Keys to Victory For Washington State Football at James Madison

Coming off a big win at home over Louisiana Tech, Washington State is looking to pull off another huge one this week on the road against the best the Sun Belt has to offer.

James Madison, sitting at 9-1, are trying to run down a spot in the College Football Playoff, and know they need to win out to do so. The Cougars will be trying to play spoiler and, in doing so, clinch a bowl spot for themselves. If they are going to do what only Louisville has been able to this year, though, and get the better of this ultra talented JMU squad, a lot of things will have to go right in Virginia this Saturday. Here's what WSU can do to help themselves out:

Limit Barnett's Damage

If Washington State cannot find an answer for Alonza Barnett III it's going to be a long, long day in Harrisonburg. JMU's dynamic signal caller knows how to hurt defenses with both his arm and his legs and has done so to pretty much every unit he's seen this year. Barnett has accounted for for 28 total touchdowns and nearly 2,400 all-purpose yards this fall. He is not afraid to bolt when the pocket collapses and is often able to keep plays alive with his feet. He has five games this year in which he's f found the end zone at least three times.

Stopping him entirely will probably be asking the impossible for the WSU defense but slowing him down will go a long ways. If defensive ends Isaac Terrell and Buddah Peleti can dial up the pressure and make Barnett uncomfortable, the Cougars will make life a little easier on themselves. He has been prone to mistakes at times, having thrown a pick in each of James Madison's last three outings. One (or maybe more) of those will be needed in this one.

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Replicate Last Week's T.O.P. Success

The best weapon against the Dukes offense will be keeping them on the sidelines and, if WSU can do what it did last Saturday against Louisiana Tech in that department, it will be sitting pretty. James Madison has been able to smother so many of its opponents this season because it puts together long, sustained drives and wears out defenses. On average, they hold the ball for over 35 minutes per game this year. Washington State, though, averages more than its enemies this year as well and, last week, had possession for 35:03.

That will need to happen again and a big way it will is if Washington State's offense can find success on third down. Last week they moved the chains on third down six times and then did so twice more on fourth. JMU's defense has been really good at getting opponents off the field, turning them away on the critical down nearly 70% of the time. Keeping thirds managable will be huge for the Cougars' offense.

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Win in the Red Zone

James Madison has been particularly effective when it gets the ball inside the 20 this year, converting red zone trips into scores 45 of 50 times (90%). The best way to combat this if you're Washington State is to either keep the Dukes out of the red zone altogether or bend but don't break when they do get in. Even making Barnett and company settle for three would go a long ways but whatever the case, the Cougs have to find a way to win in that portion of the field.

The same needs to go for their own offense. On the season, WSU is even better in that department than James Madison is (although they've had significantly less trips), scoring on 26-of-28 tries (92.9%). Quarterback Zevi Eckhaus was effective in that department last week against the Bulldogs, running for two scores in the red zone. If he can find similar success this time around, it will help his team out a lot in their bid for an upset.

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