Pictured in this photograph is Les Branich. The importance of this photograph is that this is a picture of JMU’s first Quarterback. This photo was taken in 1975 which was the final season Branich would play for JMU. He was a member of the team when it began in 1972. Madison College had been fully coeducational for only five years and because of this Dr. Ronald E. Carrier wanted to do something that would change the campus for many years to come and show that JMU was truly a coeducational institution. The football team was created and did not win a single game in the first year of its existence and ended that season with a record of 0-4-1. The team also did not score a single point that season either. In 1975 the JMU football team went undefeated (9-0-1) with Branich at Quarterback. Branich was one of only two players who remained from the 1972 season. The team started the season with a scoreless tie and won nine straight games following that and won the Virginia College Athletic Association title. This was the Dukes’ first division title and to this day is the only undefeated season they have ever had. Branich was a team captain in 1974 and 1975 and was a four-year starter for the Dukes. In 1974 Branich was a first team all-state choice and in the 1975 season he was an honorable mention for all state once again. To this day he still ranks he remains seventh on the list of career passing yards for JMU at 1,819 yards and eighth on the list for total yards at 2,528.
For these reasons Branich is a significant figure in JMU athletic history. This is why he is so significant to the timeline of JMU Athletics. Without him you cannot tell an accurate story of the history of JMU football and JMU Athletics. He is important to the story of how this team began as well as the story of this team’s successes as he was the Quarterback for arguably the team’s most successful season ever. This picture not only tells us the story of the JMU football team but the story of how the college brought the students, faculty, and city of Harrisonburg together in a time in which the college had been going through many changes. From the picture you can see the stands were filled with excited fans that most likely were made up of students, faculty, and Harrisonburg locals. The picture also is significant because it is a picture taken from the 1975-76 season which was the first season in which the Dukes played at the newly built Madison Stadium which is now known as Bridgeforth Stadium. Although the stadium has gone through multiple renovations it is the Stadium that the team plays football in even today as well as many other JMU athletics occur there. When it was built it originally had the capacity to hold 5,200 people and today it now has a capacity of over 24,000. This photograph captured a very significant moment in time for JMU athletics and therefore is essential to the timeline.
Control #Sfoo07, JMU Historic Photos Online, Special Collections, Carrier Library, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, Va.
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