NORFOLK, Va. — Old Dominion scored touchdowns on four consecutive possessions, one right before halftime and three more in the second half, en route to a 33-19 victory against UTSA on Saturday afternoon in the Conference USA opener for both teams at Ballard Stadium.
The Monarchs (2-2, 1-0 C-USA) were trailing 7-6 late in the first half before a 2-yard touchdown run by quarterback David Washington with 26 seconds left until halftime put them back on top, 13-7.
ODU then reached paydirt on its first three drives of the second half in building a 33-19 lead that would stand.
The Roadrunners (1-3, 0-1 C-USA) gave up the ball on a fumble in the backfield on their first play from scrimmage in the second half. Six plays later, ODU's Jeremy Cox scored his second touchdown of the afternoon on a 3-yard rush around left end. The extra-point attempt was blocked and returned for two points by UTSA's Teddrick McGhee, which made the score 19-9 in favor of the Monarchs.
UTSA cut the deficit to six points after Victor Falcon drilled a 26-yard field goal to cap a six-play, 66-yard drive. It was the Roadrunners' first field goal attempt of the season.
ODU responded with a 13-play, 82-yard scoring march that ended on a 2-yard pass from Washington to Jonathan Duhart. The two-point conversion failed, leaving the Monarchs' lead at 25-12.
On their next possession, Old Dominion covered 82 yards in nine plays, the last another short scoring connection from Washington, who finished with 207 yards passing and another 69 on the ground, to Duhart. Cox found the end zone on the two-point try to make it 33-19 with 11:55 remaining.
For UTSA, Jarveon Williams rushed for a season-high 93 yards and a score on 21 carries, while Jalen Rhodes added 68 and another 34 receiving. Josh Stewart hauled in a career-best four catches for 80 yards, while Brady Jones added three receptions for 51 yards and he also threw an 8-yard touchdown to backup quarterback Jared Johnson in the third quarter.
Defensively, Josiah Tauaefa posted a career-high 15 tackles, one shy of UTSA's school record, and Ronnie Feist added nine stops.
ODU got on the board first, as Cox's 5-yard touchdown rush ended a quick three-play, 58-yard drive. The extra-point attempt was no good.
After a slow start offensively, the Roadrunners took the ground to get things going.
UTSA drove 81 yards on 13 plays — all rushes — on a scoring march that was capped with a 7-yard jaunt by Williams. The extra point gave the visitors a 7-6 advantage with 11:44 left in the second quarter.
The Roadrunners have a bye next week before hosting Southern Miss (3-1, 1-0 C-USA) at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 8, at the Alamodome.
