(Photo credit: Hannah Pajewski-USA TODAY Sports)

James Madison dropped a threat of legal action following a loss to Appalachian State that knocked the Dukes from the ranks of the unbeaten.

Legal action was threatened on the premise that the NCAA bowl ban violates antitrust laws. James Madison, which was ranked 18th in the AP poll entering last week, had its pursuit of a bowl eligibility waiver denied last week. But the bigger loss was on the field to Appalachian State, the school said in a statement.

“Based on consultation with and advice of our outside counsel, the loss to Appalachian State University on Saturday changed the landscape in terms of the nature and timing of our legal options, including the diminished viability of a lawsuit against the NCAA,” the statement said.

Last week, Virginia AG Jason Miyares sent a demand letter on behalf of JMU to the NCAA.

“We are prepared to act on behalf of JMU in the unfortunate circumstance that JMU’s request for relief is not timely approved,” said the letter, which was obtained by ESPN on Nov. 16. “Specifically, JMU is prepared to promptly file a lawsuit in the Western District of Virginia asserting that the bowl ban violates the antitrust and, potentially, other laws.”

James Madison, which is in Harrisonburg, Va., will be eligible for the College Football Playoff rankings after this season. Transition eligibility requires a program wrap up its second season of a required two-year transition period from the Football Championship Subdivision to the Football Bowl Subdivision.

The Dukes are 10-1 but are not in the College Football Playoff rankings due to the transition eligibility.

The Dukes could still be invited to a bowl game.

They would be eligible for bowl bid consideration only if not enough teams finish with records of .500 or better to stock the 41 bowl games.

–Field Level Media