JMU and Liberty Establish Battle of the Blue Ridge, 10 Football Dates Through 2040

HARRISONBURG, Va. – James Madison and Liberty have announced four new game dates and the formation of the Battle of the Blue Ridge, which is a rivalry series in football that begins next week with the first of 10 scheduled football games between the 2025 and 2040 seasons.

JMU and Liberty had previously announced six football dates through the 2034 season, but with the announcement of the rivalry series also adds four more dates between the 2037 and 2040 campaigns.

Those new games include Sept. 19, 2037 and Sept. 17, 2039 in Harrisonburg and Sept. 18, 2038 and Sept. 15, 2040 in Lynchburg.

The series kicks off next week on Saturday, Sept. 20 when JMU travels to Liberty for a 3:30 p.m. kickoff on ESPNU. Liberty makes the first return trip to Harrisonburg on Sept. 5, 2026 before the series heats back up in 2031 with eight matchups in a 10-year span.

A rivalry trophy is currently in development and will be unveiled at a later date.

The Liberty game additions follow yesterday's announcement of home-and-home series with UNLV and Ohio. All future JMU football non-conference opponents can be found at JMUSports.com.

Battle of the Blue Ridge Scheduled Games (2025-2040)
Sept. 20, 2025 – JMU at Liberty (Lynchburg, Va.)
Sept. 5, 2026 – Liberty at JMU (Harrisonburg, Va.)
Sept. 6, 2031 – Liberty at JMU (Harrisonburg, Va.)
Sept. 11, 2032 – JMU at Liberty (Lynchburg, Va.)
Sept. 17, 2033 – Liberty at JMU (Harrisonburg, Va.)
Sept. 16, 2034 – JMU at Liberty (Lynchburg, Va.)
Sept. 19, 2037 – Liberty at JMU (Harrisonburg, Va.)
Sept. 18, 2038 – JMU at Liberty (Lynchburg, Va.)
Sept. 17, 2039 – Liberty at JMU (Harrisonburg, Va.)
Sept. 15, 2040 – JMU at Liberty (Lynchburg, Va.)

Calendar