NORFOLK, VA (WTKR)- At halftime, Old Dominion felt pretty good, down just four to Virginia Tech in front of a record crowd of 22,208 fans at S.B. Ballard Stadium.
Then the Monarchs' familiar troubles reared their ugly heads.
Old Dominion was sacked five times and was 2-for-13 on third downs, falling to the Hokies, 37-17, in Norfolk Saturday night. It marked Tech's first ever victory at ODU in three tries.
The Hokies started the scoring in the first when Kyron Drones found Jaylin Lane wide open in the endzone for a 25-yard touchdown pass. Drones would add a quarterback sneak for a score to cap off Virginia Tech's next drive to give the visitors a 14-0 lead after a quarter.
Redshirt freshman Colton Joseph started at quarterback for the Monarchs in place of the injured Grant Wilson, but was replaced on the last play of the opening frame by true freshman Quinn Henicle. The latter gave the silver and blue quite the spark, taking off for a 65 yard touchdown rush early in the second to trim the deficit to 14-7. Ethan Sanchez booted home a 28 yard field goal to cap off the first half scoring and send the teams into halftime with Tech up 14-10.
Brent Pry and company took control after the break, rattling off 23 unanswered points. After two third quarter field goals, Bhayshul Tuten found the endzone twice on the ground in the fourth to slam the door.
ODU gained 243 yards on the ground, but only found 50 yards via the pass and Virginia Tech out-gained the silver and blue in total offense, 465-293.
Bryce Duke was the Monarchs' leading rusher with 85 yards on four carries. Tariq Sims added a rushing touchdown and Aaron Young gained 67 rushing yards as well. Henicle threw for 38 yards and an interception.
Drones was the Hokies' leading rusher with 117 yards and the score, while also picking up 176 yards through the air. He would account for two touchdowns. Lane gained 106 receiving yards.
All-American linebacker Jason Henderson missed his second consecutive game for ODU. He saw limited snaps in the Monarchs' opening game at South Carolina, coming off a knee injury suffered in last year's regular season finale.
Old Dominion falls to 0-3 and has a bye week before visiting Bowling Green on September 28. The Hokies host Rutgers next Saturday.
