Ratke Breaks Two National Records, Dukes Down Tribe 32-22 on Road

Saturday, November 13

Williamsburg, Va.

3:30 p.m.

James Madison University

9-1 , 6-1

William & Mary

6-4 , 4-3

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

James Madison

William & Mary

Ratke Breaks Two National Records, Dukes Down Tribe 32-22 on Road

11/13/2021 8:33:00 PM | Football

Box Score Photo Gallery

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – James Madison kicker Ethan Ratke turned in a career day, setting two NCAA career records while breaking his own single-season record, as the 2nd-ranked Dukes held off #25 William & Mary, 32-22, on Saturday evening at Zable Stadium.

The Dukes won their fifth straight, improving to 9-1 on the year with a 6-1 record in conference play. The Tribe fell to 6-4 overall and 4-3 in league games, as JMU won its sixth in a row against W&M.

Ratke became the NCAA kicking king, setting all-division records for both career field goals (100) and career scoring by a kicker (517), after connecting on a JMU-record six field goals with a pair of extra points. He also broke his own JMU single-season record, as he's now made 28-of-30 on the year, besting his 27 makes in 2019.

He ironically set these records inside the same stadium in which he converted his first two career field goals in 2017.

Cole Johnson accumulated 380 yards of total of offense, as he was 24-of-42 for 334 yards and a touchdown, to go with 46 rushing yards and a score. It was his third 300-yard game of the season, as he moved into fifth place at JMU with 43 career passing scores.

Antwane Wells Jr. set a career high with nine receptions for 134 yards, marking his fourth 100-yard receiving game of the year. Kris Thornton made five catches for 75 yards and a touchdown for his 10th of the season. In addition to Johnson's 46, Latrele Palmer led the Dukes with 48 yards on the ground.

Defensively, Kelvin Azanama turned in a season-best 11 tackles, which tied a career high that he set during the spring season at William & Mary. He also had a career best with a pair of tackles for loss. Diamonte Tucker-Dorsey turned in eight stops with 1.0 TFL and a forced fumble, while Sam Kidd added six tackles with a career-high 2.0 tackles for loss, one forced fumble and his first career interception.

JMU led 6-0 late in the second quarter before Johnson's 30-yard touchdown pass to Thornton extended the advantage to 13-0 at the break. Ratke set the NCAA field goals record with his third make early in the third, and Johnson's rushing score made it 23-0 with seven minutes left in the quarter.

The Tribe battled back, producing a pair of long touchdowns to make it 23-15 early in the fourth, but the leg of Ratke proved crucial, as he tacked on three more field goals to give JMU a 32-15 lead. His sixth and final field goal broke his own single-season record, as he reset that record in six fewer games than the previous mark from two seasons ago.

GAME NOTES

JMU out-gained William & Mary 446-335, including a 334-128 lead in the passing game.
After being held to 55 rushing yards in the first half, the Tribe finished with 207 on the ground.
The Dukes were 6-for-17 on third down while W&M failed to convert once, going 0-for-10.
JMU won the turnover battle 2-0, producing both an interception and fumble recovery.
The Dukes tallied 10 tackles for loss with just one sack, while W&M had five TFL.

RECORD WATCH

Johnson became the seventh JMU quarterback in school history to surpass 5,000 career passing yards, as he stands at 5,322 yards. He also moved into sixth place in JMU single-season history in passing yards (2,590), a tie for fourth in passing touchdowns (26) and sixth in completions (212).
Wells Jr. rose to sixth in JMU single-season history in receiving yards (887) and 10th in career receiving (1,490). He also moved into a tie for eighth in single-season receptions (58).
Thornton cracked the top 10 in single-season receiving yards in 10th (780) and he slid into a tie for fourth in single-season receptions (64).
In addition to his national records and JMU records, Ratke also set a career high with 20 points (6 FG, 2 PAT).

UP NEXT
JMU closes the regular season at home next Saturday, Nov. 20 when it hosts Towson for Senior Day. Kickoff from Bridgeforth Stadium is set for a 2 p.m. start.