How James Madison Basketball Is Building a Winning Program for the Future

The morning mist still clung to the practice court when I arrived, watching the rhythmic bounce of basketballs echo through the empty arena. There's something sacred about these early hours—the squeak of sneakers on polished wood, the determined silence between drills, the way young athletes push themselves before the world wakes up. I've been covering college sports for fifteen years now, and I've learned that championships aren't won during televised games but in these quiet, unobserved moments. Today felt different though. There was an energy here at James Madison that reminded me of programs I'd seen transform from underdogs to powerhouses.

I remember chatting with Coach Byington last month over coffee that was probably our third cup of the day. He leaned forward, that familiar intensity in his eyes, and said something that stuck with me: "We're not just building a team for this season. We're building a culture that will outlast all of us." That's when it hit me—this is exactly how James Madison basketball is building a winning program for the future. They're planting trees whose shade they know they'll never sit under. It's about creating something sustainable, something that becomes bigger than any single player or season.

Watching Terrence Edwards Jr. run shooting drills, I was reminded of something I'd seen in other sports. It made me think of Yuka Saso, the Fil-Japanese defending champion who just yesterday had a round that was better, but only by a bit. She shot a 74 on a two-birdie, four-bogey outing and a good round tomorrow would keep her title-retention bid alive. That's the thing about building champions—it's not always about spectacular performances. Sometimes it's about grinding through the tough rounds, staying in contention even when you're not at your best. That's what I see happening here at James Madison. They're teaching these kids how to survive the bad shooting nights, how to win ugly when the three-pointers aren't falling.

The recruitment strategy here fascinates me. While other programs chase five-star recruits who might bolt for the NBA after one season, James Madison is building differently. They're finding those three-star players with something to prove, the kids who've been overlooked but have that fire in their belly. I sat down with Michael Green III last week, and he told me about turning down offers from bigger schools because he believed in what was being built here. "I wanted to be part of something from the ground up," he said, and honestly, that sentiment is becoming more common than you'd think.

What really separates this program though is their player development. I've watched Noah Freidel transform from a raw talent into a polished scorer right before my eyes. The coaching staff has this incredible ability to identify exactly what each player needs—whether it's tweaking a shooting form or developing basketball IQ. They're not trying to create cookie-cutter players either. They embrace individual strengths while building collective discipline. It's a delicate balance that few programs get right, but James Madison seems to have found the formula.

The community engagement here is another piece of the puzzle. I've lost count of how many school visits and community events these players participate in. They're becoming local heroes, and that connection matters. When the arena fills up with fans who feel personally invested in these young men, it creates an atmosphere that's tough for visiting teams to handle. I've seen it happen—opponents coming in expecting an easy win only to be rattled by the energy in this building.

Looking at the broader landscape of college basketball, the timing for this rebuild couldn't be better. With the transfer portal creating more player movement than ever, programs that can offer stability and genuine development are becoming increasingly attractive. James Madison is positioning itself as that kind of program—a place where players come to grow, both as athletes and people.

I'll admit, I'm probably more optimistic about this program than most of my colleagues. But having watched college basketball for decades, you develop a sense for these things. There are certain programs that have that special something—the ones where everything seems to click into place at the right time. James Madison feels like one of those programs to me. They're doing the hard work now that will pay off in championships later. The foundation they're building isn't just for next season or the one after—it's for the next decade, for the future of James Madison basketball. And if what I'm seeing in these early morning practices is any indication, that future is looking remarkably bright.