2015
Old Dominion
College Football
Betting Preview
Schedule and Odds
Old Dominion battled in almost every Game last year, due in large part to a high-scoring offense. That led to a 6-6 record, but no bowl Game. With a new quarterback, the Monarchs are projected at 4.5 wins (at 5Dimes), but the over is at -185. Their Schedule is similar to last season, but everything could come down to how the new quarterback plays.
Redshirt freshman Shuler Bentley won the job in preseason and ran a similar spread offense in high school, but filling Four-year starter Taylor Heinicke’s spot will be far from easy. It’s likely Old Dominion will take a more run-eccentric approach with a new quarterback. Running back Ray LAwry (947 yards, 7.1 ypc, 16 TDs) really came on late in 2014 and is expected to get a heavy workload. LAwry was the Conference USA Rookie of the Year last year. He’ll run behind a stout offensive line that returns five guys with starting experience, has plenty of depth and a couple all-Conference candidates.
The passing Game should be solid again, although depending on a freshman will come with some hiccups. Bentley will at least have some solid receivers to work with in Zach Pascal (59 receptions, 743 yards, 7 TDs) and David Washington (599 yards, 4 TDs). The Monarchs stayed in most Games last year with a solid offense and that’ll need to continue if they want six wins again.
The defense is another story for ODU as they allowed 38 points per Game in 2014 and a main reason the offense had to Scorea ton. The Monarchs gave up at least 40 points in seven of their first nine Games if that says anything. A problem for this team is that they are one of the youngest in the nation and that shows up on the defensive end, even with six returning starters.
They struggled in all areas last year from creating turnovers to getting to the opposing QB. Improvement was noticed in the final few Games, but that’s not saying much. Their standout player is linebacker T.J. Ricks, who is actually a former walk-on. The line returns a few starters, but the secondary may see the most improvement with two seniors slated to start and UAB transfer Devon Brown at cornerback.
ODU doesn’t have an overwhelming Schedule, which should help a lot in them surpassing Four wins and reaching last year’s mark from their first FBS season. In non-Conference play, the Monarchs get the bonus of only having to travel in one Game, and that comes at lowly Eastern Michigan. While they have to travel to Marshall in their first C-USA Game, everything else is favorable for the Monarchs, especially as they draw Southern Miss, UTSA and UTEP in crossover play.
The Monarchs are young, have a new quarterback and will likely have a bad defense again, but a nice Schedule mixed with a solid running Game should produce some wins. Although, that doesn’t mean they’ll be reaching a bowl Game this season.
2015 Old Dominion Football Schedule
Sept. 5 at Eastern Michigan
Sept. 12 vs. Norfolk State
Sept. 19 vs. NC State
Sept. 26 vs. Appalachian State
Oct. 3 at Marshall
Oct. 17 vs. Charlotte
Oct. 24 at Florida International
Oct. 31 vs. Western Kentucky
Nov. 7 at UTSA
Nov. 14 vs. UTEP
Nov. 21 at Southern Miss
Nov. 28 vs. Florida Atlantic