James Madison QB Alonza Barnett III wildly flops in win over Charlotte

James Madison QB Alonza Barnett III, in his season debut and just his second start, may already have the flop of the year in college football and one of the more excessive that you’ll ever see

In the Dukes’ season opener against Charlotte, DL Dre Butler shoved him after the play and knocked him over in what was a flag for unsportsmanlike conduct. However, after hitting the ground, Barnett rolled or flipped over three or four times. JMU OL Joseph Simmons then attempted to resuscitate him on the field.

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JMU QB Alonza Barnett III with the early flop of the season 😅 pic.twitter.com/SoRTkCBWHH

— ESPN College Football (@ESPNCFB) September 1, 2024

In the 30-7 win for James Madison, Barnett went 10-18 for 219 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. He also had a team-high of 89 rushing yards, including a long of 36 yards, on nine carries.

This is Barnett’s third season in Harrisonburg. In those two years prior, he appeared in four games total with one being a start last fall. He had gone 4-12 for 29 yards and a pick in those outings.

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ABC averages 7.6 million viewers through college football kickoff slate on Saturday

There was plenty of excitement for college football to return and it showed with ABC’s TV ratings from Saturday’s season kickoff.

ESPN reported that the three games the network broadcast on the channel averaged 7.6 million viewers, the second-most ever for an opening week.

The ratings were led by a primetime game between Notre Dame and Texas A&M that kicked off at 7:30 p.m. ET. It saw an average of 8.2 million people tune in and peaked at 9.3 million viewers. That made it the most-watched Saturday night game of the past two years and it was also the most-streamed regular season college football game ever.

Georgia and Clemson got the day started on ABC with the noon game. Although the Bulldogs ended up blowing out the Tigers by a score of 34-3, it didn’t stop the matchup from averaging 7.9 million viewers to finish just behind Notre Dame-Texas A&M for the most-watched game of the day. It did also set a new record for the most-watched week one game at noon on record.

A rivalry game between Miami and Florida followed that first matchup in the afternoon slot. That was a rout in favor of the Hurricanes who won 41-17. That one saw an average of 6.6 million viewers, making it the most-watched late-afternoon game since 2017. It also set the stage for the night game to come in and continue to deliver big numbers.

It was an exciting opening week of college football and the interest is sure to continue to stay high all season long.