Virginia Tech has agreed to a 2-for-1 series against ODU. ODU will visit Blacksburg in 2016 and 2019, and VT will play in Norfolk in 2018. Reminder: ODU is jumping to 1-A in 2014, and they will play in Conference USA.
Loading ...How do you feel about Virginia Tech’s football series with Old Dominion?
Loading ...
VT playing Old Dominion anywhere only legitimizes Old Dominion as a football school and will help their recruiting. Everyone thinks it will help VT recruit in the 757 area, but I believe our playing Old Dominion will help their recruiting more.
So what if it does? ODU is NOT going to be beating us out for any 3*, 4* or 5* recruits. Not as long as they’re in Conference USA they’re not, anyway. We are still recruiting against other ACC schools and SEC schools. ODU is not going to sell their schedule against such heavyweights as Rice, Tulane, SMU, Southern Miss, and Houston and beat out schools who are pitching the opportunity to play against Alabama, Florida State, Florida, Miami, Georgia, Clemson, etc. It doesn’t matter how good ODU gets in CUSA, they’re not going to out-recruit us, North Carolina, or UVA in the 757 or anywhere else.
Repeat after me… ODU is not a threat to us. That typed… we’d better show up ready to play because they will have a chip on their shoulder and a strong belief they can win the game. And if history is any indicator, they CAN win the game. But in the grand scheme of things…. the long term recruiting game… no, they’re no threat to us whatsoever.
Pretty narrow view to think ODU cannot be a threat. Do you really think CUSA will be around in three years. Landscape is changing, and rapidly. Agree that ODU is behind the curve but with football time can be made up quick with the right backing. Norfolk is a minor league town, college football is minor league priced. Plus it gets major TV $$$. Watch UNC Charlotte and how fast that develops. The teams Hokie CPA neglected to mention UCF Marshall, Memphis those are the teams VT played when I went there. Big picture.
I see where this does some for VA Tech, getting to the 757 for those who can’t get to Blacksburg. I applaud coach Beamer and VA Tech for scheduling this series and all it will do to help ODU.
I would be concerned that the Hokie Nation undervalues ODU by 2018. Thought it was interesting that Hokie CPA does not think Norfolk could support a 50K seat stadium. ODU is a definite buy right now if you are selling you are crazy. I went to several ODU home games and what you dont see is people selling tickets they are all buying. I went to VT in 1989 and remember going to the Orange Bowl thinking Tech had reached its highest point. I thought no way would VT and Blacksburg be recognized nationally but all across the world. a I travel extensively and always seem to run into the “square root of 1,” somewhere. Thank you Mike Vick. One undefeated season a great player and a stadium expansion for ODU. Sound familiar 40 and over Hokie Nation??
I didn’t say the City of Norfolk couldn’t support a 50,000 seat stadium. You’re mixing apples and oranges there. I think if the right event were taking place in a municipal stadium, the Hampton Roads Communities would certainly support it.
But what I said was “once [ODU] expand[s] to a 50,000 seat stadium… they won’t be selling out every game.” They may continue to draw 35,000 to 40,000 when Tulane, Rice, or UAB come calling, but I doubt they sell out a 50,000 seat stadium for those games.
I love it because I’m from VB, almost went to ODU, and a FB game there (where I played in the VA AAA playoffs in HS) will be like going home – actually it will be going home.
As long as we are playing the games with a different offensive coordinator, I really don’t care who we play.
By then Billy Hite will be the only coach left from this years staff!!!
Great move. Two home games for one “away” game, which will be played where we recruit and where a significant number of our fans reside. Also very accessible for those in the Richmond area.
Should help with recruiting, and to blunt the 757 challenge from Hooville.
So, in my view, good from financial and recruiting perspectives, and will receive a great deal of interest throughout most of the Commonwealth.
Score one for Weaver.
As long as their QB Taylor Heinecke has graduated before we play. LOL.
I compare this to UVA’s new policy of taking a spring practice on the road to the 757 area. Good exposure to a very fruitful recruiting area and a game we should have no problem winning. If we can’t easily beat ODU then the problem is our program and not just where the game is played. We are used to playing in more hostile enviroments than Norfolk so I say let’s trust the decision Weaver and Beamer made and continue to dominate the Tidewater region.
Call me selfish but I don’t want to help an upstart program whose intent is to be the best in Virginia. That also goes for Liberty. The FCS schools are of no threat.
From a close friend who lives in Chesapeake and who has a son at ODU, I hear that the ODU program is already selling out Foreman Field. Sounds to me like there is a large and growing appetite to watch college football in the Tidewater market.
I recall George Welsh saying in the +/-1980s that Virginia was not big enough to support two major football programs. This was from a recruiting perspective. If we had the draw say of an Alabama, I might feel differently.
Do not understand our reluctance to play the likes of a BYU over an upstart program that is located in our State’s recruiting hotbed.
Maybe of immediate concern but I definitely see it as having negative long term ramifications.
A quid pro quo thing?
It’s not hard to sell out a 20,000 seat stadium on a campus with 26,000 students in a region of about 2 million residents. Seriously… ODU has had some success as a I-AA program, but they’re not going to maintain but so well in CUSA… and once they expand to a 50,000 seat stadium, ,they won’t be selling out every game.
Welsh was probably correct 30 years ago. and back then, programs were allowed 105 scholarships. And, ……the cream of the Commonwealth were “scooped up” by out of state programs.
Lots has changed since then, to include the quality of high school ball and the number of “ballers” themselves.
Population has grown tremendously in 25 years as well.
Would not like home-and-home with ODU. In either case, scheduling ODU gives all the more reason to cancel games with ECU, especially at ECU.
Seems to be a good strategic recruiting move for VT.
It’s a no win game. How many times did we beat JMU by a landslide yet nobody remembers those games. They only remember the one we lost. The team won’t be up for the game and if we win it will be because we should have won but if we lose or even if it’s close….
Why don’t we play ODU in basketball?
We stopped playing ODU in basketball because shen we did they usually beat us.
2016 could be an expensive year with 8 home games….from Futures Schedules
Home:
Sep. 10: Wisconsin
Sep. 17: ECU
Liberty
ODU
Duke
GT
UVA
ACC TBD
Away:
BC
UNC
Miami
Pittsburgh
Liberty AND ODU coming to Lane in the same year? This is a joke, right? A test to see if we’re paying attention.
I know JW likes to play other schools in Virginia to keep the money in state. Very altruistic. I understand the reasoning.
But this philosophy does not balance well with having a strong strength of schedule. And as others have pointed out, if we win who cares(?), but if we lose we’re embarrassed in front of the whole nation.
This thing is a two edge sword, and I’d just as soon stay away from it.
BTW, JW, when are you going to retire? If I let you beat me in a $5 shuffleboard game, would that advance the due date?
You’ve got to remember that ODU will be in Conference USA beginning in 2014. It will be the same as playing Marshall or ECU.
Been trying to remind people of that, but it doesn’t seem to be taking hold. People have GOT to STOP thinking of ODU as a I-AA program, because they aren’t anymore. They’re recruiting right now as a I-A program, able to carry 85 scholarship football players.
Yep. And their 2013 class features nine 2-stars and nine 0-stars. CUSA isn’t really a draw. They will beat Temple and Marshall for recruits, but not VT.
If we have to play non-BCS schools I prefer to see us play in-state schools rather than directional schools and 1-AA from out of state. I thought Weaver had once said he would never schedule out of state 1-AA schools, and then Austin Peay ends up on the schedule. I know it was a last minute replacement for ECU, so maybe that was all he could find. I’m not sure we should ever play a state team other than the Hoos on the road, but I can see some benefit to okaying in Norfolk, where we once played the occasional game in the old “Oyster Bowl,” if memory serves.
ODU beats playing Liberty
I’d rather have ODU PLAY Liberty and beat them, not us.
VA Beach could get Sacramento Kings with new arena. Jacksonville Jaguars could be next, Maybe there’ll be an NFL stadium in the tidewater by then?
I am pretty sure VB is just being used as leverage for the NBA deal. That is what an in the know developmer told me, anyway. The ODU deal should work well for recruiting…totally different than UVAs lame effort of dragging everyone to Tidewater to practice.
can we get weaver started on setting up the away game on an aircraft carrier?
Just as long as it isn’t in a humid climate… the even this year in Charleston, SC was a big bust. I bet we’d play tOSU and they would just sit there while our guys take initiative and help dry off the court.
well, i don’t think they’ll be concerned with grass, versus hardwood
I’m for playing any in state school (W&M, JMU, ODU, UR, etc) as our scrub teams on the schedule. As season ticket holders, don’t make me answer the wife’s question “Who?” when we drive down to play Arkasas State, Austin Peay, Western Michigan, Akron, FL A&M, Furman, WKU, etc.
If we have to play those type games, there will be at least some interest in the week leading up to the game with an in-state school as the local fans come out of the woodwork to yap up about their teams in the office, gym, etc. I’ll take that conversation any day over fan apathy. The tailgate in ’99,’03,’10 for JMU and W&M in ’07 was much more fun with opposing fans that cared about the game and came to support.
When we play ODU It will be their Superbowl. Who cares, just win.
MR. Coleman -
HECK YEAH!!!!
757 exposure helps anytime we can get it, and as one of the others stated, why not ODU vs East Carolina.
ODU is much preferred over ECU… Keep the love in state.
Best to Hokie Nation
/r
Slim
There is a reason why most big programs don’t play in state scrub teams (or whatever you want to call ODU). VT beating ODU means nothing, nada, zippy… other than avoiding a bad loss to a program of clearly lesser stature. An ODU win over VT would be a program defining win, PLUS it would unleash a torrent of crap talk from fans of a JV program.
Don’t misinterpret my comments in any way to think that VT should be “scared” of ODU. That’s ridiculous. If VT & ODU meet with both teams having proper planning and motivation, VT will crush them. But we all know that big time programs sometimes sleepwalk through games like this. God forbid that VT sleepwalk thru another game against a rinky-dink program and lose. Seems to happen once a decade or so. It’s one thing to drop a game to some crap team that nobody cares about (think WKU, ECU, Miami Ohio, Bowling Green, etc.) It’s something else to drop that turd in state.
It seems we must play games like this… against sub-standard competition. Let’s not play a team in state that would treat it as the Super Bowl.
So it’s simple:
Win the game!
No back talk – fecal or otherwise.
No mess on the instate floor.
So scared of losing: we should play Montana CC, or Hawaii-Hilo Prep. Newsflash friend – if we even schedule those types our peers and instate rivals are already laughing at us!!!
Just win the game and thrash them soundly!
How quickly you forget how VaTech (big program) LOST to James Madison (Scrub School-sub standard ) in 2010, 21 – 16. But WAIT ALSO Appalachian State (Scrub School – sub standard ) in 2011 66 – 13! LOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL………….
Luring your opponent into underestimating your ability until, overconfident, he drops his guard. Then you may attack. Hence your loss in 2010 & 2011!
2011 Loss to Appy State??? Wanna try that again?
LOL! Doesn’t matter! You lost!! I can change a typo but you can’t change that loss! LOL
VT beat ASU 66-11.
We dominated App State.
And that’s the point. Who cares? Obviously BraggHokie is clueless. (Sorry for the slam, Bro. Too easy)
The “woods people” win this one. Helps preserve the trees around Lane. I don’t think the AD or the HC want to upgrade anything.
Need a response “I don’t like it but I understand it.” VT’s in-state ties (i.e., UVA) got it into the ACC. VT is going to have to do a lot of giving back to in-state institutions, and that includes playing them on terms that are more favorable than they would otherwise get. Just a fact of life.
I want a “I don’t hate it.” selection.
VT already does a lot for other schools in state. ODU had nothing to do with VT getting into the ACC. At this point, VT does not owe UVA or ODU. There are no facts to back VT having to “give back.” However, Virginia Tech has always chosen to support other instate institutions and I commend them for that. None of this should be considered an obligation though.
Considering ODU will be Division I-A and a member of CUSA and their stadium is expected to be doubled or more in capacity by the time we have to play at their house, why not? It’s no different than playing a 2-for-1 against ECU, Marshall, Southern Mississippi, Miami-OH, Western Michigan, or any other Div. I-A mid-major opponent. I don’t get all the griping.
Besides by then 2016, ODU will be in the BIG EAST!
Or they could take BC’s place in the ACC.
Or they could take OUR place in the ACC.
…and I’ll have another… :)
+1
you don’t see Florida State playing at Florida Atlantic, Auburn playing at UAB, USC playing at Fresno State, etc.
Well, the game is in the 757, which has recruiting implications.
Actually FSU played USF in Tampa this year. they won 30-17.
USF is in a BCS conference (at the moment, at least)
Apparently, we are not Florida State, Auburn, or USC and can’t exactly dictate terms like those guys can. Either that or we’re interested in playing just a little better quality opponent than Jacksonville State or Troy at home every year.
Miami played Fl. Atl. or Intl. 3 or 4 years in a row. FSU played USF. Many other big state schools do the same thing.
USC played Fresno State during the Reggie Bush era. Great game. I know, it was AT USC.
It beats playing ECU, what 8 years in a row? I’m sure JW is quite pleased since Norfolk is east of the Mississippi. I still can’t believe he scraped a 1 for 1 with BYU.
I like it simply because they are the new kid on the block. They’ll be legitimate by then, in that they will no longer be 1-AA and look forward to it, and hopefully there will be tickets available in Norfolk…but I doubt it. Don’t really understand what the big deal about not play BYU is though.
Look up charleston Southern and FSU…it makes ODU look great
Or the Chattanooga Mocs , another FSU opponent…