the game — to set up Scott’s touchdown.

Liberty made it interesting in the fourth quarter. Deshawn Purdie hit Makai Jackson for a 34-yard touchdown to cut the lead to 20-13 with 8:33 remaining. Jackson had caught the same 34-yard touchdown in the third quarter, only to have it wiped out by a holding penalty. The Flames had two more possessions after the touchdown but turned it over on downs both times — once at the JMU 11 and once at their own 49.

Evans ended it with a 23-yard run on the first play of JMU’s final drive. The Dukes ran out the clock at the Liberty 11.

Camden Coleman spelled Evans throughout the game, entering every fourth drive regardless of what happened on the previous possession. He completed 5 of 9 passes for 57 yards.

“It prevents the guys from looking over their shoulder,” Napier said. “It doesn’t appear as a decision based off their performance. We’re making the decision based off the guy has earned the opportunity to contribute and play today.”

The Dukes won their 24th straight home opener, a streak dating to 2003. It was the seventh consecutive regular-season sellout at Bridgeforth, where 25,035 packed the stadium for a matchup between two of the Group of 6’s projected contenders.

“Our fans showed up,” Napier said. “And Bridgeforth lived up to its reputation today. Our fans contributed to the win today and made it a tough place to play.”

The questions about whether JMU can sustain what it built will take months to answer. Napier’s first team showed something Saturday that carries across coaching changes: an identity. The Dukes play defense, they win at home and they do not give opponents easy yards on the ground.

“This win shouldn’t be getting to nobody’s head, to be honest,” Pettaway said. “We left a lot of opportunities out there, a lot of meat on the bone.”

JMU hosts Wagner on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET.