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College GameDay might need to take some extra precautions when it rolls into Harrisonburg the weekend. The football pregame show will be on hand to take in the sights and sounds leading up to a showdown between James Madison and Appalachian State.
The atmosphere at JMU might be a bit tense given a recent NCAA decision, however, leading many to warn College GameDay before its visit.
The Dukes currently sit at 10-0 on the season as they look to complete an undefeated season. Despite that spotless record, though, they’ll be unable to participate in the postseason.
James Madison recently transitioned from the FCS to the FBS. Schools making the move are forbidden from playing in bowl games over their first two seasons.
JMU actually qualified for a bowl last year, too, but had to sit on the sidelines.
This year is different, though. The Dukes are in the midst of a historic season with a chance of being the top Group of Five team in college football. That would land an automatic invite to a New Year’s Six game.
The university applied for a waiver in hopes of landing an exception. The NCAA released its ruling this week.
NCAA denies waiver to make James Madison & Jacksonville State bowl eligible, meaning Dukes ineligible to play in Sun Belt title game, sources told @ActionNetworkHQ. In its 2nd year transitioning from FCS to FBS, JMU is ineligible for the league title, but the Dukes appealed…
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) November 15, 2023
With the “No” vote, the Dukes will still be unable to compete in the postseason, which includes their conference championship, if they finish undefeated.
The news doesn’t come at an optimal time for College GameDay.
The NCAA deciding to confirm James Madison’s bowl ban right before College Gameday comes to the James Madison campus is the kind of situational awareness we’ve come to expect from the NCAA.
— Dawg Sports (@dawgsports) November 16, 2023
Fans warn College GameDay ahead of visit to JMU.
The crowd could be a bit riled up given the NCAA ruling, leading many to post warnings about the upcoming show.
Hey NCAA, we got an early preview of the signs at College GameDay this weekend, hosted at JMU. pic.twitter.com/MV7WMZQnom
— RedditCFB (@RedditCFB) November 16, 2023
A number of social media users are saying that the show might need to censor some of the audio as a few distasteful four-letter words could be thrown the NCAA’s way.
“The better be ready to censor the crowd. I forsee alot of four letter words being directed at the NCAA.”
“I hope they are preparing to beef up security for McAfee and GameDay. Has the show ever had something like this happen right beforehand?”
“NCAA is cooked this Saturday.”
Viewers will be sure to see a few unkind fan signs in the crowd, and we may hear some unsavory language if that NCAA ruling comes up on the show. It will certainly be interesting to see the scenes at JMU with College GameDay in town.