ODU opens practice

[Coach Bill Lewis]

Workers from AstroTurf, a Dalton Ga. company, began the process of planting the seal of Old Dominions new conference on the turf at Foreman Field Sunday afternoon.

Workers are tearing out the Colonial Athletic Association logo and replacing it with one from Conference USA. AstroTurf employees should complete the task late Monday.

But that is merely a symbolic change. The real change begins Monday at 6:15 a.m., when ODUs football team holds its first practice.

This is a season of transition for ODU. The Monarchs left the CAA and joined Conference USA on July 1. However, because of NCAA rules, ODUs football team cant begin playing a Conference USA schedule until 2014.

ODU plays as an independent this season, one that will present major challenges that the Monarchs have never faced before.

ODU is moving from the Football Championship Subdivision to the Football Bowl Subdivision, and that's a huge step up, especially for a program that has played just four seasons of football.

ODU has never played an FBS team, yet will play two in its first two games. The Monarchs open at East Carolina Aug. 31, and ECU is the consensus pick to the C-USAs East Division.

ODU then plays at Maryland on Sept. 7. It will be ODUs first game ever against an ACC school.

ODUs coaching staff has worked hard to prepare the Monarchs for the transition. They had what recruiting services say was a good FBS recruiting class - remarkable when you consider ODU wasn't yet at the FBS level.

Regardless, it was one of the nations largest recruiting classes. There will be 37 new players in ODU blue and silver Monday, including 12 junior college and 25 high school players. All 12 juco transfers will play this season. So, likely, will at least a handful of the freshmen.

Read more: http://hamptonroads.com/2013/08/sizing-who-may-back-heinicke-odu-opens-practice