HARRISONBURG, VA -- Quarterback Justin Rascati completed 14 of 20 passes for 211 yards and rushed for 79 more and tailback Eugene Hollomon ran for 171 yards and scored on two long touchdown runs as No. 4 James Madison rolled over the University of Delaware for a 44-24 Atlantic 10 Conference football win Saturday night at Bridgeforth Stadium.

The Blue Hens (4-5, 2-4 A-10), who lost for the second straight game, continued to struggle defensively as James Madison (8-1, 6-0 A-10) piled up 542 yards of total offense, including 331 on the ground. Delaware, which allowed 627 yards in a 49-35 loss to Towson last week, has now allowed 500 or more yards in consecutive games for the first time in school history and allowed 40 or more points in consecutive games for the first time since 1993. The Hens have allowed a point in 11 straight quarters dating back to the Richmond game.

“Even if we were playing with all of our bullets, this would have been a big challenge,” said Delaware head coach K.C. Keeler referring to the Blue Hens’ rash of injuries this season. “James Madison plays with so much confidence. I thought before the season that JMU and Massachusetts would be the class of this league and I was right. They have such great team speed and put so much pressure on us. Rascati is a difference-maker, he made so many big plays and great decisions tonight. We knew we had to make them work but we gave up too many big plays and too many third down conversions. We just can’t let that happen but that has been our achilles heel all season.”

Delaware scored on its first possession of the game to go up 7-0, but James Madison came back to put up 27 consecutive points and never looked back in posting its seventh straight victory.

Hollomon scored on a 50-yard run with 8:54 left in the first quarter to tie the game at 7-7and broke free on an 80-yard touchdown run with 2:52 left before halftime to give the Dukes a 20-7 advantage. Rascati threw a 16-yard touchdown pass to Ardon Bransford late in the first quarter, connected with D.D. Boxley on a 70-yard passing play on the Dukes’ first play of the third quarter to up the lead to 27-7, and followed with a 14-yard scoring pass to L.C. Baker late in the third quarter to increase the margin to 34-10.

Delaware, which managed 311 total yards but gained just 20 yards on 26 carries on the ground, got another big effort from quarterback Joe Flacco and wide receiver Aaron Love. Flacco scored one touchdown and hit on 29 of 43 passes for 291 yards and one touchdown, falling just nine yards short of becoming the first player in UD history to record three straight 300-yard passing efforts.

Love caught eight passes for 120 yards, surpassing the 100-yard mark for the third straight game, while tight end Ben Patrick caught six passes for 45 yards, including an eight-yard touchdown pass from Flacco with 1:59 left to play. Patrick, the nation’s leading receiver among tight ends, upped his season catch total to 53 to break the UD single season record for tight ends of 48 by Brian Adam in 1977.

The Hens’ 24 points was a season-high against a James Madison defense that entered the game having allowed just 14.7 points per game to rank third in the league. The Dukes defense, ranked second nationally with 4.6 sacks per game, sacked Flacco four times.

“It’s frustrating all around,” said Delaware senior defensive lineman Bubba Jespersen. “We are doing everything we can and throwing everything at them but it wasn’t working. We just can’t make so many mental mistakes, miss assignments, and miss tackles. We knew James Madison would take advantage of things like that and they did all night. Those things turn the game around.”

Despite a strong start by the Blue Hens, James Madison took a 20-7 lead into halftime thanks to the running of Hollomon and some missed chances with good field position.

Delaware scored on its first drive after Rashaad Woodard returned the opening kickoff 48 yards to the James Madison 44-yard line. Kervin Michaud ran five times, including the final four plays of the drive that was capped by his two-yard dive into the end zone with 10:58 left in the opening stanza.

But James Madison scored on its next two possessions to take the lead into intermission. Hollomon ran 50 yards down the left side for the Dukes’ first score with 8:54 left and Rascati hit Bransford on a 16-yard scoring pass with 31 seconds left in the first quarter for a 14-7 lead.

Delaware wasted one chance inside James Madison territory. Two possessions after JMU’s David Rabil missed a 19-yard field goal, the Hens got the ball inside the 50-yard line but couldn’t capitalize. After holding JMU at its own eight-yard line, Delaware got the ball at the 37-yard line but could gain just one yard.

After a punt by Stuart Kenworthy pinned the Dukes back at their own 20-yard line, Hollomon struck again as he took a handoff up the middle and went untouched for an 80-yard touchdown run down the right side of the field to up the JMU lead to 20-7. The play was the longest against Delaware all season.

When James Madison scored on Rascati’s 70-yard scoring pass to Boxley on the Dukes’ first play of the third quarter, it put the game away. The Dukes went on to gain a first down on all six of their third quarter plays.

Delaware will return home to Delaware Stadium for its final two games of the season, hosting William & Mary this Saturday at 1 p.m.

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