Editing James Madison University (section)

== Athletics ==
{{Main|James Madison Dukes}}
[[File:James Madison University Athletics logo.svg|thumb|James Madison Athletics block logo]]

James Madison University's athletic teams are known as the Dukes. An [[English bulldog]], with a crown and cape, and [[Duke Dog]], a gray canine costume in a purple cape and crown, serve as the school's mascot. The "Dukes" nickname is in honor of Samuel Page Duke, the university's second president. The school colors are royal purple and gold. Madison competes in the [[National Collegiate Athletic Association|NCAA]]'s [[NCAA Division I|Division I]] in the [[Sun Belt Conference]] and the [[Eastern College Athletic Conference]].

Beginning in July 2022, the football program began competing in the NCAA's [[Football Bowl Subdivision]] (FBS) as part of the [[Sun Belt Conference]]. Before that, the team participated in the [[Football Championship Subdivision]] (FCS) and within the [[Colonial Athletic Association]].

[[File:James Madison University Football.jpg|thumb|The football team's stadium]]

Over 546 varsity athletes compete in football, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's soccer, men's and women's tennis, women's swimming and diving, women's volleyball, baseball, women's lacrosse, field hockey, men's and women's golf, women's cross country and track and field, and softball. James Madison has won five national championships in football (2), field hockey, women's lacrosse, and archery, giving the Dukes the second-most national titles by a college or university in Virginia.

James Madison University invested heavily in new athletic facilities throughout the tenure of President Linwood Rose. JMU built a new multimillion-dollar baseball and softball field complex that opened in 2010. Additionally, after the last football game of 2009, the university began an expansion of [[Bridgeforth Stadium and Zane Showker Field|Bridgeforth Stadium]] that increased seating capacity to approximately 25,000. Construction was completed in time for the 2011 football season.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jmu.edu/bridgeforthstadium/|title=Bridgeforth Stadium|publisher=James Madison University|access-date=April 11, 2010|archive-date=March 29, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100329075248/http://www.jmu.edu/bridgeforthstadium/|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Basketball ===
In 2013, James Madison University's men's basketball team won the CAA championship title for the first time since 1994. The Dukes then won their first NCAA tournament game in 30 years, defeating Long Island University-Brooklyn. The Dukes fell to Indiana in the second round, 83–62, finishing the season with a 21–15 record.<ref>"Top-seeded Hoosiers make quick work of No.16 James Madison." ESPN. March 22, 2013. Retrieved June 10, 2013.</ref>

=== Football ===
JMU football won the [[NCAA Division I Football Championship|NCAA Division I-AA]] national title in 2004,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Breeze |first=Jackson Hephner {{!}} The |date=September 12, 2024 |title=How JMU’s 2004 National Championship team propelled the program |url=https://www.breezejmu.org/sports/how-jmu-s-2004-national-championship-team-propelled-the-program/article_40a9551c-70ac-11ef-9fc1-e774bd1724c6.html |access-date=October 8, 2024 |website=The Breeze |language=en}}</ref> with a 13–2 record, and in 2016 with a 14–1 record going undefeated in the FCS. The 2004 squad was the only team in history to win the title after playing four straight road playoff games. Since 2004, the JMU football team has appeared in the playoffs in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2011, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017,  2018, and 2019.{{Citation needed|date=October 2024}}