HARRISONBURG, Va. – The Coastal Carolina Chanticleers suffered their first conference loss of the season in a 39-7 road defeat at James Madison on Thursday night.

CCU will now set its sights on a Homecoming date with Louisiana on Oct. 19 at noon in Brooks Stadium. ESPNU will carry the contest between the Chants and Ragin’ Cajuns.

Coastal’s defense opened the game by forcing its 10th turnover of the season as AJ Williams knocked the ball free and Wyatt Gedeon recovered to thwart JMU’s opening drive. James Madison scored on its second possession to go up 7-0, but Coastal tied the score on a 40-yard touchdown pass from Ethan Vasko to Jameson Tucker with 4:30 left to play in the first quarter. However, the Dukes scored the next 32 points to earn the win, outscoring the Chants 22-0 in the second quarter.

JMU swung the momentum permanently in the second frame, taking a 15-7 lead with 13:01 to go in the second quarter on a 25-yard touchdown pass and subsequent two-point conversion. Just 70 seconds later, a 35-yard interception return for a touchdown put the Dukes ahead 22-7. JMU managed a third touchdown in the quarter on a five-yard run with 6:47 to play before halftime.

Vasko finished 5-of-18 for 84 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions.

Noah Kim appeared in relief, going 4-for-7 for 18 yards. The Chanticleers managed just 79 yards on the ground, led by

Braydon Bennett’s 45 yards on 12 carries. Tucker led all Chant receivers with two catches for 44 yards and a touchdown

CCU’s two interceptions on offense marked the first time Coastal had thrown multiple interceptions in a game since Sept. 30, 2023, against Georgia Southern, snapping a streak of 13 consecutive games with one or fewer interceptions on offense.

Tobias Fletcher paced CCU’s defense with a career-high 10 tackles, including six solo stops.

AJ Williams tallied eight tackles, while

Will Whitson notched five tackles, one sack, one TFL, and a quarterback hurry.

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