West Palm Beach, Fla. – Ahead of the 2024 Boca Raton Bowl on Wednesday, Dec. 18, the James Madison and Western Kentucky football teams arrived in Florida on Saturday, greeted by fans at Palm Beach International Airport.

The outing between the Dukes (8-4) and the Hilltoppers (8-5) will mark the 11th edition of the Boca Raton Bowl and is set to kick off at 5:30 p.m. ET. The game will be televised on ESPN, ESPN Radio and locally on 106.3. WKU is appearing in the bowl game for an unprecedented third time, second under Head Coach Tyson Helton, while James Madison makes their debut in Boca Raton.

Following their arrival, Head Coaches Helton and Bob Chesney of James Madison met with the media for a joint press conference at the Cox Science Center to discuss the highly anticipated matchup.

Boca Raton, FL – December 14, 2024: Western Kentucky University Hilltoppers head coach Tyson Helton during the Head Coaches Press Conference for the 2024 Boca Raton Bowl.
(Photo by Rich Storry / ESPN Images)

Western Kentucky Head Coach Tyson Helton

“We are really excited to be back. When we found out we were heading back to the bowl and being here for the third time, our team was just ecstatic. What a fantastic job that this bowl puts on and we have had a ball every time we come down here. The hospitality that we receive from this group and the professionalism that we receive is just second to none. We have been blessed to be in six bowls since I have been here, this is by far the best. This is one that we look forward to coming to. I’m glad we are back, and excited to be here, and really excited to play a very good James Madison football team. Coach [Chesney] does a fantastic job, I have watched him from afar and watched his career, he is a fantastic coach and that is a fantastic football team that we are about to play in James Madison. [I’m] just excited for that matchup…For Western Kentucky, we take bowl games very seriously, not necessarily going to bowls, but trying to win bowls. This is like a championship game to us, it means a lot to us and I think it means a lot to people in college football. You want to be able to turn on a game this time of year, sit down on your couch and watch a good football game. You have two really good football teams that are going to match up here in a couple of days and it’s going to be exciting football.”

On how the team will balance work and fun

“We were fortunate to play in a championship game, so we just flowed right into bowl prep week. It tied in perfect this year for us. Guys just finished up finals, we played the championship game, so we were able to stay on schedule: a normal Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday practice, a Friday walkthrough, and were able to come down here. This is a time for celebration. We take this game very seriously, but we love seeing the families, love seeing the fans, love being down here, you get to go to the beach and get to see what this beautiful area has to offer, that’s a very important part of it. Our guys love to do that, but we are going to put in some good practices here over the next couple of days to put in the finishing touches for this game. For us, it has really been a continuation so it set up pretty well for us as far as prep time goes.”

On expectations for their time in South Florida

“I’m very fortunate where we’re at and where we’re staying, there are a couple of restaurants that I got to experience last time. The food down here is exceptional and there is so much variety here…More than anything, this is a great area, we love being here and everything this city has to offer. It’s a great time to be down here, when we flew out of Bowling Green, Kentucky, it was about 35/37 [degrees] this morning, so it’s nice to get some of this warm Florida weather.”

On how the Boca Raton Bowl helps recruiting in the South Florida area

“We have done extremely well in this area and really all over Florida. It’s great for our kids to get back because a lot of their families will be at the game. This is great exposure for our program and our recruiting base.”

On what winning the Howard Schnellenberger Trophy would mean

“It would be huge. It’s why we play the game. I walk by our trophy case every day coming into the office, I don’t overlook it for one second. There’s a great honor in winning that trophy. For both teams, your competitive juices the minute that ball is kicked off, you want it. That is a special trophy and you certainty want to go win that game, so it means a lot to us and our program.”

On what he will tell the players in the locker room before the game

“The logo means a lot and they will want to enjoy that time with each other. There is a lot going on in everybody’s life. For somebody, it may be their last college football game, for somebody, this may be their last game before moving onto a different school, but no matter what happens, there is an honor and comradery there with each other and that they want to be on that battlefield with each other. Nothing changes from a perspective of what you have to go do to win the game, but when they look in each other’s eyes about to take that field, it means a little bit more because they know for this particular season, this team, it will never be the same. It’s cool to see and I cherish those moments as do all coaches, but especially for our guys, they really want to play this last game together. That’s why you see, even with us having guys in the portal, they’re all here and ready to go, so it means a lot to them.”

On what to watch in the matchup

“We are facing one of the top defenses in the country, so when you analyze that, you really just try to attack whatever their weakness is. It’s hard to find weaknesses because they are pretty good on defense. For us, at times we can run, you have to look at how do you win games. At the end of the day, it’s about winning games. I think we have done a good job of really limiting points and that’s the main thing, creating turnovers and limiting points. We’re playing a really good football team in James Madison and they have a really good offense, Coach [Chesney] has done a great job of that, they have an exceptional defense. At the end of the day, the game takes its own shape and the beauty of technology today with iPads and all of that, coaches are now a huge part of the game again. All of that practice you do, you better be able to make adjustments and I think you have two football teams that know how to do that and so we’ll make adjustments, they’ll make adjustments throughout the game. At the end of the day, it’s about winning the football game and I don’t care if we go out there and have 250 yards on offense or 500 yards on offense, we just want to go win the football game.”

On one word to describe the Boca Raton Bowl experience

“Pageantry is the word that I think of, just the whole experience and how well it’s done…it’s the great thing about college football: it’s a celebration.”

Boca Raton, FL – December 14, 2024: James Madison University Dukes head coach Bob Chesney during the Head Coaches Press Conference for the 2024 Boca Raton Bowl.
(Photo by Rich Storry / ESPN Images)

James Madison Head Coach Bob Chesney

“We are really thankful to be here and very excited to be here. There were a lot of different conversations about where we may go and where we may be and whether we have to pack our winter gear or if we got to bring our bathing suits. We’re pretty excited to have a chance to come down here and bring our team together one more time. Ultimately, I came in around this time last year and the team was preparing to go play in the Armed Forces Bowl in Texas. There were a lot of guys in the [transfer] portal, a lot of guys that left our program and went on to different places and we ended up bringing in 60 new guys. It was really a huge challenge and I realized the challenge was not going to come from their football prowess, because I knew we would find guys that can play really good football, it was going to come from how quickly we could unite those guys, bring them together, get them to believe in each other, get them to know each other on a personal level so that they can play for the person next to them, not just the position and the player next to them. We spent a ton of time really involving ourselves in each other’s lives. To show up down here and have one more chance to spend a little time together, I’m really excited and I know that we all feel blessed to be able to do that. When I had a chance to go to the bowl game last year, it was a lot of purple there. All of our home games were sold out this year and I imagine there will be a whole lot of purple down here this week as well. I’m excited to get a chance to see our players with their families and us to get a chance to spend some time together off the field. Obviously this is a business trip and this is something that we are very excited to have an opportunity to win the first bowl game ever in the history of our storied program. I’m just blessed to be able to do it down here against a great opponent in front of some really great fans. On behalf of everyone at James Madison, I’m just thankful for everyone here at ESPN, Doug [Mosley], Paige [Kornblue] and everyone that is volunteering to help…I’m excited to get a chance to experience what Coach Helton has over the past two times he has been here. Just thankful, blessed, and excited to represent James Madison on this stage.”

On how the team will balance work and fun

“The fun and the reward was really happening at the beginning when we had two weeks to really try to make sure we managed it well. We didn’t want to turn it into 15 spring practices jammed in the middle and conditioning at the end, we wanted to make sure this was something they felt honored to be able to do and felt that were taking care of them physically and mentally throughout that period. That’s really where that initially came from. When we get down here, there will be some downtime, there will be some events that we’re excited to partake in, but ultimately when it’s time to get on that field and in the meeting room and to practice, it’s a business trip when it’s all said and done, but I’m excited to spend some time with them off the field. During the typical day, they have classes and there are other things, they’ll come back for meetings, but you don’t get as much time together. You definitely don’t get them and their families and to see them interacting with their parents and that’s a pretty special moment that I’m excited to share with a lot of them before many of them that have one year left or their final game to go their separate ways. There is a balance, but when it’s work time, it’s work time.”

On how the Boca Raton Bowl helps recruiting in the South Florida area

“Everywhere I have been, this has been fertile recruiting ground. The football that is played here, the caliber of football played here, the types of players that come from here and just how serious they take it, a lot of these high school programs are run like college programs, so you have an opportunity to bring some guys in that know and understand what the weight room is like and understand what playing on only one side of the ball might be like and how deep they can get into the intricacies of that position and then also special teams play…Down here, they see football in a very different way, not only in their ability athletically, but also the programs they come from, the development that happens here from these coaches is absolutely phenomenal and have been a big part of my career in the recruiting we have been able to do down here.”

On what winning the Howard Schnellenberger Trophy would mean

“Ours comes with a little more gravity because this would be our first ever bowl win in the history of the program, so there’s a lot that is behind this.”

On what he will tell the seniors in the locker room before the game

“To enjoy these moments, because it’s their last game. Obviously, they have aspirations of playing at that next level, but none of that’s guaranteed. It’s your last chance to do this together from this team, to be able to enjoy it, to know that there will be ups and downs throughout the game but there will ups and downs throughout the game of life and to make sure that they cherish all of those moments and when something tough hits, to love every minute and attack it again. Those are conversations we have almost daily that this very much reflects what life will bring them each and every game and to have a chance to have one more of them is a big piece of it. Those guys, if this is their last game, I think it’s important that they take those shoulder pads off slowly because when they come out of the other side of that, they may not be in them again, so it’s important that they all cherish every moment they have out there.”

On what the first program bowl win would mean

“It would mean a lot. We had an opportunity last year, we were not yet bowl eligible to play but then we were allowed in to the bowl game and came up short against a great Air Force team. This one being in the first year that we’re bowl eligible; to have an opportunity to win this would be a big deal for everybody and I think it would set the standard for the future as well.”

On what to watch in the matchup

“Every game takes its own shape and tells a different story. You can walk in with your introduction story to what the game can be and you’ll have a very different ending when it’s all said and done and it does come with a lot of different adjustments, a lot of different understandings of matchups that are happening on the field and what schemes we are employing that are working…[Helton] is a really good football coach, a really good football team that understands his mission and what he’s trying to do with the ball and it starts with the quarterback who doesn’t get frazzled a whole lot and there are very capable receivers that are on time and are accurate and do some really great things. We have to be able to play our best football, but ultimately the game will dictate how that all looks and if there’s weather involved, how does this whole thing play out, the natural grass. There are a lot of things we will all have to adjust to pretty quickly and get a really good understanding of in the first few minutes of that game.”

On one word to describe the Boca Raton Bowl experience

“Comradery, because whatever is about to happen and whatever we’re about to go through, we’re about to go through it together.”