Linares Earns NEC Weekly Honor
Sophomore defensive back Chris Linares named the Northeast Conference Defensive Player of the Week on Monday. Linares and the Blue Devils travelled to now-#13 James Madison on Saturday, dropping a narrow 14-9 decision.
The Blue Devils bottled up James Madison for much of Saturday night's game and Linares was a key piece in the effort. The sophomore cornerback spearheaded a pass defense that surrendered a measly 47 yards to the nationally-ranked Dukes, who managed 105 more yards through the air in their Week 1 setback at ACC member North Carolina.
Linares logged four tackles, an interception, and a pass break-up in the 14-9 loss before a record crowd of 25,102 fans at Bridgeforth Stadium. He recorded his first interception of the season on the game's opening drive.
The 5-foot-9 defensive back, who earned preseason all-NEC honors, picked off a potential scoring pass at CCSU's own 2-yard line. Linares later broke up a third-down pass to force a second-quarter punt. The Blue Devils limited JMU's pass attack to 4.3 yards per attempt.
Linares and the Blue Devils open the conference season on Saturday at Wagner beginning at 1 p.m. Fans can listen to free live audio beginning at 12:45 p.m. on CCSUBlueDevils.com.

