Dana Holgorsen bent some ears Monday when he insinuated James Madison would be a bigger challenge for his WVU team Saturday than Marshall was two Saturdays ago. I could do without all that, whether it’s a coaching tactic to get his team’s attention or a swipe at Marshall, but I didn’t find that to be as interesting as something his counterpart said the same day.

JMU’s star shines brightly now because of the 21-16 win in Blacksburg two seasons ago against Virginia Tech. Dukes Coach Mickey Matthews, who seems like he’s trying to outdo Holgorsen’s praise and acclaim of the opponent, managed to pour water on that landmark occasion.

“Virginia Tech was a tired football team when we played them,” Matthews said. “During the game, their kids got really tired, and they didn’t prepare for us until Wednesday. I said after the game, ‘Sure, we beat them and, sure, we were better than Virginia Tech wanted us to be, even if they beat us, because of all that happened to them.’

“That was a big game, but I wish West Virginia played Monday night against Boise State. They’re very well rested coming into this game. That’s the biggest difference.”

Reason being, the Hokies lost a brawl on a Monday night to Boise State at FedEx Field and then had a short week to prepare for James Madison. The Dukes outscored the Hokies 14-0 in the second half and had the edge in all the effort and energy areas.

VPI had some light practices as they prepared for what was a good, though not great team. Perhaps more importantly, it was a FCS team. The Hokies learned a lesson applied last week against Austin Peay, just five days after playing a brutal Monday night game against Georgia Tech.

“I think they want us to get our bodies fresh or refreshed because it was a very physical game Monday night. I think a lot of it relies on us and the way our mentality is is this is just one step on the path that we want,” Thomas said of the Hokies, viewed by some as national championship contenders. “We’ve got a chance to come up again on Saturday, just another person is in the way, so the workmanlike mentality that we have should be able to lead us right to where we want to be and be ready to go full go.”

The Mountaineers? Cakewalk on the opening weekend and then a week off after that. Yet there’s a battle therein as Holgorsen tries to say and do anything to get his team’s attention.

“They have as good of players at that level as probably anybody that exists there,” Coach Dana Holgorsen said. “It’ll definitely be a challenge for us.”