JONESBORO, Ark. — JONESBORO, Ark. (WTKR) — Even without a bowl game to play for, Old Dominion looked at its matchup with Arkansas State on Saturday not only as a test of its "1-0" mantra but also a chance to go into the offseason with fresh mindsets and a positive outlook.
They did exactly what they wanted to and got a massive contribution from a quarterback that had seen action in just two college football games.
Starting in place of injured Colton Joseph, Quinn Henicle unleashed 349 total yards and accounted for four touchdowns to lead the Monarchs to a 40-32 win at Arkansas State in the regular season finale.
The first snap of the freshman signal caller's start was as good an omen as one could ask for. After a Will Jones interception, Henicle kept the ball on a read and scooted 92 yards to the endzone to give ODU an early 7-0 lead. The run was not only the longest touchdown rush by an FBS quarterback this season, it also put his name in the record books for the longest run in Old Dominion history.
Aaron Young would then take over, scoring with 5:43 left in the first quarter to get ODU up 14-0. After the Red Wolves got it down to one score, the running back took a handoff 24 yards for a touchdown to get the silver and blue back up 21-7. The senior finished with 119 yards and those two scores.
Arkansas State would get it back to 21-14 going into the locker rooms, but Ricky Rahne's group had quite the response. Henicle connected with Pat Conroy for an eight-yard touchdown pass on the first drive of the third quarter to get the advantage back up to 27-14.
The home team would again score on a Courtney Jackson 35-yard catch, but one play later Conroy got wide open for a 75-yard touchdown reception of his own to make it 33-21. The tight, who's had three scoring receptions of 75 yards or more, tallied four catches for 90 yards and two touchdowns.
ODU stopped Arkansas State on downs on the ensuing drive and the offense quickly paid them back for it. Young and Henicle posted back-to-back rushes of 22 yards to get the silver and blue to the one-yard line, then the quarterback finished it off with a touchdown rush to claim ODU's largest lead of the night at 40-21.
The Red Wolves scored right at the end of the third quarter, then kicked a field goal with 6:03 to play but Old Dominion never gave them the ball back. The Monarchs ran an 11 play drive that took the rest of the time off the clock to take the 40-32 victory.
Henicle finished his one and only start of the season with 206 rushing yards and 143 yards through the air, passing for two touchdowns and rushing for two more. It was his first game action since coming in for mop up duty in ODU's win over Georgia Southern.
He'd previously played against Virginia Tech with a 65 yard touchdown serving as the highlight of his performance.
The freshman anchored an offense that posted more than 500 yards of offense for the second straight week, outgaining Arkansas State 549-410. ODU never trailed in the game, spending all but 3:23 with the advantage.
Old Dominion heads into the offseason with a 5-7 record and a 4-4 mark in Sun Belt play.
