NORFOLK, VA (WTKR)- Saturday is setting up to be a fantastic football environment. It's Old Dominion's season opener, Norfolk State is coming off a decisive victory to kick off its schedule and it will mark the first meeting between the Monarchs and Spartans since 2019.
Get ready for a packed house. While Ricky Rahne would prefer ODU fans fill every seat, he says the stadium being full is the most important thing.
"I hope every single seat is filled by Old Dominion fans, but more importantly I hope every single seat is filled," Rahne smiled during his press conference Monday. "That's something our kids want to see. I don't think anybody necessarily cares what's going on there, but we just want that environment and it to feel like college football. I love how both bands are going to be there. I think that's important."
"I can't wait," senior linebacker Koa Naotala added. "Especially against a team in the same city after their performance they just put up, man, I can't wait for our fans to show out, for the city to show out and it's going to be fun."
While the Monarchs will be kicking off their 2026 slate, the green and gold rolled past Winston-Salem State, 56-0, this past Saturday. Rahne's group is never one to overlook any opponent, but the Spartans' most recent showing reaffirmed the silver and blue's belief that their crosstown foes are forces to be reckoned with.
"56-0 will do that. Our guys watch the tape and they know the challenge they have coming up," the head coach noted. "The way that Norfolk State played, the environment that we're going to have, our guys are locked in on this game. They know how important it's going to be."
"It just made me double down more so on the things that I've been stressing to the boys," added running back Devin Roche. "This isn't just another game, this isn't just an FCS school. This is a true contender. If they come in and play together they could do some good things, so it just made me harp on our preparation even more."
Old Dominion may have yet to play a game, but what the Monarchs do have is tape on Norfolk State from this season. Openers can be a little tricky for teams matching up against each other with the lack of footage from the current season and turnover of the roster and coaching staff.
"I think there's benefits to both- them playing and us not," Rahne noted. "They went and played, got some of the kinks out, the operational issues out and then they played really well so they gained some confidence. For us, we were able to see some of the questions on personnel that maybe we weren't sure of. They still may not have those answers."
2026 marks Rahne's seventh season as a head college football coach, his sixth on the field. Norfolk State head coach Michael Vick just started his second campaign and the head Monarch sees the team across town responding to their leader.
"It looks like the kids are well-coached," he pointed out. "It looks like they're accepting coaching and it looked like they were very well-organized in this game. All of us, when we first become a head coach, we grow each and every year. I'm sure he's made major strides from last year to this year. I would just say that, from what I've been able to see, they're a well-coached team."
While Old Dominion held its media availability Monday, Norfolk State will hold its game-week press conference Tuesday afternoon.
The Monachs and Spartans kick off at 6 p.m. Saturday at S.B. Ballard Stadium.
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