"It doesn't have any bearing on our game. We wish it did, but we have to go out and do our own work," he said. "We're going out and will have a great opportunity to play a fantastic team in Michigan."
Read the full story in the Daily Hampshire Gazette.
UM charts its own course, as Michigan looms
Appalachian State's upset of Michigan in 2007 remains the standard against which all Championships Subdivision wins over Bowl Subdivision teams are judged.
Michigan is one of college football's most recognized programs, playing in one of its most famous venues, and any year that an FCS team upsets Big Blue, it's a big deal. When it happened, the Wolverines were ranked No. 5, making it the first time a top five FBS team had been upset by a lower-division foe. Michigan featured future NFL players, including quarterback Chad Henne.
But if that game was the gold standard for FCS upsets, James Madison knocking off Virginia Tech 21-16 Saturday in Blacksburg, Va., could be a close second. The Hokies were No. 13 going into the game and a preseason contender for a national championship.
The University of Massachusetts football players were following the game before the start of their game Saturday. UMass coach Kevin Morris was glad to see the Dukes deliver the upset, but didn't think it would affect his team's attempt to pull off a similar upset Saturday when the Minutemen travel to Michigan for a noon game at the Big House.
"It doesn't have any bearing on our game. We wish it did, but we have to go out and do our own work," he said. "We're going out and will have a great opportunity to play a fantastic team in Michigan."
Morris thought last year's 21-17 loss at Kansas State might help prepare his team, at least for the atmosphere.
"Some of our guys that are back this year played in that game. We had an opportunity to win and came up short," Morris said. "That gave them a little of the flavor."
UMass senior linebacker Tyler Holmes, who grew up in Blacksburg rooting for the Hokies, was excited for the Dukes.
"(I got) a lot of inspiration. We feel like we can play with the top competition. Our league is very tough. We've been knocking off I-A opponents for a while now. JMU had a great win. Congrats to them," Holmes said. "I was very surprised. When I saw that I didn't believe it. I know what kind of program Virginia Tech has. They're certainly a premier program. It tells you any Saturday, anything can happen."
While App State's win at Michigan has inspired FCS teams, it also stands out as a warning in Ann Arbor.
Michigan defensive tackle Greg Banks said the loss to Appalachian State will have the Wolverines ready for UMass.
"There's no such thing as a powder puff game," he said at Michigan's weekly press conference. "We underestimated App State and that will never happen again. Any team that plays against Michigan is going to bring their A game."
JMU's upset has created repercussions throughout college football. Boise State's win over Virginia Tech a week before had been hyped as a huge line on the Broncos' resume as they pursue a national championship. The Hokies' loss to JMU will drastically cheapen that win and could cost Boise a shot at a title down the road.
Virginia Tech scheduling will get scrutiny as well. Not as much for who they scheduled but when. The Hokies played Boise on Monday, leaving only four days in between that loss and Saturday's kickoff. It clearly cost them.
"We knew (Virginia Tech) would have a lull. Anyone playing on Monday night that tries to come back on Saturday has it difficult," JMU coach Mickey Matthews said.
Matthews was flooded with praise from a variety of places after the win, including one he didn't expect.
"When we went to church Sunday morning, our preacher was wearing a JMU purple hat," Matthews said. "That was the most unusual thing. There was a lot of Tech fans in our church, but they were very nice and gave us an ovation, which was very nice."
POLL POSITIONING - The Minutemen moved up two spots to No. 16 in the Sports Network Top 25 and up five spots to No. 15 in the FCS Coaches Poll.
Some upsets at the top put Villanova back at the No. 1 spot with 74 first place votes in the TSN poll and No. 2 in the coaches. The Wildcats were honored at the White House Monday for their 2009 FCS title.
James Madison's upset win vaulted the Dukes to No. 3 in both polls. The Dukes also received votes in the Associated Press FBS Top 25, earning 11 points. It's the third time a CAA team has earned points in the AP Poll following Richmond, one week in 2009, and Villanova, which got votes in the final 2009 AP poll following its national championship.
In both the TSN and FCS Coaches top 25s, New Hampshire fell two spots from No. 6 to 8 after falling to Pittsburgh, while Richmond dropped two spots to No. 9 despite being idle.
Delaware (No. 11 TSN, No. 12 coaches) and William & Mary (No. 12, 13 respectively) gave the CAA six teams in the top 15 in both rankings.
GAME OF THE WEEK: No. 7 Elon at No. 9 Richmond, 1 p.m. - The Spiders chose to challenge themselves in their first game in their new on-campus stadium. They'll open Robins Stadium against the Phoenix, who have annually been among the top teams in the FCS.
CAA vs. FBS - JMU's win was the CAA's 10th over a Bowl Subdivision foe in the last five years and the fifth win in the last two. The CAA is 1-6 against FBS schools this season with three left to play.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK - James Madison quarterback Drew Dudzik accounted for all three Duke touchdowns (one passing, two rushing) in JMU's upset of Virginia Tech to earn the CAA's Offensive Player of Week. He completed 5 of 8 passing attempts for 121 yards. He rushed 12 times for 35 yards.
Delaware's Anthony Bratton earned defensive player of the week honors. The senior defensive back had two interceptions in the Blue Hens' 26-3 upset of No. 9 South Dakota State.
William & Mary cornerback B.W. Webb was the special teams player of the week after retuning a first-quarter punt 64 yards for a touchdown.
Delaware freshman running back Andrew Pierce was not only the CAA co-Rookie of the Week but the Sports Network FCS Rookie of the Week as well. Pierce rushed for 165 yards and a touchdown on 26 carries. It's the first time in Delaware history that a back rushed for over 100 yards in each of his first two games.
James Madison linebacker Stephon Robertson shared the league's rookie of the week honor with Pierce. He had a game-high 13 tackles and forced a fumble in the upset of the Hokies.
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