Serving James Madison University Since 1922 BreezeJMU.org
Vol. 94, No. 18
Thursday, October 29, 2015
breezejmu.org
‘Hidden gem of a school’
University exposure from ESPN’s ‘College GameDay’ better than expected By MICHAEL BETTER contributing writer
State University on the exact same weekend last year. The rating corresponds to about 1.59 million TVs tuned in to the show, an amount the university couldn’t have gotten through ordinary means. “Our media monitoring software shows us that the exposure that we got from ‘GameDay’ is beyond what we could even imagine or afford even if we wanted to buy it,” Andy Perrine, associate vice president of university communications and marketing, said. “The reach, because of social [media] and because of what Corso did on the show, really was beyond what we could have imagined.” For nearly three hours JMU trended No. 1 on Facebook. When “GameDay analyst Lee Corso stepped out of Wilson Hall dressed as James Madison, he trended all the way up to No. 4 on Twitter. The name recognition brought from Corso’s stunt has been above everyone’s expectations and Perrine believes that has made the hashtag “JMU” mean
JMU hosted ESPN’s premier college football show, “College GameDay,” this past weekend and the increased exposure from the event not only exceeded expectations, but also boosted the university’s name recognition throughout the country. “You can’t put a price on what having ‘GameDay’ on your campus does for the university — both academically and athletically,” Lee Fitting, a producer of “GameDay” and a JMU alumnus (’96), said in an email. “It is a twoday infomercial. On top of that, the way in which JMU nation showed up put it over the top. JMU is a hidden gem of a school and on Saturday it was at the forefront of the nation.” This past weekend’s episode of “GameDay” scored a 1.4 rating on Nielsen’s rating system, up 8 percent compared to the show filmed from the campus of Louisiana
see EXPOSURE, page 4
BRYAN SCHOR
DANIEL STIEN / THE BREEZE
Thousands gathered on the Quad for “College GameDay,” which took place on Saturday.
Time for the Tribe
Sophomore Quarterback Hometown: Milford, Pa. Height: 6’2”
JMU travels to William & Mary this weekend
Weight: 213 lbs. Major: Finance Previous school: Lackawanna College
By MATT WEYRICH The Breeze
ALL-TIME (9 games)
No. 9-ranked JMU (7-1, 4-1 Colonial Athletic Association) travels this week to take on the No.16-ranked College William & Mary (5-2, 3-1 CAA) in a matchup between conference heavyweights. JMU is coming off its first loss of the season, 59-49 at the hands of the University of Richmond. Meanwhile, the Tribe is rolling after their third straight win, having taken care of Hampton University to the tune of 40-7 last weekend.
9-13 pass completions/attempts 122 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT 53 yards rushing, 1 TD
1. Dukes’ quarterback situation JMU head coach Everett Withers announced Tuesday that starting quarterback Vad Lee underwent surgery on his left foot and would miss the remainder of the 2015 season. The redshirt senior and two-year captain ends a historic career with the Dukes, but still remains one of the best players to ever play for the school. Lee’s name is etched in the record books in several categories, including: first in career passing touchdowns with 51, second in total offense with 7,292 yards and third in passing yards and completions with 5,652 yards and 446, respectively. Lee has also set single season records in passing yards, completions, touchdowns and total offense. Taking his place on the field will be sophomore Bryan Schor, a 6-foot-2 inch, 213-pound quarterback out of Milford, Pennsylvania. Schor transferred to JMU after spending a semester at Lackawanna College in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Before college, he garnered many accolades as a fouryear starting quarterback at Delaware Valley High School. A two-time All-Region and All-Conference player, Schor lead his team to an 11-2 record his senior season on his way to earning Pennsylvania Class AAAA First Team All-State honors. In his career at JMU, Schor has appeared in nine games, completing 9 of 13 passes with 122 yards, a touchdown and an interception, while adding 53 yards and a score on the ground. Most of these numbers came as Schor stepped in under center on Saturday against Richmond, after Lee exited the game. Schor managed to score two touchdowns — one through the air and one on the ground — amassing 73 yards passing and 18 yards rushing.
ERIN WILLIAMS / THE BREEZE
Sophomore quarterback Bryan Schor against Elon on Oct. 17. Schor will start on Saturday.
Body of proof
see FOOTBALL, page 10
Finding your inner fabulous ‘My Big Fat Fabulous Life’ star Whitney Thore ushers in body positivity at speaking event
Local police required to wear body cameras By CHRIS KENT The Breeze
Following a national trend, the Harrisonburg and JMU police forces are equipping themselves with the ability to record, save and rewatch every interaction they have with civilians. Within the past year, the two police departments have developed policies that put body cameras onto active officers. The Harrisonburg Police Department has had a policy implemented since April 2015, requiring all on-duty officers wear body cameras at all times, unless undercover, according to Lt. Rod Pollard, chief commander of the patrol division. JMU’s campus police force is implementing a permanent policy that they’ve been drafting since March of this year. As of now, the HPD doesn’t own enough cameras to outfit its entire force, it currently has 40 to 50. But the JMU Police Department is planning on providing cameras to all its officers within the next few weeks according to Lee Shifflett, the chief of police for JMU. “We have been writing our policy for eight weeks now,” Shifflet said. “It is not something you can just sit down and bang out in a day. Even when the model policy came down we had probably 90 percent of what the model policy suggested in our policy. It is the other see CAMERA, page 4
TANNER LESLIE / CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER
Whitney Thore entertained the crowd with anecdotes and dancing. By MIKE DOLZER AND ASHLEIGH BALSAMO The Breeze
TV personality Whitney Thore danced with audience members to Beyonce’s “Grown Woman” during JMU’s Fat Talk Free Month event in the Festival Highlands Room Wednesday night. This came a year after her “Fat Girl Dancing” video hit 8 million views and she became the star of TLC’s “My Big Fat Fabulous Life.” Since then, Thore has danced her way into her own body-positivity campaign, though that wasn’t her original intention. Thore started No Body Shame as a blog in response to a negative comment about her weight on one of her dancing videos. “It was like an idea in my head, but I was like, ‘Well, I could just downplay it, or I could just take this and run with it,’” Thore said.
“And I decided to do the latter.” Thore was diagnosed with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) when she was 23. After struggling for years with self-image issues, eating disorders and times when she couldn’t bring herself to leave her bedroom, Thore decided that it was time for a change. “A turning point was when I had lost 100 pounds,” Thore said. “And at that point, I thought that was the way to be happy. I thought, ‘Oh, I’m going to have this great weight-loss story and it’s going to make my life meaningful.’” Her breaking point was after a five-mile run at the gym, when some guys drove by her in the parking lot and called her a “fatass.” “I knew in that moment, I will never be enough, or good enough, or thin enough, or whatever enough to be acceptable to other people,” Thore said. “Because nobody stops to know how I got to where I am, where I’ve come from or where I want to go. Nobody gives a s---.” This message about self-acceptance was a major theme of her speaking event. Although there wasn’t a moment when the audience wasn’t smiling or laughing along with her, Thore’s words struck a chord with many. “I was really happy that she talked about positivity, because that’s really what I strive for,” Dyer Pace, a freshman marketing major, said. “She also talked about body shame being not just if you’re overweight: if you’re too skinny, too big, too whatever.” This event was made possible in large part to Kim Johnson, a health educator at the University Health Center and the adviser to the REACH Peer Advising program. “She was so easy to work with and actually charged us less than other speakers, so it was like, ‘This is ideal and amazing,’” Johnson said. “I hope that students walk away understanding the importance of really valuing yourself and your body for exactly what it is and who you are and what you look like.” Throughout the event, Thore made sure to incorporate the audience. Whether it was letting the crowd ask questions about her personal life, giving away T-shirts to whoever knew what her roommate’s nickname was or staying afterward to take pictures with those present, her personality left an impact. This impact reaches further than viewers behind a TV or See THORE, page 8
HOLD YOUR HORSES
RACE FOR THE TITLE
Therapy event will provide stress relief for students
Cross country prepares for CAA Championship meet
NEWS | 3
SPORTS | 9
TODAY WILL BE Partly Cloudy 63° /40° Chance of rain: 0%