Old Dominion Football: New era kicks off for Monarchs in 2021

How will Old Dominion football fare in 2021?

It is difficult to predict how Old Dominion’s season will go after taking a year off. A first-year head coach and a youth movement will make present challenges to start.

Here is my game-by-game breakdown:

• Game 1: at Wake Forest (L) — Opening week on the road against a Power Five program is a tough place to be.
• Game 2: Hampton (W) — Ricky Rahne gets his first head coaching victory.
• Game 3: at Liberty (L) — Brutal road game against a Flames team coming off a 10-1 season a year ago.
• Game 4: Buffalo (L) — Bulls lose a lot but still should be able to handle the Monarchs.
• Game 5: at UTEP (W) — Monarchs earn a hard-fought road win and start 1-0 in conference
• Game 6: at Marshall (L) — The Thundering Herd are too much for the Monarchs.
• Game 7: Western Kentucky (L) — Another tough game and loss for Rahne’s team.
• Game 8: Louisiana Tech (L) — A bye week brings much-needed rest. Unfortunately, it does not yield better results for the Monarchs.
• Game 9: at Florida International (W) — This one goes to overtime and the Monarchs pick up their third victory of the year.
• Game 10: Florida Atlantic (L) — FAU will be a tough out and ultimately too much.
• Game 11: at Middle Tennessee State (L) — The Blue Raiders win to keep their bowl slim bowl hopes alive. That ship has long sailed for Old Dominion this season.
• Game 12: Charlotte (L) — Rahne’s first year ends with a close loss at home.

Prediction: 3-9, 2-6 C-USA

The non-conference slate is no joke. Besides Hampton, there are no guaranteed wins on the full schedule. The Monarchs will be moderate to heavy underdogs in most games.

With that said, Rahne and his staff had two years to bring it together. The recruiting has seen an uptick, finishing the 2021 class sixth in the conference per 247Sports. The Monarchs have also been using the transfer portal to their advantage.

We will go conservative with our three-win prediction. Remember this was a one-win team two years ago. The Monarchs have no pressure to win right away and can make the slow climb from the basement. There is enough talent here to pull off an upset, but a bowl bid is still a year or two away.