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James Madison is No. 2 in preseason FCS Coaches Poll

The Pack’s first opponent should be an elite FCS squad once again.

By Steven Muma
James Madison v North Carolina Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images

James Madison has gone 14-1 in each of its last two seasons, and the Dukes’ lone loss in 2017 came in a tightly-contested national title game to North Dakota State. (No shame in that result.) They are ranked second overall in the preseason FCS Coaches’ Poll heading into the ‘18 season, with three first-place votes.

So exactly how worried should all of us be about this Week 1 matchup? I’m having a hard time figuring that out. The Dukes pounded a bad ECU team in Greenville last year, but I figure that doesn’t tell us much.

The Sagarin Ratings are useful in that they rank FBS and FCS teams together, so there is some insight in JMU’s finish at No. 44 last year. (NC State was 22nd.) That put the Dukes ahead of quite a few power-conference schools. But I dunno.

How’s your trepidation level looking for this one?

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