NORFOLK, VA (WTKR)- As was the case two years ago, Old Dominion fans will not have to travel all that far to catch their Monarchs on the postseason stage.
ODU will head to Charlotte, where the silver and blue will face Western Kentucky in the Famous Toastery Bowl on December 18 at 2:30 PM. The match-up will kickoff at Jerry Richardson Stadium on the campus of UNC-Charlotte.
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"Our last bowl game, I thought our fans really showed out and made it a great environment for the bowl but also our players," Monarchs' head coach Ricky Rahne said Sunday afternoon. "Having a place where our fans can drive to, great city to be in and those sort of things, I think it would be awesome."
Rahne spoke to the media prior to the announcement of the destination and opponent. A recruiting trip prevented him from being available following that announcement.
Old Dominion finished the season 6-6, winning its final two games to earn bowl eligibility. Ten of the Monarchs' 12 games this year were decided by one score or less and the fact that the team was a handful of plays away from having an even better record might provide fuel entering their final game of 2023.
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"We were three or four plays away [in] three different games to playing yesterday," Rahne pointed out, referencing Saturday's Sun Belt Championship game. "I think our players are very aware of that."
Western Kentucky finished the 2023 regular season with a 7-5 record and also enters the Famous Toastery Bowl on a two-game winning streak. The Hilltoppers, a former Conference USA rival of Old Dominion, earned a 5-3 league record. WKU has topped to Monarchs in six of their seven previous meetings, most recently in 2021.
This will mark Old Dominion's third bowl game in its history. The Monarchs won the 2016 Bahamas Bowl and fell in the 2021 Myrtle Beach Bowl.
