Game Information
Old Dominion Monarchs at Indiana Hoosiers (-22.5)
Total: 54.5 (O-110/U-110)
About the Monarchs
Head Coach: Ricky Rahne
Overall: entering 5th season, 20-30 overall
Bowl Appearances at Old Dominion: 2 (2021 and 2023)
2024 Record: 5-7 (4-4 in the Sun Belt)
Mascot: Big Blue
Colors: Slate blue, silver and light blue
Outfitter: Under Armour
National Titles: 0
Conference Titles: Zero
Heisman Winners: Zero
Last Week: N/A
Statistical Leaders
Passing: Colton Joseph (133 of 222 for 1,627 yards with 11 TDs and 5 INTs
Rushing: Colton Joseph (647 yards on 114 carries with 11 TDs)
Receiving: Devon Roche (7 receptions for 52 yards with 1 TD)
Tackles: Koa Naotala (88 tackles)
Stat of the Week
Playing at a power conference opponent to open the season is not new territory for the Monarchs. Last season, they took South Carolina in Columbia before falling 23-19 thanks to four turnovers including two inside of their own ten-yard line that gifted the Gamecocks 14 points. ODU outgained South Carolina and held their SEC foe to just 288 yards.
Monarchs Talking Points
- Breakout Quarterback
The starting quarterback for the Old Dominion Monarchs when they opened the 2024 season and nearly upset South Carolina was Grant Wilson. Wilson held the job for only three games before giving way to freshman Colton Joseph. Now a sophomore, Joseph is considered a potential breakout star this season in the Sun Belt and he’ll be a dangerous test for the IU defense.
Grant Wilson is now a backup for the Hoosiers and he could certainly provide a bit of information about the Monarchs but the focus for Bryant Haines will be on Wilson’s successor: Colton Joseph. Joseph will be dealing with a revamped wide receiver room and an offensive line that will probably struggle to stand up for 60 minutes against IU’s defensive pressure but he accounted for 2,274 total yards with 22 touchdowns last season.
Joseph excelled in the intermediate passing game with 10 of his 11 touchdown passes coming in the middle third of the field but it’s his ability to extend plays and drives with his legs that will be key. How will IU approach the mobile threat? Will we see Rolijah Hardy act as a spy or will the Hoosiers use a more creative approach and use someone like Amare Ferrell or will they just rely on the defensive line to create enough havoc that the running of Joseph is rendered irrelevant?
2. Strong Defense Will Test IU’s Offense
The Old Dominion Monarchs have the best linebacker unit in the Sun Belt with Jason Henderson a potential All-American after returning from injury and 2024’s leading tackler Koa Naotala joining Jaleel Culbreath and Mario Thompson to form a strong quartet. The defensive line isn’t bad but, as expected, they don’t have a lot of depth in size and IU’s big offensive line could lean on them. The weakness for this defense could be the secondary as they return only one starter from 2024.
The new players are probably coming from backups that transferred in from Purdue and Kansas State after not playing much at the power conference level. ODU will be trying to find ways to leverage the strength of their defense (linebackers) and minimize the potential weakness (secondary) as they take on IU’s new starting quarterback in his debut in Bloomington.
3. Turnovers and First Game Jitters
There are no preseason exhibition games in college football and there are no trial runs to work out the kinks and fight through the nerves. The first game counts just the same as the 12th. As well-prepared as we expect Indiana to be by Curt Cignetti and his staff, it is natural that there will be some hiccups with a new starting quarterback, a new center, a new pair of running backs in the rotation, new tight ends and a replenished receiver room beyond Elijah Sarratt and Omar Cooper.
Old Dominion is dealing with a bunch of new starters as well and the Monarchs will be playing on the road, hopefully trying to deal with a hostile crowd. ODU threw 12 interceptions and fumbled the ball 21 times (losing 11 of them) last season, finishing the campaign at minus .3 per game in turnover margin. That was tied for 80th in the nation while IU was sixth in the nation at plus-one per game.