NORFOLK, Va. – When Old Dominion's football team visits Coastal Carolina Saturday, it will be familiar environs for the Monarchs. Last season, ODU played in the Myrtle Beach Bowl, hosted by Coastal Carolina.
And although the Monarchs fell to Tulsa, 30-17, it was regarded by most as a positive experience. The Monarchs brought more than 5,000 fans, an impressive fete, and generally played well in their first bowl games in five years.
But it was a nightmarish night for wide receiver Ali Jennings III, who caught six passes for 76 yards, but had one big miscue,
Jennings hauled in a third-quarter pass from quarterback Hayden Wolff and was about to score when Tulsa's Tyon Davis caught him from behind and punched the ball out of the end zone for a touchback.
Instead of ODU pulling within six points of the Golden Hurricane, Tulsa got the ball back with a 13-point lead.
The six-hour bus ride back to Norfolk was the longest of his career.
"I've had nightmares about the last time we played there," he said, adding that he took some hits on social media.
"I took it on the chin," he said. "I didn't have the greatest game and we were playing on national television."
But Jennings didn't spend his time during the offseason moping around.
"It set a fire under me," he said. "It motivated me through the offseason. It made me go a little bit harder."
Coach Ricky Rahne spoke the truth when he said that play did not lose the game for ODU. "There were so many plays before and after that play," Rahne said after the bowl game. "No one play wins or loses a game.
"We wouldn't have gotten here were it not for Ali Jennings."
Last season, the transfer from West Virginia caught 62 passes for 1,066 yards and five touchdowns and was at his best in the five final regular-season games, all won by the Monarchs.
He enters Saturday's game with 32 catches for 688 yards and six touchdowns. And this time, there's been nothing but praise for Jennings on social media. He is first nationally in average receiving yards per game (137.6) and second in total receiving yards, in spite of ODU being off last week.
Still, he said the Myrtle Beach Bowl is not a pleasant memory.
"(Tyon Davis) made a great play," Jennings said. "I just got a little too comfortable. That won't ever happen again."
Jennings and his teammates are looking forward to taking on unbeaten Coastal (6-0, 3-0 Sun Belt) on national TV. The noon game will be televised by ESPNU. It will be the third time ODU (2-3, 1-0) has played on national TV this season.
"To be able to play a team that's undefeated, it's motivating for everyone on our team," said linebacker Jason Henderson, who leads the nation in tackling with 80. "And it's an exciting thing."
For Jennings, it's also a chance to earn some redemption.
"I definitely want to go back down there and put on my best performance," he said. "This is another chance to have a better game and help my team win."
Coastal Presents ODU With "Unique Challenges"
Coastal Carolina quarterback Grayson McCall is a handful for any team to try to deal with. Last season he set the FBS passing efficiency record of 207.6 and was second nationally with a 73 percent completion percentage.
This season, he has completed 111 of 160 passes for 1,582 yards and 15 touchdowns with just one interception.
But there's much more than just a great passer to the Coastal offense.
The Chanticleers often run the option, a difficult attack to stop, and has one of the Sun Belt's best running backs in C.J. Beasley, who has 524 rushing yards and six touchdowns.
Coastal has two big threats at wide receiver – Sam Pinckney (37 receptions, 510 yards, one TD) and Jared Brown (23 receptions, 475 yards, four TDs).
"It's good that we were off last week because it gave us a little more time to prepare," Rahne said. "They offer some unique challenges.
"You've got to be able to control the run against them. They're the No. 1 team in the country in turnovers created and No. 2 in turnover margin. And it's not just that they're not turning the ball over. They're creating turnovers.
"They're creating them by running to the ball. They've gotten some tipped pass interceptions because they're always running to the ball. They've recovered some fumbles that they they didn't cause because they're right there to get them.
"Turnovers are being created by how hard they're playing."
Beau Cowan Inspired Monarchs With his Life Story
Beau Cowan, an ODU fan confined to a wheelchair with cerebral palsy, had a rapt audience when he spoke briefly to the football team last week.
Cowan was called up to the front as players were celebrating the news that their new locker room facility would open on Sunday. But they quickly quieted down when Cowan played a brief video that graphically showed how difficult life is for him.
It showed him crawling from his bed to the toilet, then the bathtub and then showed him struggling to get dressed and into his wheelchair.
"My life is hard, very hard," he said. "But I've learned to accept it.
"Every day you get up is a win. Every day you wake up is a win."
He spoke to the team just six days after his mother died.
"She was so excited that I was going to speak to the football team," he said. "I was told I could postpone this, but I wanted to do it in her memory. I wanted to do it for her.
"I want all of you to run through walls for people who can't. When you're having a bad day, think about me and think, 'If he can do it, why can't I?"
Cowan began a Go-Fund-Me drive to raise money for his mother's funeral. As of Monday evening, he had raised $8,828 from 58 different people. Most of the donations came from people affiliated with the ODU baseball team – Cowan has been adopted by the baseball Monarchs.
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Minium: Ali Jennings Aims to Atone for Myrtle Beach Bowl Game Miscue at Coastal Carolina
