James Madison men's football falls to Troy 24-21 in overtime after blowing 14-point lead

Troy rallied from a 14-point deficit and beat James Madison 24-21 in overtime Thursday night at Bridgeforth Stadium. Hayden Wolfe kicked a 27-yard field goal in the extra period to finish it.

The Dukes (7-2, 4-2 conference) led 21-7 after two quarters and did not score again. A crowd of 25,005 watched on ESPN2 as Troy (4-4) won on the road.

Fast start, then a stall

James Madison scored on its first two possessions of the first quarter. Camden Coleman threw a 2-yard touchdown pass to Corey Scott with 8:57 left, then a 31-yard score to Braeden Wisloski with 4:55 left. Troy got on the board with Gavin Griffin's 1-yard run early in the second quarter, and Seth Cromwell answered with a 14-yard touchdown run at 8:41 to make it 21-7.

That was the end of the Dukes' scoring. They punted four times after halftime and turned the ball over three times in the second half.

Turnovers swing the game

James Madison turned it over five times in regulation, three interceptions and two lost fumbles. Troy's Justin Powe intercepted three passes and returned one 37 yards for a touchdown at 14:26 of the third quarter, cutting the lead to 21-14. Jaheim Merriweather tied the game at 21 with a 28-yard run with 6:25 left in the third.

Troy turned the ball over once, a Tucker Kilcrease fumble. Coleman threw two interceptions and JC Evans threw one. Michael Scott and Jeremiah Harrison each lost a fumble.

Late chances missed

Troy missed a 49-yard field goal try with 3:21 left in regulation. James Madison then drove to the Troy 36 but turned the ball over on downs after two incompletions in the end zone, both broken up by Powe, with six seconds left.

In overtime, James Madison got the ball first and reached the Troy 5. Cromwell was stopped for no gain on fourth-and-1, and the Dukes turned it over on downs. Troy then ran the ball on every snap, got to the JMU 9, and Wolfe made the winning kick.

Standouts

Cromwell ran 23 times for 135 yards and a touchdown. Coleman was 14 of 25 for 175 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions, and Evans went 8 of 10 for 72 yards with one interception. Michael Scott led the Dukes with four catches for 68 yards, and Wisloski had four catches for 62 yards and a score. Amar Thomas had two sacks and two tackles for loss.

The Dukes outgained Troy 408 yards to 349 and were 7 of 18 on third down. They were penalized 10 times for 71 yards.

For Troy, Merriweather ran 13 times for 84 yards and a touchdown. Kilcrease was 15 of 31 for 179 yards. Keno Jones led all players with 13 tackles.

James Madison plays at Southern Miss on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026, at 8:00 p.m. ET.