James Madison Football: Position Battles to Watch in Spring Game

While the start of the 2025 College Football season is still a few months away, the James Madison Spring Football Game is set for Saturday, April 12 at Bridgeforth Stadium. With this game approaching, it’s time we take a look at some of the most important position battles for the Dukes heading into the new year.

Alonza Barnett’s Status

JMU’s starting quarterback in 2024, Alonza Barnett III, suffered a non-contact injury on the Dukes’ final offensive play against Marshall on November 30. Barnett missed the Boca Raton Bowl on December 18, however, since then, there’s been no information regarding his injury. At this point, it’s more than fair to assume that Barnett won’t be ready to suit up for the Dukes at the start of the 2025 season. And, depending on the severity of the injury, he may miss the entire season.

Quarterback

That said, JMU’s current quarterback battle revolves around Matthew Sluka and Camden Coleman. Sluka spent the first four seasons of his college football career at Holy Cross, where he built up a relationship with JMU’s current head coach, Bob Chesney. Following his time with the Crusaders, Sluka transferred to UNLV. However, he ended up leaving after just three games due to an NIL dispute. Sluka will be entering his sixth college season as a redshirt senior.

Matthew Sluka takes a fake bubble screen QB draw 56 yards to the end zone against SDSU IN 2022. #JMU running game coordinator Chris Smith was the offensive coordinator at the time.

Via/NCAA Championships on YouTube pic.twitter.com/s9W2oyLoll

— Hayden Hundley (@HaydenHundley_) March 11, 2025

Camden Coleman was another transfer portal addition for the Dukes. Coleman is slightly younger, entering his junior year, after spending his first two collegiate seasons with Richmond. Over the offseason, JMU also added two of Coleman’s top receivers with the Spiders; Nick DeGennaro and Landon Ellis. However, Coleman is much less experienced, and has yet to start a game against an FBS opponent.

Last season, Sluka went 3-0 with the Rebels, including a 2-0 record against Power Four schools. Despite that, Coleman is undoubtedly a more poised passer, with a 65% completion percentage throughout his first two seasons, while Sluka has reached the 60% threshold in just one of his five seasons. However, Sluka makes up for some of his passing inefficiencies on the ground, where he’s rushed for over 1,200 yards on two separate occasions.

If I had to take an early guess, I would predict that Coleman does end up getting the starting job, however, I would not be surprised either way.

Left Defensive Tackle

Left defensive tackle is without a doubt one of James Madison weakest positions heading into Spring Football. The current battle takes place between Mychal McMullin and Kells Bush. McMullins was a redshirt freshman last year with the Dukes where he racked up 13 total tackles, including 1.5 sacks. McMullin’s role was heavily limited, playing behind Chris Fitzgerald and Darold DeNgohe. Both Fitzgerald and DeNgohe no longer play with the Dukes.

Bush, on the other hand, redshirted his first year at LSU, before transferring to Louisiana Tech. In Bush’s two seasons with the Bulldogs, he accumulated just 12 total tackles. He also had the lowest PFF grade of any defensive player on Louisiana Tech last season. Both Bush and McMullin are extremely unproven players with little playing time up to this point. However, they each have multiple years of eligibility remaining.

While McMullin will most likely get a majority of the starting snaps, Bush offers much more size, with a 6-3, 310 pound frame, making him a force to reckon with against an opposing offensive line.

Left Cornerback

Left cornerback is another close positional battle between Chauncey Logan and Mekhi Rodgers. Just like left defensive tackle, this contest takes place between one returning player, as well as a recently acquired transfer. In Logan’s 2024 campaign with JMU, he gathered 23 total tackles including 1.5 tackles for loss. He also collected three pass breakups and an interception.

Rodgers had very similar production to Logan last season at St. Francis, where he stockpiled 25 total tackles, as well as seven passes defended. Both Rodgers and Logan are entering their senior seasons, however, Rodgers has yet to play at the FBS level. That could ultimately have a major effect on how JMU utilizes him in 2025.