Bloomsburg Falls to D-I AA James Madison

HARRISONBURG, VA -- The Bloomsburg University football team lost to NCAA D-I AA power James Madison on Saturday night by a 14-3 score.

Dan Latorre

Playing a spirited game on offense and a stellar game on defense, the Huskies shutout the Dukes for the first three periods of the game before the size and speed of the Dukes took over.

The Huskies won the toss to open the game and started their first drive of the 2006 season at the own 21. With Christian Allen (Pottstown/Pottstown) starting at tailback in place of the injured Jamar Brittingham (Levittown/Neshaminy), the sophomore ripped off runs of nine and 11 yards during the drive, while freshman quarterback Dan Latorre (Elysburg/Southern Columbia) completed two passes for 27 yards as the Huskies moved downfield deep into the Duke's territory. The drive then stalled at the JMU 11-yard where Jon Koenig (Pine Grove/Pine Grove) came on and connected on a 28-yard field goal to put Bloomsburg in front 3-0. In all, the drive consumed nearly eight minutes of time in the opening period.

Christian Allen

The Huskies defense then stepped forward and shutdown the high-powered JMU offense. Bloomsburg forced three punts in the opening half and limited the Dukes to just 98 yards of total offense. The Dukes deepest penetration came in the second period when they drove to the Bloomsburg 27-yard line. However, JMU got called for illegal procedure on a play that would have given them a first down, then threw two incomplete passes and turned the ball over on downs.

The third quarter saw the Huskies defense stop James Madison on three drives with the Dukes picking up just one first down in the period. The Bloomsburg offense meanwhile was able to eat some time off the clock, but could not generate any points.

Early in the fourth period, after a Bloomsburg drive stalled, the Dukes took over on their own 48 yard line. JMU quarterback Justin Rascati hit wideout L.C. Baker with a short pass to the sideline. After side-stepping a Bloomsburg defender, Baker run untouched into the end zone to put the 2004 Division I-AA national champs in front for the first time, 7-3, with the extra point.

Jon Koenig

On the ensuing drive, the Huskies took over at their own 18-yard line. Using a mix of Josh Heck's running and timely passing from Latorre, Bloomsburg moved the ball to the James Madison 19-yard line where it had a third and one. However, the Huskies were called for illegal procedure. On third and six, Latorre was sacked for a 10-yard loss setting up fourth and long. Latorre was sacked again ending the Bloomsburg drive.

The Huskies got the back one more time with 5:02 to play. On second and seven from the Huskies 23 yard line, Latorre was intercepted giving JMU excellent field position. Eight plays later Maurice Fenner scored from one yard to make the final 14-3.

"I am extremely proud of the way we played," said coach Danny Hale. "We made some mistakes at the end, but overall we played very well."

Zac Barton

"We knew we could move the ball on the ground, even without Jamar," Hale said. "Christian Allen did a nice job and Dan Latorre played well in front a huge crowd. We'll learn from this game and get ready for next week."

Latorre finished 14-17 with one interception for 152 yards, while Allen carried 25 times for a career-high 89 yards. Defensively, the Huskies were led by Zac Barton (Berryville, VA/Loudan Valley) with seven tackles, while Tyler Trettin, Matt Smith (York/Central York) and Rob Biernat (Bristol/Conwell Egan) each had six. As a team, the Huskies limited the Dukes to nine first downs and just 219 yards of total offense.

The Huskies will take on California (Pa.) next Saturday in their home opener at 1:00 p.m. at Redman Stadium.