Chris Huston (00:00.846)

We're here with Alonza Barnett III fresh off a remarkable performance in James Madison's 70-50 victory over North Carolina in Chapel Hill on Saturday. Alonza, congratulations on a huge game. You threw for 388 yards, five touchdowns, added 99 rushing yards and two scores. You accounted for all seven of your team's offensive touchdowns and was named the Associated Press National Player of the Week. You have burst on the scene, my friend. What was it like playing in a game like this and putting up those kinds of video game numbers?

Alonza Barnett III (00:30.487)

I mean, it was a surreal feeling, especially to be back in my home state. So close to home, I knew so many people on the other side of the ball, in the stands, and I had coaches, high school coaches supporting me as well, Pee-wee coaches, uncles, you name it. And just to be able to go out there and represent this university in that manner and bring that positive spotlight to the university was an honor.

Chris Huston (00:55.886)

You know, I've heard players say that there are games like this where everything kind of slows down a bit and it seems just to happen magically. Everything seems to go right. Was this one of those games?

Alonza Barnett III (01:04.879)

I would say on the four consecutive touchdown drives, it did start to slow down a little bit for me. But I think that we all just got in the flow. We all just got in the rhythm. If you were to ask the offensive line, the running backs, even the special teams guys and defense, we just fueled each other's fire and played off of each other. And I believe the game slowed down for everybody.

Chris Huston (01:27.256)

What's it like when you guys are on the sideline, the offense is on the sideline and you just have those four consecutive touchdowns? What are you guys talking about? Are you guys like, keep it going, keep it going? Or are you like, can you believe this? What's it like out there?

Alonza Barnett III (01:39.405)

Yeah, that's a part of the conversation. But at the same time, we sit there and we dissect what could we have done even better. How could we have been more efficient? How could we have scored, I don't know, even quicker? And you have to find those little nuances because just like we watch the tape, our opponents each week will watch the tape and they'll try to dissect and find little things, little flaws in our games that they can exploit. And that was a big focal point heading into Sunday and Monday, it doesn't matter, get better. And Coach says that every weekend, we try to do that in the game as well.

Chris Huston (02:13.122)

Looking back on the prep for this game, how much do credit the game plan for the way this game turned out? And did you have an inkling before the game that it might kind of go something like this?

Alonza Barnett III (02:21.071)

I mean, Coach Kennedy and the offensive staff, they do a tremendous job game planning and scouting guys up each week, obviously, with the extra week for Carolina. I would say that was to our aid, and I think that'd be to anybody's aid when you have an extra week to prepare and really craft up the looks that you're going to give the opponent. And you don't expect to put up 70 points and have a dominant win like that. But if...

I mean, we had a pretty good idea that the caliber offense that we were, we can do that week in, week out.

Chris Huston (02:59.094)

The offensive line played great. What were they doing out there that really helped you do what you were doing?

Alonza Barnett III (03:06.103)

I mean, I was back there untouched. They really neutralized the defensive line in rush. They picked up blitzes, stunts and everything tremendously. And like I've stated before, it wasn't just a starting five. Coach Smith, he likes to rotate, offensive linemen in and out, fresh bodies. So for those guys to step up when their number was called, it means the world and it's absolutely selfless of them to do that.

Chris Huston (03:29.218)

I’s kind of a great situation where you can play a power five team and get your rotations in and get snaps against that level of competition, right?

Alonza Barnett III (03:37.569)

Yeah, for sure. I mean it all starts up front and you know, like they say, the offensive line, the games are one within the trenches and when we can run the ball effectively and pass the ball effectively, you know, no matter the down and distance, you have a tremendous chance of winning the game.

Chris Huston (03:52.684)

Yeah. At what point in the game were you like, all right, I'm feeling it. I think, I think it's going to, you know, pretty much go the way we want to. What was that turning point in the game for you?

Alonza Barnett III (04:02.777)

I think that started with the offsides bomb to Omarion, you know, just the amount of confidence that I got from that. just, I can't really put my finger on one point. I would definitely say it was within the Ford TD Drive.

Chris Huston (04:17.826)

Mm -hmm.

Alonza Barnett III (04:18.293)

I think the interception before by Terrence Spence that that was really like the cherry on top to our success within that half. And you know going into halftime coach Chesney calls that the most meaningless stat in college football so we were happy and confident in what we did in the first half but knew we had to finish it in the second half.

Chris Huston (04:37.422)

But you did have 53 points at the half, which is just crazy. What was the mood like in the locker room at half? What did the coaches tell you?

Alonza Barnett III (04:43.823)

You know, like I said before, Coach Chesney called it the most meaningless stat in college football. And as we have seen before, especially with the Carolina defense, they were a really great and stout second half team. If you look at their stats from the previous game, I think with North Carolina Central, they held them to like 80 total yards or less, something like that in the second half. So we knew that they would make not only their in-game adjustments from drive to drive, but halftime would really be where they sat down and dissected and tried to come out and give us new looks.

Chris Huston (05:13.922)

Yeah, this game had a little bit of everything. You guys scored on an interception return, a blocked punt. They scored on a block punt, I think. Was this the craziest game you've ever been involved in, whether it's high school, popcorn or college?

Alonza Barnett III (05:24.303)

Yeah, for sure. I mean, like you said, it was a video game-like game. The things that happen, you can't script that and for it to be 50 points within a half and the final score to total over 100 points, it looked like a basketball game and it felt kind of like a video game, like the settings were turned down or something like that. So it was pretty cool to be a part of.

Chris Huston (05:42.818)

Yeah, definitely a basketball score for sure. Looking at the setting on the road against an ACC team, how important is this victory for the program and not just getting the victory, but doing it the way you did, just dominating a power five team.

Alonza Barnett III (05:57.687)

I mean that that gives everybody the utmost confidence, you know, going into the rest of the season. And you know that was the most important game for us because it was the next game and you know, Ball State is the most important game for us right now because it's the next game. And you know, just knowing that we played at that level and we still have corrections and things that we can get better at, is just, you know, is great for this team. Great for this program. Great for this university and we're going to continue to build off that.

Chris Huston (06:26.85)

What was the reaction from the James Madison community, you know, going to class today, being around students, talking about things. What were people saying?

Alonza Barnett III (06:34.159)

Well, I have yet to go to class. We have Monday's off now. Sunday is like our work day where we put the game to rest and we move on to Hall State. So I have a class here at 1:50 and then a class at 5. So I would assume that the buzz on campus is pretty nice, especially with this weekend being family weekend. It'll be interesting to see how campus is.

Chris Huston (06:57.742)

You're out of Grimsley High in Greensboro. You won a state championship in 2020. What schools were recruiting you the hardest out of high school and what ultimately led you to choose James Madison?

Alonza Barnett III (07:07.541)

I had a number of schools that offered me and recruited me. Old Dominion was my first offer. I would say they were the ones that recruited me. They were among the ones that recruited me the hardest. James Madison, obviously. UNC Charlotte offered me. I'm trying to remember who else. Miami of Ohio offered me. North Carolina A&T, my parents alma mater offered me. North Carolina Central offered me as well. But I think just the tradition and the rich history within this program, it was definitely attractive to myself. And it's only about three hours and some change away from home. So the family type atmosphere was something that I really enjoyed and appreciated. And coming on campus, that really solidified that, people smiling at you, waving at you, how are you doing? It really felt like a southern place. It felt like a home away from home. Campus is big, but like they say is if you see somebody better say hey, because you'll never see them again. I feel like I see the same faces over and over and over and that's know comforting being three hours away from home. And of course the game day atmosphere is like no others among the top in the country. So when you combine all those it was a was a no brainer for me.

Chris Huston (08:26.166)

You're in your first year as the starter, a sophomore. Are you starting to get more recognition around campus being the starting quarterback?

Alonza Barnett III (08:32.911)

I don't know if I am. One lady at the market, she kind of swiped my card and looked at me and she said, you're the, starter. And I said yes, ma’am, that's me. But I don't really pay attention to that stuff. I see myself just like anybody else, know, a regular human. I bleed like everybody else bleeds, so.

Chris Huston (08:51.182)

I’m curious to see how that will change after this game. Your dad and uncle played college football and in the NFL. What kind of influences did they have on you growing up football wise? You know, also your uncle went to UNC. What did he have to say to you after this game?

Alonza Barnett III (09:04.335)

Yeah, my dad, that's the guy, he's the man.

You know, that moment was really special because he's always told me that day would come, that day would come even after, you know, my struggles against Bucknell. He told me, you know, to keep working, put God first and everything will sort itself out. I still remember those days. Sunday we get up early in the morning, traveled down to Atlanta, get two quarterback throwing sessions in and come back the same day and do that every other week and just his selflessness and the willingness for him to sacrifice for me to reach my goals, it means the world to me. 

And you know, my uncle, saw him after the game. He had the half and half shirt on. So he had half Carolina with his nine and my one with Barnett on the back. He was like, why'd you have to do us like that, man? He was obviously happy that I had that performance, but you know, he played under Mack Brown as well. I was talked to a little bit by Carolina, brought in for workout, but that was ultimately it.

Chris Huston (10:09.09)

Yeah. You know, I'm sure coming into the season, you got the starting job and you have your goals. Do your goals change a little bit after, after having this kind of game? Like, are you like, well, wait a minute, maybe I can really do a lot more than I thought I could do. Does it change a little bit or are you still kind of even-keeled doing what you thought you would do at the beginning of the year?

Alonza Barnett III (10:28.143)

You have to be even-keeled. There are lot of ebbs and flows within the season, and I know that. And I've had great guys to give me advice who have been through those ebbs and flows, like Cole Johnson, Todd Centeio, two former JMU quarterbacks. So I know just as easy as I had seven touchdowns, unfortunately, things can happen during the game, a tip pass, a fumble. So just making sure I play consistent, play in, play out is what I focus on.

Chris Huston (10:56.447)

And you guys host Ball State this Saturday, like you said, family weekend. What are the coaches telling the team coming off such a big win?

Alonza Barnett III (11:03.439)

You know, you have to lay that to rest. You have to focus on Ball State. They're a formidable team like we talked about before. They're going to come in here, of course, all guns blazing and we just have to do what we do best consistently and as hard as possible.

Chris Huston (11:05.078)

You know, away from the football field in the James Madison community, what are some of the things you and your teammates are involved in?

Alonza Barnett III (11:27.213)

Well, the support that we receive from the surrounding elementary schools, middle and high schools, you know, means the world to us. And with the student-athlete advisory committee here, we are teaming up specifically the football team and aiding Lacey Springs Elementary School here. We have a Venmo that we donate to and we give clothes, markers, whiteboards, fruit snacks, granola bars, whatever the kids may need to, you be successful because they are the next generation and their support, you know, helps us be who we are and Harrison Bird Virginia. So that's something that we take seriously in supporting them as well.

Chris Huston (12:09.592)

That's awesome. you have any Heisman winners in the past that you looked up to and really enjoyed watching?

Alonza Barnett III (12:15.073)

I mean, Kyler Murray was special. Kyler Murray, Lamar, guys like that, or guys that I like to try to take pieces of their game and fit them into how I play, my play style. And I'd say just off the top of my head, those are my two favorites.

Chris Huston (12:33.516)

Well, Alonza Barnett, if people didn't know about you before, they know about you now. It was a pleasure having you on the official Heisman Trophy podcast, and we wish you best of luck this upcoming game and the rest of the season.

Alonza Barnett III (12:44.643)

I appreciate you, Mr. Houston. Go Dukes.

Chris Huston (12:46.456)

Thank you.

That was wonderful. Thank you so much. We'll coming out on Wednesday and we'll I'm sure we'll we're going to send the links to your SID and I think we'll probably tag you on the socials and all that. So appreciate you coming on.

Alonza Barnett III (12:49.411)

That was wonderful. Thank you so much.

Alonza Barnett III (13:00.919)

Yes, sir. It was an honor. I appreciate you guys for having me. You as well.

Chris Huston (13:04.066)

Take care.