CHARLOTTE, NC (WTKR)- Old Dominion is in Charlotte to win a football game, but Saturday night saw the Monarchs trade in being behind a facemask to being behind the wheel- temporarily of course.
The team visited the NASCAR Hall of Fame in uptown Charlotte, where players had different levels of knowledge when it came to auto racing.
"Not a NASCAR fan," said sophomore kicker Ethan Sanchez. "First time actually being in a NASCAR environment."
"I grew up going to Atlanta Motor Speedway all the time and then Charlotte," junior quarterback Grant Wilson said, noting his favorite drive growing up was Jeff Gordon. "I have a couple uncles who live here and we used to go all the time."
However, no matter how much any given player might follow the sport, there was plenty of enjoyment during the team's visit to the hall on Saturday. Players and coaches experienced a racing simulator, pit crew time trials and qualifying modules. It was a high-speed visit to learn more about the world's fastest sport.
"Some of the games are pretty painful," Wilson smiled. "I want to get first place, but we've got some unreal drivers in our group so it's pretty annoying."
"I thought NASCAR was just a track in circles, going around and going around, but I think it's really fun to see everyone having a good time here driving cars, simulating, and we're about to get the fastest pit stop time, so here we go," said Sanchez.
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The sophomore kicker and his team fared pretty well during their pit stop performance, but as for the nuts and bolts of NASCAR, he still has a long way to go.
"I know there's a lot of parts in cars and everything," Sanchez said. "I'm still figuring it out, but right now they still drive around in circles for me."
Whether it's driving around in circles or moving up and down the football field in Monday's Famous Toastery Bowl, the silver and blue are embracing this time together. Saturday night gave them a chance to blow off a little steam before getting back to business.
"It's a great experience we're having here in Charlotte, so it's awesome," Sanchez said.
"It's so much fun because you get to do it with some of your best friends," added Wilson. "It's an awesome time and I'm super appreciative of this opportunity."
Old Dominion and Western Kentucky kick off Monday afternoon at 2:30 PM in the Famous Toastery Bowl.
