2 weeks Ago
NORFOLK — It was an inauthentic football game that lasted just over an hour, but Old Dominion’s annual spring game proved valuable to sixth-year Monarchs coach Ricky Rahne.Beneath a sunny sky on a warm Saturday afternoon at S. B.
Ballard Stadium, ODU pitted its offense and defense against each other for a carefully orchestrated scrimmage.The game, known formally as the Priority Charity Bowl, was the culmination of 15 spring practices, marking the start of some down time for the players.Though Saturday’s event was important to Rahne, the bigger picture outweighs it.
“You don’t really judge it on today,” Rahne said. “I thought the guys played competitive today. I thought we played fast and showed some violence.
It’s more about all the 15 practices combined, and I thought we got better across the board. That’s the big takeaway for me.”Highlights for the blue-clad offensive players included a 5-yard touchdown run by incumbent starting quarterback Colton Joseph and a 12-yard scoring run by running back Bryce Duke.
Old Dominion wide receiver Titus Myers leaps for a pass in the end zone against cornerback Langston Williams on Saturday. (Mike Caudill/Frealance)Special-teams plays were interspersed throughout the game, and no statistics were made public.Notably, All-American linebacker Jason Henderson, who missed nearly all of last season with an injury, was back on the field in front of a crowd for the first time since the 2024 season opener at South Carolina.
“I’m not going to go say I’m 100%,” said Henderson, the program’s career tackles leader. “It’s football. You’re only 100% on Day 1.
Everyone has bumps and bruises, but I feel good.”The Monarchs went 5-7 last season after going 6-7 and reaching a bowl game in 2023.Rahne has compiled a 20-30 record in four seasons on the sideline since coming to ODU before the COVID-canceled 2020 season.
He has taken the Monarchs to the postseason twice, but hasn’t finished a season with a winning record.Asked whether he feels pressure to win this season, Rahne was blunt.“I always feel pressure to win.
I mean that in seriousness,” he said. “I always feel pressure to win. Nobody puts more pressure on winning than I do.
I’m blessed that I’m the longest-tenured coach in the Sun Belt, and with that comes pressure, and I know that. And I accept that. In today’s college football, I think there’s pressure on these first-year coaches, too.
”Joseph, a redshirt sophomore from Newport Beach, California, passed for 1,627 yards, 11 touchdowns and five interceptions last season.He doesn’t take his job for granted.“You can’t be complacent,” Joseph said.
“Any starter’s job is his to lose. As soon as you let off, as soon as you take your foot off the neck, it could be gone in an instant.”Shortly after the game, and before the players held a meet-and-greet with fans, punter Ian Brandt was given a scholarship.
Henderson, a redshirt senior, knows he’s increasingly a rarity in college football in that he’s been at the same school for five years.Old Dominion linebacker Jason Henderson gets a microphone taped to his pads during ODU’s spring game Saturday. (Mike Caudill/Freelance)The spring transfer portal opened Wednesday, and players around the country are seeking new opportunities and greener pastures.
Henderson doesn’t see it that way.“The truth is the grass is greener where you water it,” Henderson said. “So whether I stay here or whether I go into the portal, it’s all going to be dependent upon how I make it and what I do with my experience there.
So I’m happy where I am.”David Hall, david.hall@pilotonline.
com..
