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Dukes batter Texas State with running game, defense, in 40-13 win on Saturday

Roger Gonzalez
football
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JMU moved to 2-0 in the Sun Belt with a dominant 40-13 win over Texas State on Saturday at Bridgeforth Stadium.

Dealing with rain brought on by the remnants of Hurricane Ian, it was a game that was sloppy and slippery for much of the 60 minutes of game time.

The Dukes (4-0) managed to build a 19-0 lead at the half, which ended up being more than enough to win their first-ever home conference game in the FBS.

Running back Latrele Palmer was the star of the day, rushing the ball 27 times for 106 yards and three touchdowns. With the weather, the Dukes played conservatively and aimed to establish the run early. Palmer also had two catches for 24 yards on the day as eight different players caught balls.

Palmer’s touchdown runs were on plays of one, one and four yards.

Quarterback Todd Centeio did not have his best game, but it was enough. He was just 15-for-25 for 257 yards and threw his first interception of the campaign. But he did run for 52 yards and a score.

The Dukes’ defense intercepted Layne Hatcher twice, returning one for a touchdown. The Bobcats managed just 273 yard of offense against JMU, going 2-for-12 on third down.

JMU turned the ball over three times, but they forced four turnovers on the day and did not record a single penalty.

Next, JMU travels to face Arkansas State on Saturday at 7 p.m.

Roger Gonzalez

Roger Gonzalez

Roger Gonzalez is freelancer for Augusta Free Press. A native of Connecticut that grew up in Charlottesville, he is a graduate of Virginia Tech. He currently is a sportswriter with CBS Sports and has written for The Daily Progress, The Roanoke Times and other newspapers before getting into the digital sports journalism world.