The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

RONDRE Knowles-Tener and his James Madison Dukes will play in the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs tonight with a berth to the championship on the line.

The Dukes will take on the North Dakota State Bison in the FCS semi-finals 7pm tonight at the Fargodome in Fargo, North Dakota, broadcast live on ESPN2.

The winner will take on the winner of the opposite side of the bracket, a matchup between Youngstown State and Eastern Washington.

The FCS Championship takes place on January 7.

Both the Dukes and Bison finished the regular season at 12-1.

Ranked No.4 in the 24-field bracket, the Dukes look to upset top-ranked North Dakota just days after a blowout win over Sam Houston State.

The Dukes set a new programme record for most points scored in a playoff game, which marked the sixth-highest across FCS playoff history.

They also defeated New Hampshire 55-22 in the opening round.

Knowles-Tener sat out his true freshman season this year as a redshirt but is expected to be an important factor in the Dukes’ plans for it’s defensive frontline moving forward.

The six-foot, one-inch, 295-pound defensive lineman is a former standout performer at Tabernacle Baptist Academy and also anchored the defensive line at Liberty Christian Academy (LCA) in Lynchburg, Virginia.

In his stint at LCA, his play has garnered him numerous accolades, including VISAA Division I Second Team All-State as a junior, VHSL Honourable Mention All-Region 4A West and First Team All-Conference 23 as a senior and was a member of LCA’s VISAA Division I state championship team as a sophomore.

Knowles-Tener drew interest from a number of elite division I programmes, including Wake Forest and East Carolina.

He originally committed to East Carolina but said James Madison is a better fit. “They told me they want me to be an early contributor,” he said in an interview with The News and Advance. “So this year is going to be about working myself into shape.”

On signing day last February, Dukes head coach Mike Houston outlined the impact he expects the Grand Bahamian native to have on the programme.

“Rondre is a big, powerful, athletic defensive lineman,” he said. “He has a ton of personality and will test the offensive line with his quickness.”