Colton Joseph, Trequan Jones Shine as ODU Football Rolls Past N.C. Central, 54-6, in Home Opener

By Harry Minium

NORFOLK, Va. – Running back Trequan Jones set a school record with a 93-yard touchdown run, quarterback Colton Joseph was in midseason form and the defense was outstanding as Old Dominion rolled past North Carolina Central, 54-6, Saturday night in its football home opener.

Coming off a 27-14 loss at No. 20 Indiana, in which the offense failed to sustain drives, and the defense surrendered more than 500 yards, the Monarchs appeared to confirm the adage that a football team makes its most improvement between the opener and the second game.

Joesph, the redshirt sophomore from Newport Beach, California, completed 19-of-24 passes for 257 yards and three touchdowns and added 52 yards on 11 rushes and a touchdown before heading for the bench late in the third quarter.

Jones, a 5-foot-9, 183-pound junior who played the last two seasons at Georgia Military College, did not start but finished with five carries for 163 yards and three touchdowns.

Although N.C. Central (1-2) is an FCS school, the Eagles have a ton of cred. They have won an MEAC title, the Celebration Bowl and 27 games the last three seasons.

ODU (1-1) was dominant, however, amassing 545 yards to 238 for the Eagles. ODU outscored Central, 28-3, in the third quarter before the Monarchs cleared their bench.  

It was the most lopsided victory ever as a head coach for ODU's Ricky Rahne, who in his fifth season with the Monarchs. 

"I'm very pleased," Rahne said. "That's a good football team we beat tonight.

"I would not be surprised if at the end of the season they've won eight games. I would not be surprised if they don't lose another game this season."

Rahne was especially pleased with Joseph and both the offensive and defensive lines.

"We controlled the line of scrimmage, especially in the second half, and that was a challenge I put on both the offensive and defensive lines and they really stepped up," he said. 

"He made great decisions all night tonight," Rahne added, when asked about Joseph. "There was maybe one decision that maybe I didn't love. Other than that, he was making great decisions and making them with confidence.

"You were seeing him getting through all of his progressions and he was very confident in the run game."

Leading, 16-3, the Monarchs took any doubt away on their first possession of the second half as Jones took a simple dive over the right side, broke two early tackles, then sprinted untouched the rest of the way for a 93-yard TD rush.

ODU is 9-0 against FCS teams since moving to FBS in 2014, but two of the last three games, against Texas A&M Commerce (now East Texas A&M) two years ago and Norfolk State in 2019, came down to the final minutes before being decided.

Jones said he had never rushed for 163 yards in a single game and he wasn't just being modest when he praised his offensive line. 

"I never did anything like this before and for sure, I've got the thank my O line," he said. "They deserve it. I couldn't have done this without them."

The game began poorly for the Monarchs, as Joseph fumbled the ball away on their first drive and ODU went three and out on the second.

Central then drove deep into ODU territory but on fourth down at the two, safety Mario Easterly and linebacker Jahleel Culbreath tackled Chris Mosley short of the first down.

Later on, backed up deep in their territory, the Eagles were forced to attempt a punt and Central punter Brandon Bowman bobbled the snap and was tackled in the end zone for a safety with 5:21 left in the first quarter.

Jones then capped a seven-play, 62-yard drive with a 39 yard burst for a touchdown three minutes later to make it 9-0.

"The blocking was so good that I told Trequan that I could have scored on that play," Rahne said. "I probably would have pulled a hamstring but the bottom line is our offensive line played really well." 

Central threatened to score on its next possession, driving to the ODU three, where the Eagles had a fourth and inches. Quarterback Walker Harris tried a QB sneak but he was stacked up by defensive lineman Chris Forbes and Christopher Spencer.

ODU’s defense then set up the offense again nicely as safety Jerome Carter, a sophomore from Lake City, Florida, intercepted a Harris pass, setting up a seven play, 69-yard TD drive.

Joseph tossed a six-yard TD pass to sophomore wide receiver Na’eem Abdul-Rahim Gladding, and just like that, it was 16-0 with 2:30 left in the first half.

"It was a great win," Joseph said. "Everyone played well, our offense, defense and special teams."

ODU next plays at Virginia Tech Saturday night before taking the following weekend off. The Monarchs then host Liberty on Sept. 27.

"We've just got to keep rolling," Joseph said. "We've got to put this week behind us and get ready for Virginia Tech."

Notes: Tre Brown tackled NCCU punter Brandon Bowman in the end zone for a safety to get ODU on the board … It was ODU’s first safety since the 2023 regular season finale win over Georgia State … Brown would later block a punt to give ODU its 16^th blocked punt since 2021 …  Trequan Jones scored his first career touchdown with a 39-yard run in the first quarter … Jones’ second touchdown run tied the ODU record for longest play in program history, with a 93-yard score … Jones added a 14-yard touchdown run for his third score of the game. He had five carries for 163 yards and three touchdowns …  Colton Joseph’s 45-yard pass to Tre Brown from the ODU 1 is the Monarchs’ longest pass play of the season … Jerome Carter registered his first career interception in the second quarter. ODU’s first interception of the season … Brandon Crutchfield’s third quarter interception was the first of his career … Ja’Cory Thomas caught a career high six passes for 86 yards, while Tre Brown caught four passes for 74 yards … TJ Lott caught his first career passes with four for 54 and a touchdown … Tight End Dawson Johnson had his first career reception … Riley Callaghan’s 47-yard field goal tied his career long … Mario Easterly and Seth Naotala led the defense with seven tackles apiece … AJ Ashworth forced his forced his first career fumble, while Chris Forbes recovered his first career fumble … Jeremy Mack notched a sack for the second-straight game … The 54 points scored were the most score by ODU since a 56-34 win over Charlotte in 2021 … The 48-point win was the largest margin of victory since a 63-point win over VMI.