Week 2 Preview: Old Dominion vs. NC Central

A week removed from their 27-14 road loss to Curt Cignetti and the Indiana Hoosiers , Old Dominion returns to the friendly confines of Norfolk, Va. for their home opener against the NC Central Eagles.

This will be the first time the Monarchs and Eagles have faced off since Old Dominion defeated NC Central back in 2010, 33-21.

Old Dominion

Despite what the final score reads, the Monarchs put up a good fight against a team who appeared in the college football playoffs just a year prior. However, similar to their loss against the South Carolina in last years opener, the mistakes piled up for Old Dominion.

Old Dominion quarterback, Colton Joseph, accounted for 179 of the Monarchs rushing yards and notching two 70-plus yard touchdowns in the process. Despite a strong showing on the ground, Joseph struggled through the air, going 11 of 22 for 96 yards and 3 interceptions. The Monarchs struggled to get the ball moving on offense, netting only 10 first downs and giving the ball away on 9 of their 12 drives.

Monarchs safety, Jerome Carter led the team with nine solo tackles (11 total) with fellow safety, Nickendre Stinger racking up six solo tackles (eight total) and forcing a fumble. However, Old Dominion’s defense would allow the Hoosiers to put up 502 total yards, 309 of these yards gained on the ground and only netted one sack.

On top of the less than ideal showing on defense, penalties played a big role against the Monarchs. Old Dominion was assessed nine total penalties throughout the game which accounted for 65 yards and contributed to three of Indiana’s 30 first downs.

Monarchs Head Coach, Ricky Rahne, acknowledged the role that these penalties played into the games outcome.

“Obviously, we played a good football team and we made too many mistakes in order to beat that team on the road.” said head coach, Ricky Rahne ” They had some talent but we had a lot of self inflicted errors” Rahne continued

While a loss isn’t an ideal start to the season, Old Dominion is 13-3 in their home openers since the football program was revived in 2009.

NC Central

The NC Central Eagles will roll into Norfolk, Va. after dropping their home opener 27-10 to New Hampshire, bringing them to 1-1 to begin the season. Saturday they hope to right the ship and claim their first ever win against Old Dominion, and a Football Bowl Subdivision team in general.

While NC Central and New Hampshire seemed pretty evenly matched, with each team putting up similar numbers in both the running and passing game, there were two things that stood out that seemed to hurt the Eagles the most.

It seemed like their wasn’t much that the Eagles red zone defense could do. New Hampshire went a perfect three-for-three on redzone opportunities. Additionally, it seemed like the offense couldn’t find a rhythm, giving the ball back to New Hampshire on nine of their twelve drives.

Eagles quarterback Walker Harris struggled for much of the game going 13-for-33 for 172 yards with one touchdown and an interception. The games lone touchdown was hauled in by wide receiver Mekhi Wall on a long 65 yard bomb from Harris near the end of the third quarter.

Head Coach Trei Oliver lamented about the loss to New Hampshire.

“We made too many mistakes to beat a very good football team like that. We did some things that weren’t very characteristic of ourselves” said Oliver.

However, coach Oliver felt as though his team put up a good fight regardless of the outcome.

“I will say, I thought our guys did fight, I thought they competed for 60 minutes but it just wasn’t one of our better games” said Oliver.

Despite the loss, the Eagles have been a team that has turned heads in the MEAC lately, winning eight of their last ten games, dating back to last season. While only having one MEAC title to show, NC Central has been in the mix each year for the title and a birth to the Celebration Bowl.

NC Central at Old Dominion

Kickoff: Saturday, Sept. 6 at 6:00 p.m. EST

TV: ESPN+

Radio: 94.1 WVSP Locally

Click here for information on tickets. ODU fans can also contact the ticketing office at (757) 683-6963 or email the athletic department at ODUFootball@odu.edu