James Madison vs. App State: James London's OT field goal hands unbeaten JMU its first loss, 34-31

James Madison arrived in Boone, North Carolina, unbeaten and left with its first loss. James London’s 40-yard field goal in overtime gave App State a 34-31 win over JMU on Thursday night, Oct. 22, and sent fans from a sellout crowd of 33,322 at Kidd Brewer Stadium onto the field, according to App State Athletics.

The loss was the first for first-year JMU coach Billy Napier in Harrisonburg, WDBJ7 reported. App State’s athletics site said Napier had won 17 straight Sun Belt games dating to his time at Louisiana.

JMU vs. App State score by quarter

	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	OT	Final
James Madison	7	7	7	10	0	31
App State	0	10	3	18	3	34

JMU fell to 7-1 (4-1 Sun Belt). App State improved to 5-2 (2-1).

How the game unfolded

The Dukes scored on their first possession for the sixth time in eight games, with George Pettaway punching in a 1-yard run after a fourth-down conversion in the red zone. JC Evans later hit Braeden Wisloski for a 70-yard touchdown to make it 14-3. That score came one play after Ricky Lolohea blocked a JMU field goal attempt and App State went three-and-out, according to App State’s recap.

App State answered when Malachi Singleton found Alexander Sanchez for a 19-yard touchdown with 1:02 left before halftime, cutting it to 14-10. After a London field goal, Camden Coleman’s 19-yard touchdown pass to tight end Cole Keller put JMU up 21-13 late in the third quarter.

A wild fourth quarter

The final 15 minutes produced 28 points:

• Singleton threw a 5-yard touchdown to Chris Lofton, who began his career at JMU, then hit Sam Pickett III for the two-point conversion to tie it at 21.
• Morgan Suarez kicked a 47-yard field goal, matching his career long, for a 24-21 JMU lead.
• London tied it at 24 with a 36-yarder. On the next play, linebacker Colton Phares intercepted a JMU pass and returned it 21 yards to the Dukes’ 25.
• Backup quarterback Henry Hasselbeck threw a 4-yard touchdown to tight end Luke Douglas for a 31-24 App State lead with 5:52 left.
• JMU drove 71 yards in 15 plays, converting a fourth-and-3 along the way, and Coleman ran in a 6-yard quarterback draw with three seconds left. Napier chose to kick the extra point instead of going for two.

Overtime: a miss, then a walk-off

App State won the toss and chose defense. Ja’Den McBurrows sacked Evans for an 11-yard loss on a trick play, pushing JMU into a 47-yard attempt that hit the left upright.

App State’s recap says London couldn’t see out of his right eye when he went out for the winning kick. A celebrating teammate had hit him in the face while signaling the JMU miss. He made it anyway, finishing 4-for-4 on field goals.

Key stats

• Malachi Singleton (App State): 26-of-40, 271 yards, 2 TD, despite being hobbled, App State said
• Camden Coleman (JMU): 22-of-39, 232 yards, 1 TD passing; 11 yards and a TD rushing
• JC Evans (JMU): 99 passing yards and a TD
• Colton Phares (App State): game-high 13 tackles and the key interception
• Total yards: JMU 423, App State 366. App State held JMU to 92 rushing yards on 30 carries.

WDBJ7 noted that JMU outgained the Mountaineers but was outscored 24-17 after halftime.

What’s next for JMU and App State?

JMU, now 6-15 all-time against App State per WDBJ7, hosts Troy on Thursday, Oct. 29, at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2. App State plays at Georgia Southern on Saturday, Oct. 31, at 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPN+. Every team in the Sun Belt East now has at least one conference loss, App State said.

FAQ

Who won James Madison vs. App State? App State won 34-31 in overtime.

Who kicked the game-winning field goal? App State kicker James London, from 40 yards.

Was JMU undefeated? Yes. It was JMU’s first loss of the 2026 season.