NORFOLK, Va. – In case you've been listening to the internet rumor mill, let's clear the air – some rumors that have circulated in social media about Old Dominion's football schedule have been false. Virginia Tech's football team will indeed play at ODU this fall.
And the Monarchs will play their best home schedule ever.
After opening at South Carolina on August 31, the Monarchs host regional rival East Carolina on Sept. 7 before hosting the Hokies on Sept. 14.
And that is just the beginning. ODU's Sun Belt schedule includes a home game with rival James Madison and long-time Conference USA and now Sun Belt rival Marshall. Georgia Southern and Texas State round out the home schedule.
ODU travels to Bowling Green on Sept. 28 and will also venture to Georgia State, Appalachian State, Coastal Carolina and Arkansas State on dates yet to be named. Dates for the Sun Belt schedule won't be announced until March.
Season tickets are expected to go on sale in mid to late March after the annual GamePlan letter is mailed to season-ticket holders and Old Dominion Athletic Foundation members.
And with Tech, JMU and ECU on the schedule, I'd expect season ticket sales to be brisk. Both in 2018 and 2022, when the Hokies played at ODU, the games sold out to season ticket holders. Season ticket holders are offered access to single-game tickets before they go on sale to the public and they purchased all available.
So, if you want to see the Monarchs and Hokies in person, your only sure bet is to buy a season ticket, or open your wallet and fork out a ton of money to a ticket wholesaler such as Vivid Seats or StubHub.
Tech leads the series with ODU, 3-2, but lost both games in Norfolk.
ODU head football coach Ricky Rahne notes to the Monarchs will play 10 teams that went to bowl games. The two that didn't go to a bowl were South Carolina, which finished 5-7 after winning two of its last three SEC games, and ECU, which loaded up in the transfer portal and should be very good this fall.
ODU head football coach Ricky Rahne
"It's a very challenging schedule," Rahne said. "The first game is obviously going to be a great environment for our kids. When I coached at Vanderbilt, I thought South Carolina had the most consistently loud environment.
"I would hope, given our home schedule, that we will sell out. I would hope season tickets would be the highest they have been in years."
Dr. Wood Selig, ODU's director of athletics and Bruce Stewart, the deputy athletic director who oversees scheduling for football "have done a great job of giving fans what they want.
"Our fans have been clamoring for regional rivalries and our schedule is full of them."
Looking Back at the 2023 Football Season
ODU's 38-35 overtime loss to Western Kentucky in the Famous Toastery Bowl was a difficult way to end to the 2023 season.
But I hope, a little more than a month into the New Year, that fans, players and coaches can look at things with a sense of perspective. And the fact is, in spite of how it ended, the 2023 football season was an unexpected success for ODU.
Many of you may have forgotten just how inexperienced and young this team was. Of 116 players on the roster, half were newcomers. ODU returned just nine starters and did not have a quarterback who had ever started a college football game or ever taken a snap in an FBS game.
Sun Belt Conference coaches picked ODU 14th among the 14 league schools.
ODU faced one of the most difficult schedules among the Group of Five.
Seven of ODU's eight Sun Belt East foes went to bowl games. In addition, the Monarchs played two ACC teams and Liberty, which finished the regular season unbeaten and played in the Fiesta Bowl.
The Monarchs played in a Division I record 11 one-score games and won six of the 11. And in the process, they delivered some of the most stirring comeback victories ever seen at S.B. Ballard Stadium.
ODU salvaged a 38-31 victory over Louisiana with a stout defensive stand in the final minutes – the Ragin' Cajuns had a first down and goal at the ODU six. Four plays later, Louisiana was still at the six.
ODU had never beaten Appalachian State, one of the Sun Belt's premiere programs, but knocked off the Mountaineers, 28-21, on a 16-yard run by Keshawn Wicks with 48 seconds left.
In their 11th game of the season, the Monarchs won at Georgia Southern on a last-second Ethan Sanchez field goal.
Facing a must-win situation against Georgia State to claim a bowl bid in the regular-season finale, the Monarchs scored three times in the final 1:37 to beat the Panthers, 25-24, and claim their first bowl bid since 2021.
Rahne knows that some ODU fans tend to think of the ones that got away rather than the games that ODU rallied to win.
"We let one slip away against Western Kentucky and I should have found a way to win that game," he said.
"We need to figure out why we closed out some games and why we didn't in others."
The team will focus on creating habits during spring practice that he hopes will lead to closing out games stronger.
"We've talked about it as an organization, that one of the things we want to do from a mentality standpoint is we just want to always finish in a dominant position," he said.
"So, it's like when you're running a rep, you just don't glide to the finish line because you're winning by two yards. You try to win by three. When you're doing your last squat, do it with the same power and intensity that you had in the first four reps.
"Don't just glide in the last few minutes of a meeting and close up your notebook. Take notes until the last possible second.
"There are some things I will keep to myself right now that we need to work on. We will practice differently not only in the spring but certainly in the fall.
"I think those things will help us out."
Two ODU Fans Stood Out at Famous Toastery Bowl
As was the case two years ago at the Myrtle Beach Bowl, the Monarchs had the home field advantage in Charlotte as ODU fans dwarfed those from WKU at the Famous Toastery Bowl.
Two fans with whom I have personal connections with, in particular, stood out to me.
Mindy and Frank Zigenfuss.
Mindy Zigenfuss attended the game in spite of the recent death of her husband, Frank Zigenfuss, an ODU graduate and ODAF member and long-time football and basketball season ticket holder.
Frank, who was 73, passed away after a brief illness in November, but managed to attend two home games before illness kept him away. Frank and Mindy were high school sweethearts who met at Norview High School and were married shortly after graduating.
Frank was a founding member of the Norview High School Alumni and Friends Association, which provides scholarships to Norview students and facilitates reunions and other events.
"At ODU bowl game in Charlotte. I know Frank would have been here. Glad I was able to attend," Mindy wrote on Facebook before the game began.
But later on, she noted a feeling that a lot of ODU fans shared: "The refs are killing us!" she posted.
True indeed. Some curious late calls hurt the Monarchs.
Another fan who deserves a tip of the hat is Carolyn Eakin, who was accompanied by her husband, Larry. You may recall a story I did on them making a trip to the Bahamas Bowl in 2016 in 24 hours, which is an amazing feat. They were in the Bahamas less than nine hours.
Virginia Beach couple to attend ODU bowl game in just 24 hours
Carolyn, who worked 30 years at ODU before retiring in 2017, has since had numerous health issues and has fractured her back five times in the last few years. Going to a home game can be a painful experience for Carolyn, so imagine making a five-hour drive to Charlotte and then sitting through a three-hour game.
Larry and Carolyn Eakin at the Famous Toastery Bowl.
So why did she make the trip? "I wanted to see ODU play in a bowl game," she said. "I'm going to live my life" in spite of her health problems," she added.
"When we first got married, she worried that folks in my family seemed so much tougher than her," Larry said. "We would get hurt, get injured, and often wouldn't go see a doctor.
"I've told her that she's tougher than any of us ever were. She is one tough lady. Even her doctors who deal with this stuff all the time say that.
"I'm really proud of her. She could have played linebacker."
Alongside Mindy.
Contact Minium at hminium@odu.edu or follow him on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram
Minium: Contrary to Any Rumors You May Have Heard, ODU Will Host Virginia Tech Tech Football This Fall
