Old Dominion Basketball

Being the all-time winningest coach in the history of the Old Dominion's men's basketball program was not enough for Blaine Taylor to save his job. 

According to the Associated Press, Old Dominion athletic director Wood Selig announced that, in his 12th season as head coach of the Monarchs, Taylor has been fired.

Selig also announced that associate head coach Jim Corrigan will take over head coaching duties, under the interim tag, for the remainder of the season.  

Taylor had led the Monarchs to 20 or more wins in seven of the last eight seasons. Under his guidance, the Monarchs had made the NCAA tournament four times, and in 2010, they advanced to the round of 32. 

His brand of physical defense and rebounding had clearly been working with the Monarchs, which makes the fact that less than two weeks ago, Selig gave Taylor a vote of confidence in this article by Ed Miller of The Virginian-Pilot. 

Despite that, this move was necessary. Old Dominion is absolutely terrible this season. It is just 2-20 on the year, and there aren't any signs of improvement. The Monarchs are on a 10-game losing streak. 

There is more to this story though, which Selig eluded to at his press conference and is captured in this tweet by Miller:  

Decision "not based solely on wins and losses" Selig

— Ed Miller (@edmillerva) February 5, 2013

It is hard not to point to an appearance that Taylor made in late January on his radio show on an ESPN Radio affiliate as being one of those off-the-court reasons. You can view the interview in this article by Timothy Burke of Deadspin. 

Taylor gave rambling, often nonsensical answers and slurred his words. 

I can't say for certain that Taylor's awkward appearance had anything to do with his dismissal, but something—judging by Selig's comment that it wasn't all about wins and losses—was going on behind the scenes. 

This had to be a tough decision for Old Dominion. Taylor has had outstanding success there, but he, for whatever reason, had lost the ability to reach his team. 

While Taylor's track record afforded him some leeway beyond one terrible season, this year was spinning out of control, and it looked like it was going to get worse. 

Old Dominion did what it could to prevent this disaster of a season from turning into a nightmare that could set the program back for years, and that is definitely the right call. 

Yesterday, the CAA held a press conference to talk about the eligibility of Old Dominion and Georgia State in this year's CAA Tournament and there was even some mention about the location of the CAA Tournament. 

First, let's talk about the eligibility issue.

The league presidents unanimously decided to uphold the conference's bylaw which states that no team who is departing from the conference may compete for the conference's championship and automatic NCAA bid, nor can they receive the conference's automatic NIT bid for winning the regular season.

The reason this bylaw was put in place was quite simple: to prevent a team who is leaving the CAA from being the sole representative of the conference on a national stage.

This is not a new bylaw either. It was first enforced back in 2001 when East Carolina, American, and Richmond decided to leave the CAA. None of the teams were allowed to compete in the CAA Tournament that season, including Richmond, who had been a five-time CAA champion up until that point. American University even sued the CAA over being banned from the tournament.

And yet, both ODU and Georgia State are complaining that the conference enforcement of the bylaw is unfair.

Ron Hunter, the coach of Georgia State, was quoted as saying, "The bad part is that this is the only league in the country where this is happening." 

Well Ron, that's both true and not true. Although I can't think of another conference that explicitly has a bylaw like this, the Horizon League had been looking into banning Butler from their postseason tournament, prompting the Bulldogs to speed up their move to the A-10. 

I would argue that the CAA has been much more fair than the Horizon League in this instance, as the rule was readily known about beforehand, is a physical written rule, and the CAA even listened and voted on a formal appeal of the bylaw from ODU and Georgia State as opposed to just saying, "rules are rules."

Blaine Taylor, the coach of ODU, has been a very vocal advocate of allowing his team to compete in this year's tournament from day one, and yes, he's right when he says that ODU's move to the C-USA was in the name of football. While it's unfortunate that the move for football has hurt basketball, that's not a reason to let them compete in the CAA Tournament. ODU knew the bylaw and chose to leave anyway.

Sometimes, you just can't have your cake and eat it too.

Many of you may be saying, "Well, he's just a George Mason guy. He wouldn't feel this way if the roles were reversed."

While that's certainly a valid point to bring up, I did talk about the bylaw as a potential drawback of Mason leaving the conference when rumors were running wild about the Patriots leaving for the A-10 a few months ago.

I, unlike Blaine Taylor and Run Hunter, accepted that not competing in the 2013 CAA Tournament would be an unfortunate after effect of leaving the CAA.

Then there's the issue of where the conference tournament is going to take place anyway. Since 1990, the CAA Tournament has been held in the Richmond Coliseum, which is located a mere two miles from the heart of VCU's campus.

Yesterday, CAA commissioner Tom Yeager announced that the CAA is looking to possibly move the tournament from Richmond as soon as next season, despite their contract with the Richmond Coliseum running through 2014, with an option to extend it to 2016. 

Had this announcement been made a year ago, I would be jumping for joy. The Richmond Coliseum has been a house of horrors for George Mason, particularly against VCU, who was the unofficial host team of the tournament.

Many fans of CAA basketball also complained about how VCU's vicinity to the "neutral site" gave them an unfair advantage over every other team in the tournament, due to the Rams essentially playing home games to try and win the CAA's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

However, VCU is gone now, leaving for the A-10 about a month ago, which means that the Richmond Coliseum would finally be the neutral site it has been touted as for years.

But now, only after VCU has left, the CAA is looking into moving the tournament.

My question becomes, why now?

Just two years ago, the CAA signed an extension with the Richmond Coliseum through 2014. This past February, Tom Yeager claimed that the CAA was very happy with keeping the tournament in the Richmond Coliseum.

The biggest bugaboo about the Coliseum, that it was two miles from one of the CAA's best teams, is gone now. It is a perfectly neutral site located in the same city as CAA headquarters and generates tons of revenue for the city of Richmond.

Tom Yeager even said himself that the positives of keeping the tournament in Richmond for all of these years was "more than just the Coliseum," citing the nearby Richmond Convocation Center and the upgraded hotels in Richmond.

Why does VCU leaving have any bearing on where we hold the tournament? I thought that the site was neutral anyway?

But now that VCU has left, the CAA is considering moving the tournament, and two of the sites that have come up in conversation have been The Palestra in Philadelphia and Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City.

First of all, the fact that The Palestra has come up as a potential site boggles my mind.

As I've stated, for years, the argument with the Richmond Coliseum was that it was too close to VCU, not making it a neutral site. The Palestra is located less than a mile away from Drexel University, one of the major players in the new-look CAA and the runner up in last year's CAA Tournament.

This is like having a hole in the bottom of a bucket, plugging up that hole, and then drilling a new one into the side of the bucket. It makes no sense!

If the tournament moves to The Palestra, the CAA will open themselves up to the same criticism that they've taken for years, only you would replace "VCU" with "Drexel."

As for Boardwalk Hall, don't get me wrong, as a Jersey boy, I love me some Atlantic City, but in terms of playing the CAA tournament there, it just doesn't make any sense.

The CAA has always been a Virginia based league, and even with the current departures, Virginia still boasts the most CAA teams of any state. Add in that CAA headquarters are in Richmond and you can see why Richmond is a much more logical location than Atlantic City for the CAA Tournament.

I understand that the CAA is worried about attendance due to ODU and VCU, two of the tournament's biggest draws, leaving, but instead of trying to up and move from Richmond, which has finally become a neutral site, can't we work on creative solutions to get fans to come to the Coliseum?

Make ticket packages, give fans deals, lower prices. At the end of the day, if it is a competitive tournament, people will come to watch it.

Well, that's my rant for the day. If you wanna join in on the conversation or just tear my arguments to shreds, just comment below and let's get this started.

The first game of this season’s BracketBusters weekend gave the nation a good look at what CAA teams can do.  The last game of the weekend did just the same.

Old Dominion closed out BracketBusters weekend with a 74-63 win in Norfolk over Cleveland State—a team tied for first place in the Horizon League. 

ODU withstood an explosive first half from Cleveland State’s outstanding guard, Norris Cole.  Cole had 24 first-half points, accounting for all but four of the team’s 28 points at halftime.  Despite Cole’s outburst, ODU held a three-point lead at the half thanks in large part to their offensive rebounding.

The second half was vintage Old Dominion.  After falling behind 41-39 with 15 minutes to play, the Monarchs locked down defensively.  They held Cleveland State to just five points over the next seven-and-a-half minutes, and used their defense to create good scoring chances in transition.  The 19-5 run by ODU over that period put them ahead by 12, and they were in control of the game from there. 

The Monarchs significantly improved their efforts on containing Cole after halftime.  They held him to 11 points in the second half, and he shot 0-for-5 from the floor over the final 11 minutes.

While Cole’s 35 points set an all-time BracketBusters record, the most important stat of the day was the rebounding margin.  ODU out-rebounded Cleveland State 51-22.  The Monarchs had just one less offensive rebound (21) than the Vikings had total rebounds.  Frank Hassell—the Monarchs’ anchor on the interior—had 15 rebounds, including eight on the offensive end.  Ben Finney, a 6’5” swingman, had 13 boards, five of them offensive. 

Even for a team like Old Dominion—one of the best rebounding teams in the country—this was a truly impressive rebounding effort, particularly on the offensive end.

With the victory, ODU improved to 22-6.  It adds yet another quality win to the list of impressive non-conference wins that Blaine Taylor’s Monarchs have compiled.  Cleveland State joins the likes of Xavier, Richmond, Dayton and Clemson—teams who have all lost to ODU this season.

These non-conference wins have put Old Dominion in great position to make the NCAA tournament.  Barring two losses to end the regular season—against James Madison and William & Mary—and an early exit in the CAA tournament, the Monarchs should have a fairly secure claim on one of the 37 at-large bids.

Thanks to impressive wins by some of the CAA’s other top teams this weekend, ODU may not be the only team in the running for an at-large bid.

On Friday, VCU went into Koch Arena and knocked off Wichita State—who is tied for first place in the Missouri Valley—by one point.  It was a big win for VCU, who had just lost by 20 at home to red-hot George Mason three days before. 

The win brought the Rams back into the bubble discussion, after they had been somewhat written off after the blowout loss.  They are still tied for second place at 12-4 in the CAA, and own very impressive wins against Old Dominion on the road and UCLA, in New York.

Speaking of George Mason, the Patriots went on the road and beat one of the Missouri Valley’s top teams—Northern Iowa.  While UNI has struggled some after losing power forward Lucas O’Rear for the season, they gave Mason a tough game thanks to their outside shooting.  Mason was able to withstand UNI’s 13 three-pointers and rallied late in the second half to take the lead, eventually winning by six.

The win was the 13th straight for George Mason, the longest current streak in the nation.  With two excellent wins on the road this week, they appear to have all but locked up an NCAA tournament bid, regardless of what happens from here on out.

As a league, the CAA presented themselves quite well in televised BracketBusters games.  CAA teams won five of the six played on one of the ESPN networks, with Hofstra having the only loss for the league, at Wright State.  Drexel (9-7 CAA) defeated Kent State, and James Madison (also 9-7 CAA) beat Miami, OH to help display the strength of the CAA’s second tier of teams.

Their success as a conference this weekend will help the CAA gain additional consideration for multiple at-large bids when the selection committee meets in three weeks.  If a team other than George Mason or Old Dominion wins the CAA tournament, the league should send at least three teams to the NCAA tournament. 

With VCU back in the picture as well, four bids for this league is not entirely out of the question.

Mid-major, non-conference play is now over. The BracketBusters games have wrapped up. Over the weekend, many mid-major teams with a lot at stake in terms of postseason tournaments matched up. Now that all of those games are said and done, here are the conferences that benefited and suffered as a whole from BracketBusters, and the teams that won and lost from their performances over the weekend.

Winning conferences are defined as those with winning records, losing conference are those with losing records. For the conferences that had an even number of wins and losses in the BracketBusters games, they will divided into the winners and losers based on my discretion.

Breakdown by conference

Winners

CAA, 7-5 

Independents, 1-0

MAAC, 9-1

OVC, 6-4

SoCon, 5-0

Summit, 1-0

WAC, 7-1

Losers

America East, 1-4

Big Sky, 4-4

Big South, 1-8

Big West, 1-8

Horizon, 3-5

MAC, 5-7

MEAC, 1-1

MVC, 3-7

WCC, 0-2

Those Who Gained

Virginia Commonwealth

VCU is definitely going to one of the four postseason tournaments. However, this win at Wichita State improved their résumé for the NCAA Tournament. With a strong finish to the season for the Rams, the CAA could become a three-bid league this year.

Fairfield

Fairfield remains one of the quieter treasures in college basketball. The Stags' one big-time non-conference game against Florida was cancelled due to monster snowstorms in the Northeast. On Saturday, Fairfield got some attention on national television with a win over Austin Peay. The Stags have already locked up at least a bid to the NIT, but this win gives the Stags a chance to improve their NCAA Tournament seeding if they win the MAAC tournament.

Charleston

Charleston kept its winning streak going with a win over Vermont on Saturday. Considering that win as a quality one since Vermont is in the top 75 RPI, Charleston's potential seeding in the NCAA Tournament is much improved. 

Utah State

Utah State kept its hopes for being a favored seed in the first round of the NCAA Tournament alive with a win over St. Mary's during BracketBusters Weekend. This gave Utah State its first win over an ESPN/USA Today top-25 team. A key win for the Aggies was lacking up until Saturday.

Old Dominion

Old Dominion proved why it is a mid-major powerhouse on national television this weekend. Although the final score shows a relatively close game between Cleveland State and the Monarchs, the Monarchs dominated the Vikings, especially in the second half. With the win over Cleveland State, they just about guarantee themselves an at-large bid even if they lose in the CAA tournament.

George Mason

Another school from the CAA, George Mason also made itself a practical lock for the NCAA Tournament. The Patriots kept the longest winning streak in the nation going with a win at Northern Iowa. With that win, the Patriots also moved into the top 20 RPI rankings.

Those Who Lost

Montana

Montana is still the favorite to get the Big Sky's bid to the NCAA Tournament, but the Grizzlies have no chance at getting a good seeding after losing to Long Beach State on Saturday. The highest seeding they can now get would be a No. 15 seed.

Liberty

Liberty missed out on two chances to beat mid-major powerhouse Coastal Carolina during conference play. Both times, Liberty had a chance to pick up a key win against the Chanticleers, but the Flames failed to come through in the final minutes. They had one last chance to pick up a key win in the regular season, but the Flames were blown out by Iona on their home floor.

Hofstra

Hofstra hit a rough spot in January after a hot start to their CAA season. Recently, the Pride had been getting its groove back. The Pride had a chance to get a good non-conference win at Wright State on Saturday, but the Pride ended up being blown out.

Cleveland State

Cleveland State can no longer feel too comfortable with its chances at an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Vikings could have practically clinched a bid to the NCAA Tournament at Old Dominion on Sunday, but they fell to the Monarchs by a score of 74-63. No matter how the end of the regular season plays out, the Vikings might be in need of a Horizon League tournament championship to make the Big Dance.

Wichita State

Wichita State is another team whose at-large chances could very well have been crushed in a loss on Friday night. In my opinion, the Shockers have to beat both Creighton and Missouri State to end the regular season in order to make the NCAA Tournament as an at-large team.

St. Mary's

St. Mary's looked to rebound from a bad loss to San Diego earlier in the week. However, the Gaels could not hold on to a halftime lead and lost at home to Utah State. The Gaels are still a lock for the NCAA Tournament, but they can no longer get as a high a seeding as they might have been hoping for.

Most impressive performance by a conference:

This honor goes to both the CAA and the MAAC. The top teams in the CAA beat some really good mid-major squads, but it is impossible to ignore the MAAC's 9-1 record. 

Without a doubt, the CAA proved that it is the top mid-major conference in 2010-11. Five of the top six teams in the conference won in their BracketBusters matchups.

For the MAAC, the teams in that conference must have just been feeling it on Saturday. In what was supposed to be a down year for the conference, the MAAC came through big on BracketBusters Weekend. The only MAAC team to lose was Canisius, which fell to red-hot Boston University on the road.

Most impressive performance by a single team:

Old Dominion was definitely the most impressive team over BracketBusters Weekend. The Monarchs played very strong defense throughout the game against Cleveland State, and they absolutely dominated the boards. After allowing 24 points by Norris Cole in the first half, they held Cole to only 11 points in the second half. The Monarchs outrebounded Cleveland State 53-25.

For more mid-major news, follow Jesse Kramer on Twitter by clicking here. 

Meet Big Blue

Big Blue has excited fans at Old Dominion University since 1930. Just a cub when he joined ODU, he’s since matured into a full-grown lion and natural leader (he looks phenomenal considering he’s 80 years old). 

As king of the school, he loves wearing his blue and silver robe all over campus, but come game time, he can be found wearing his ODU jersey on the sidelines cheering on the team.

Big Blue's Experience

Big Blue is one of the most experienced mascots out there. He understands what it takes to run a strong team, and started the campaign to bring football back to Old Dominion in 2009. Big Blue doesn’t quit on his people, and he continues to fight for ODU, the players and fans every day.

Big Blue's Leadership Abilities

Big Blue was originally cast to play Mufasa in the “Lion King”, but declined due to his responsibilities to the ODU faithful. It takes a big-heated lion to turn down a blockbuster film in favor of being with the people he loves. 

Often thought of as a hunter, Big Blue is also a gatherer – he can often be found at local supermarkets shopping for family and friends. 

What Distinguishes Big Blue From the Rest?

Big Blue might be the loudest mascot in all of college sports, with a roar that can be heard form coast to coast.

Plus, try and find a mascot with a better head of hair than Big Blue – I dare you. Big Blue and his fantastic mane can be seen in various shampoo commercials (print and television).

Big Blue's Campaign Promises

Big Blue promises to give every student on campus the opportunity to be “King for the Day”. As king, the student will work alongside Big Blue to help lead the campus to bigger and better things, and the lucky student gets to wear Big Blue’s crown. 

Big Blue: You cannot ignore the roar!

Photo originally appeared at www.media.hamptonroads.com.

Kent Bazemore led Old Dominion with 17 points and three steals as the Monarchs easily defeated Barton College 91-62 in an exhibition game Monday night at the Ted Constant Convocation Center.

Barton College was the NCAA Division II national champion in 2007 and won 25 games last season.

Along with Bazemore's stellar performance, Frank Hassell added 15 points and blocked four shots. Hassell's upper body strength was too much for the Bulldogs to handle as he led the Monarchs with 13 rebounds. For the game, ODU out-rebounded Barton 55-29.

Forward Ben Finney was the third double-digit scorer for the Monarchs as he chipped in with 13 points, four rebounds, and two assists. Finney hit the only three-point basket ODU had  in their 15 attempts from long range.

Despite the dismal three-point shooting, the Monarchs still made 49 percent (34-69) of its shots. ODU was in fine form defensively holding Barton to 31 percent shooting from the floor.

The Monarchs proved they could use more practice from the free-throw line before their regular season debut on Nov. 15 against Bethune-Cookman by only converting 22 of 40 attempts.

The Monarchs might have found another reliable scorer last night when redshirt freshman Kyle Wright scored seven points in just 10 minutes of action. Forward Chris Cooper displayed signs of improvement in his limited action against the Bulldogs.

Barton College's Jaren Haley paced all scorers with 19 points. Greg Mammel attempted to keep the Bulldogs competitive by supplying his team with nine points and dishing out four assists.

Old Dominion will play its second and final exhibition game against Elizabeth City State University of the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association at home Saturday night, Nov. 7.

Head Coach : Blaine Taylor; 161-94, eight years at Old Dominion

Previous Season : 25-10:12-6 CAA (tied 3rd);won CollegeInsider.com Tournament

Departures : F Jonathan Adams, G Etoile Imama

Additions : G Josh Hicks, F/C Anton Larsen

Last season, Old Dominion initially found life difficult without guards Brian Henderson and Brandon Johnson, losing three of its first four games. The Monarchs rebounded by winning seven in a row.

However, the team was not ready to begin conference play with only one senior on the roster and started the meaningful part of the schedule off slowly. The Monarchs eventually began to gel as a unit, and the team won 14 of its last 16 games.

ODU enters this season with all five starters returning and a bench mainly comprised of returning personnel. Free-throw shooting was one of the few areas that the Monarchs were weaker at than their opponents.

Projected Starting Lineup

PG Darius James , 6'1", 170 lbs, Jr. (6.9 PPG, 2.4 RPG,4.5 APG, 34% FG, 66% FT)

James was the only Monarch to start all 35 games last year. Entering this season, he is considered to be the best playmaker in the Colonial Athletic Association.

Last year, James finished third in the CAA in both assists and assist/turnover ratio. Along with controlling the pace of the game more effectively, James needs to improve his shooting percentage from three-point range.

SG Marsharee Neely , 6'2", 190 lbs, Sr. (7.1 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 1.9 APG, 40% FG, 62% FT)

Neely played in every game last year and improved as the season progressed. In the CIT Tournament, he averaged 10.0 points and 4.8 rebounds.

Neely made 38 three-pointers last season, but is mainly known his strong defensive play. Like most of the Monarchs, Neely needs to improve his free-throw percentage.

SF Ben Finney , 6'5", 220 lbs, Jr. (9.9 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 1.7 APG, 45% FG, 58% FT)

Finney is a unique combination of a player who likes to shoot from the outside and enjoys banging inside for defensive rebounds. He is also an exceptional off-the-ball defender.

Along with his shooting ability, Finney is an accomplished passer. Finney's unselfishness and hustle are key to keeping the squad playing as one entity.

PF Frank Hassell , 6'8", 245 lbs, Jr. (7.5 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 0.9 BLK, 52% FG, 64% FT)

Hassell displayed his toughness by being the MVP of the CIT Tournament while playing the championship game with a stress fracture in his right leg.

Hassell showed improvement during the year as he averaged 12.5 points and 7.5 rebounds in the last ten games of the season. If he improves his shooting range, Hassell will find it easier to penetrate inside and open the paint for his teammates.

PF/C Gerald Lee , 6'10", 250 lbs, Sr. (15.5 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 1.4 APG, 54% FG, 76% FT)

Entering his senior season, Lee is regarded as one the best players in the CAA. Coach Taylor has built the offense around Lee's varied skills.

Lee has a wide range of inside moves but also possesses a polished jump shot that extends to the free-throw line. He can even bring the ball up the court when the opposing team presses.

Because of his strong foul shooting, the Monarchs are not afraid to feed the ball to Lee in pressure situations at the end of games.

Projected Contributors

G/F Kent Bazemore 6'5", 190 lbs, So. (4.5 PPG, 3.1 RPG, 1.5 APG, 43% FG, 43% FT)

Bazemore is the most athletic player for ODU and is a destined to become an all-time great if he improves his shooting.

Bazemore is as quick as lightning and is able to out-jump players that are much taller. He provides a needed spark of the bench by quickening the pace of the game. The challenge for Taylor is to find playing time for Bazemore behind an experienced starting five.

F Keyon Carter 6'8", 218 lbs, Jr. (7.9 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 44% FG, 71% FT)

Although Carter is mainly used off the bench, he did start 13 games last season. Carter made 22 3-pointers last season but is also able to score inside. Twice last season, he scored 17 points in a game.

F Chris Cooper 6'9", 215 lbs, So. (1.0 PPG, 0.8 RPG, 55% FG, 17% FT)

Cooper averaged 4.8 minutes per game last season, and he will not find playing time any easier to get this year.

When Cooper did find himself in a game, he often tried to play too quickly. Averaging 16.1 points and 12.4 rebounds in AAU basketball during the summer of 2008 proves that Cooper does possess the ability to play at this level.

G Marquel De Lancey , 6'0", 190 lbs, So. (0.9 PPG, 0.8 RPG, 0.8 APG, 48% FG, 33% FT)

De Lancey will again serve as the backup to James at the point guard position. As the season progressed, De Lancey was able to run the offense better. Decision making is the area he needs the most improvement in.

G Josh Hicks , 6'2", 180 lbs, Fr.

As a senior in high school, Hicks led his team in North Carolina to a 31-1 record. That year, Hicks averaged 17.2 points, 8.6 rebounds, 5.1 assists, and 4.5 steals.

After Hicks' senior campaign, the Charlotte Observer named Hicks to the Third Team North Carolina All-State squad. Hicks will probably play both guard positions in a substitute role.

G Trian Iliadis , 6'3", 185 lbs, So. (2.4 PPG, 0.5 RPG, 0.6 APG, 34% FG, 80% FT)

In some games last season, Iliadis sparked the team with his three-point shooting ability. However, at other times, he didn't get off the bench until garbage time.

With the arrival of Hicks, the Australian may not be able to expand on the 6.2 minutes per game he averaged last year.

F/C Anton Larsen , 7'0", 240 lbs, Fr.

Larsen is a current member of the Danish national team. His main role this year will be to learn from Lee and prepare to take over at the pivot next season.

F Nick Wright , 6'8", 205 lbs, Fr.

Coach Taylor redshirted Wright last season. In 2007, Wright averaged 12.7 points, 13.8 rebounds, and 6.4 blocks for Nansemond High School in Suffolk, Virg.

Wright will mainly be used off the bench for rebounding and defense. He may be able to display his scoring ability in blowout situations.

Key Games

Nov. 27 @ Missouri : This Missouri team may not be as good as last year's version, but the game will still be a challenge for ODU.

Dec. 2 @ Richmond : A competitive game between two teams looking for an NCAA bid.

Dec. 11 @ Dayton : The Flyers are probably the best team in the Atlantic 10 this year.

Dec. 19 @ Georgetown : It will be interesting to see how Lee plays against Greg Monroe.

Feb. 27 Virginia Commonwealth : The last conference game of the year could decide who is the regular season champion of the CAA.

Season Outlook

Unlike last year, ODU begins this season with an experienced roster. There are certainly some major tests in the non-conference schedule, but the Monarchs should be up to the challenge. It is also important for a team that wants to play in the NCAA Tournament to play a schedule that will allow the team to stand out.

Last season, seven of the 12 teams in the CAA finished with winning records, with five of those squads winning at least 20 games. The conference should be as good, if not better, this year.

Gerald Lee should challenge for Player of the Year honors in the CAA. Only devastating injuries or other unforeseen disasters will keep the Monarchs from playing in the post season this year.

With coach Anthony Grant and point guard Eric Maynor gone from VCU's program, ODU should win the conference title. If ODU finishes first, that achievement should be enough for ODU to secure an NCAA bid even if the Monarchs fail to win the conference tournament.

Old Foreman Field in its heyday, circa 1945


A lot of Americans, even sports fans, spend a lot of time discussing the very validity of college athletics.

Football seems to be under siege at a number of schools across the country, and the recent economic downturn isn't making the arguments for football easier, at least for those who don't have all the facts at their fingertips.

Enter Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia.

Years ago, the school noticed that despite a raucous and spirited undergraduate lifestyle, a paltry number of alumni were staying connected to school. Even fewer were donating money.

So ODU sent out a questionnaire asking the alums what the #1 thing the school could do to get them more interested.

The top answer?

"Start football."

And so, after many decades of just wishing for it, Old Dominion will begin varsity football this fall.

The Monarchs will play as an independent team until 2011, when they will join the CAA, (home of teams like Towson and Richmond).

ODU already has 33 scholarship players on full or partial scholarship; 18 more arrive in August. The remaining 22 scholarships are being saved for future classes. (A total of 63).


Foreman Field, pre-Renovation
Foreman Field, a renovated version of the old Foreman Stadium will seat about 20,000 people for football. It cost $24.8 million for the renovation.

Foreman Field originally cost $300,000 to build and was completed in 1934 as part of a Public Works project under President Franklin Roosevelt’s “New Deal.” (The original stimulus plan).

And get this, ODU has received 14,859 season-ticket applications for this season. No Ivy team comes close to that kind of season ticket to total seats ratio.

The football program’s '09-10 operating budget is projected to be $2.5 million. Ticket sales will cover about $1.4 million of that; suite sales another $540,000. The difference will be covered by student fees and private donations.

The prices for a single-game ticket: $20 for adults, $15 for 17 and younger.

ODU could begin scheduling games against BCS schools like Virginia and Virginia Tech as early as 2016.

I first wrote about the ODU story when I first heard about it 2007.

Since then, the school has met every published goal from fixing up the stadium to getting the local community behind the team and the program.
ODU will be the fifth school to start a Division I football program this decade. In 2001, Florida Atlantic went 4-6. Florida International was 5-6 in 2002, followed by Coastal Carolina (6-5 in 2003) and Campbell (1-10 last season). Of those four, Florida Atlantic’s attendance was highest, at 12,987 a game; Campbell was lowest at 3,683.


Artist's rendering of the new Foreman Field


ODU was originally scheduled to play Cornell this season, but that game was later scrapped. The Monarchs will travel to New York City to play Fordham on October 3rd.

Will any Ivies, including Columbia ever put ODU on their schedule? I'd love to see the Lions play the Monarchs, but I'm biased.

My dad used to teach at ODU when we lived in Norfolk in the late 1970's-early 1980's. I used to always wonder what they would ever do with that big stadium at the entrance of campus. I think they used for graduation and nothing else. For a time, they played a college all-star game sponsored by the Shriners called the Oyster Bowl, but that ended in the mid 1990's.

Good luck Monarchs, we'll be watching you closely.