Last season the Old Dominion football team opted to not play in the 2020 season due to COVID concerns. The Monarchs had hired Rickey Rahne, the former offensive coordinator at Penn State prior to the 2020 season. However, Rahne is only now getting his first real season of coaching underway at Old Dominion due to cancelling last season.
While the Monarchs are picked to finish 7th (last) in Conference USA’s East Division, thus far they are 1-1 with a loss to Wake Forest in their opener, 42-10, and a win against Hampton, 47-7.
It had been 651 days since the the last time they played at home prior to the game against the Pirates this past Saturday. In their home opener win, the offense had 572 yards of offense with 358 on the ground. QB D.J Mack ran for 57 yards, three touchdowns and one passing score as he led the way for the offense.
Key Players:
Old Dominion is relying heavily on transfers this year, including 6’3″ 230 pound dual threat QB D.J Mack, a transfer from Central Florida. Mack’s total stats in two games for the Monarchs this season: 18-43 passing for 201 yards, 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions on the season. He also has 70 yards rushing and another three touchdowns on the ground.
RB Elijah Davis has 20 carries for 144 yards on the season. The former Heritage High School product in Lynchburg, Virginia strongly consider the Flames before committing to ODU out of high school.
LB Jordan Young is the Monarch’s best defensive player with 85 tackles two years ago as a freshman. Look for Young to be active against Liberty.
Another intriguing transfer is LT Tyran Hunt from Maryland. Hunt is 6’7″ 312 pounds and could be a factor on the offensive line of Old Dominion.
Old Dominion enters Williams stadium as a 27.5 pt underdog. Overall series is 1-1 between Liberty and ODU. The first meeting was 2013 with a Monarch’s win 21-17 in Norfolk. The latest meeting was in 2018 with a 52-10 Liberty win in the Flames’ first game as an FBS member as Liberty rolled at home.
