CONWAY, SC (WTKR)- Old Dominion's offense has been struggling for a better part of 2026. Saturday saw the defense more than make up for it over the 60 minutes.
The Monarchs forced six Coastal Carolina turnovers and got a defensive touchdown, helping ODU past the Chanticleers, 21-8, to get back in the win column and snap a three game losing streak.
Old Dominion struck first in the opening frame, when Quinn Henicle found the endzone on a two yard quarterback scramble. Less than a minute later, Mario Thompson recovered a fumble and took it back for a score, giving the silver and blue an early 14-0 lead.
Ricky Rahne's group struck again in the second quarter. After the Monarchs recovered a fumble at the Coastal Carolina five yard line, Jaxon Potter connected with Leon Haughton Jr. for the touchdown and Old Dominion went into halftime up 21-6.
That was more than enough as the defense did its job after the break. ODU came up with four interceptions in the second half to snuff out any Chanticleer threats and the 21 points would hold up for the much-needed victory.
The Monarch offense still saw its slow moments, gaining 264 total yards on the day, but the six takeaways covered for any shortcomings. In addition to the success in that department, the ODU defense held Coastal to just 20 yards of rushing offense.
Potter completed 17 of his 30 pass attempts for 150 yards, the touchdown and an interception, while Henicle was four-of-four for 45 yards in limited action behind center, adding the rushing score. The running game still struggled to get traction, gaining just 69 yards on the ground during the game.
Old Dominion improves to 3-7, 2-5 in Sun Belt play, and goes into its bye week with a victory. The Monarchs are back in action on November 21 in their final non-conference game at UConn.
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