HARRISONBURG, Va. – James Madison football used a strong rushing attack, amassing 261 yards on the ground to seize control and take a 38-3 victory against Bucknell on Saturday evening in front of 23,756 fans at Bridgeforth Stadium.

The Dukes (1-0) outgained the Bison (0-1) by a 436-208 margin, which included 261-62 in the run game. The second half was lopsided, as JMU held Bucknell to just four yards while gaining 249. In the fourth, JMU’s defense held the visitors to -6 yards on just eight snaps.

The Dukes led 17-3 at halftime and pulled away with 21 unanswered points in the second half.

Kaelon Black led the way on offense with a game-high 125 rushing yards on 12 carries (10.4 avg.) while the Dukes got running scores from Alonza Barnett III, Latrele Palmer and Ty Son Lawton. Palmer added 45 rushing yards on 10 attempts (4.5 avg.).

Jordan McCloud entered the game at quarterback in the second half, passing for 144 yards and two touchdowns, which was highlighted by a 57-yard touchdown strike to Reggie Brown. Brown finished with three grabs for 77 yards, while Maxwell Moss had a pair of catches and his first career touchdown in his debut. Barnett III also threw for 15 yards and ran for 29 in his first career start.

Defensively, Taurus Jones led the Dukes with nine tackles, a pair of tackle for loss and a sack, while Mikail Kamara had six stops, a career-high 2.5 TFL and a sack. Jalin Walker also made 1.5 tackles for loss, sharing a sack with James Carpenter.

For Bucknell, Ralph Rucker threw for 140 passing yards, and Rushawn Baker picked up a team-best 43 rushing yards.

— JMU Athletics —