ODU recovers from scoreless first half, rallies past Arkansas State to win thrilling Sun Belt Conference opener

Somewhere in its locker room, Old Dominion believes, resides a good offense.

On Saturday at S.B. Ballard Stadium, the Monarchs somehow got away with waiting half a game to start using it.

Hayden Wolff passed for 279 yards and two touchdowns, and ODU overcame an awful start in a thrilling 29-26 victory over Arkansas State in the Sun Belt Conference opener for both teams.

Jason Henderson set a single-game school record with 21 tackles for the Monarchs (2-2, 1-0 Sun Belt), who trailed by 12 points as late as the third quarter.

Wolff’s 2-yard touchdown pass to tight end Zack Kuntz gave ODU the lead by the final margin with 6:33 left in the game. The Monarchs’ defense, which nearly shut down A-State (1-3, 0-1) in the second half, took over from there.

The Red Wolves’ chances came to a formal end when their attempted keep-away play failed as time expired.

After being shut out in the first half, ODU outscored A-State 29-14 in the seesaw second.

“I think it was just a matter of going out and playing our game,” Wolff said of the turnaround. “We started pretty slow in the first half, but we kind of regrouped as an offense.

“We just said, ‘New game, 0-0. It’s time to go out there and execute our plays, and that’s what we did. We went out there and executed like we were supposed to.”

James Blackman passed for 285 yards and a touchdown for the Red Wolves, who got 115 rushing yards from Jeff Foreman.

Ali Jennings caught eight passes for 140 yards and a score for ODU.

With star rusher Blake Watson unavailable with an unspecified injury, the Monarchs were forced to quilt together a backfield. Keshawn Wicks ran for a team-high 36 yards and a touchdown.

The offense, coach Ricky Rahne said, is still figuring itself out.

“We’re still a work in progress,” he said. “Listen, even if we put up 49 tonight, we’d still be a work in progress. There would still be a lot of things that we could do better on a play-in and play-out basis.”

Henderson, a sophomore linebacker, said he plays with nearly perpetual dissatisfaction.

“The biggest thing for me is I just play with the mentality of I can make every play on the field,” he said. “And I take things personal if I don’t make a play. If there’s a play that I think I could’ve made that I don’t make, I take it personal.”

On a mild, early-fall evening, an announced crowd of 20,665 watched as Kuntz’s late score was set up when Tyre Bibby recovered a Red Wolves fumble on the A-State 29. It also followed a fourth-down pass interference call in the end zone against the Red Wolves.

A-State backup quarterback AJ Mayer’s 16-yard touchdown run gave the Red Wolves a 26-21 lead less than three minutes into the fourth quarter.

Deeve Harris returned an interception 16 yards for a touchdown to give the Monarchs a 21-19 lead — their first of the game — with just more than two minutes left in the third quarter.

The score was the third of Harris’ career and the second via interception.

Wolff found a wide-open Jennings for a 77-yard touchdown that edged the Monarchs to within 19-14 with 10:54 to go in the third quarter. It was ODU’s longest play from scrimmage this season.

It was the kind of play Wolff can’t believe still happens as Jennings’ reputation has grown.

“When I see something like that,” Wolff said, “it’s almost like I kind of take a deep breath and just say, ‘All right, I could punt this ball to him and it’ll still be an explosive (play).’“

Blackman’s 49-yard touchdown bomb to Foreman gave the Red Wolves a 19-7 lead with 11:35 left in the third quarter.

Wicks scored on a 1-yard plunge to pull ODU to within 12-7 with 12:53 left in the third quarter. Wicks’ first career score was set up when Jennings caught a 33-yard pass from Wolff at the goal line.

Dominic Zvada’s 44-yard field goal with 37 seconds left in the first half extended A-State’s lead to 12-0. The Red Wolves converted on fourth-and-6 from the ODU 34 to keep the hurried drive going.

It finished off what was arguably the Monarchs’ worst offensive half of the season. They mustered 126 total yards, including just 27 on 14 rushing attempts.

How to get his team to start better escapes Rahne for now.

“Everyone asks me that,” he said. “If I knew that, we wouldn’t have a tale of two halves. I’ve been thinking about it, because Lord knows I want to know, too.”

As the offense faltered at times, the defense picked up the slack. That, Wolff said, is how it’s supposed to work.

“It’s complementary football,” he said. “The defense kept us in the game in the first half. They played lights-out. I mean, 21 tackles from Jason is insane. I’m glad we didn’t play against him.”

The Red Wolves took control of what had been a mundane game in an odd and quick manner.

ODU lineman Nick Saldiveri was called for holding in the Monarchs’ end zone, resulting in a safety and a 2-0 A-State lead with 10:10 left in the second quarter.

Just 43 seconds later, with the ball back after a free kick, the Red Wolves completed a three-play drive with Brian Snead’s 4-yard touchdown run to give them a sudden 9-0 lead.

It was the fourth straight week the Monarchs have had drama into the fourth quarter.

Rahne, who is in his second season on the sideline as a head coach, said he’s learning from it.

“It’s teaching me that I need to continue to work out every day so that my heart is healthy,” he said. “People tell me apples are a good source of natural energy. I’ve got to keep finding those sort of things because I’ve got to make sure that I stay healthy.”

David Hall, david.hall@pilotonline.com