Appalachian State football hits the road to Norfolk, VA this week to face off against the Old Dominion Monarchs. The Mountaineers need to have a short memory while also improving on their shortcomings from their loss last week to Coastal Carolina.
The defense will need to step up and stop the Monarch offense, which has already put up points against quality opponents like Virginia Tech and now-No. 2 ranked Indiana.
“ODU is one of the better teams in the Sun Belt and so we’ve got our hands full this week defensively with this challenge,” App State head coach Dowell Loggains said.
📺 How To Watch
Matchup: Appalachian State (4-3, 1-2 Sun Belt) at Old Dominion (4-3, 1-2)
When: Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025 | 12 p.m. ET
Where: Kornblau Field at S.B. Ballard Stadium, Norfolk, VA
TV/Stream: ESPNU
Last Meeting: Appalachian State 28, Old Dominion 20 (Nov. 2, 2024)
Odds (DraftKings): Old Dominion -14.5 | O/U 62.5
What happened last week?
App State is coming off a 45-37 loss to Coastal Carolina at home. In this game the Mountaineers’ defense struggled mightily. Most notably they struggled in stopping the run game, allowing 258 yards on the ground. The offense struggled to get in the end zone late in the game. However, they still put up 37 points, which would usually lead to a win if the defense is playing to their potential.
“We’ve got to do a better job stopping the run and we can’t miss 32 tackles,” Loggains said in his weekly press conference Monday.
App State Key Players
Redshirt sophomore quarterback JJ Kohl played a well-rounded game, completing 27-of-41 passes for 278 yards and 2 touchdowns while adding 29 yards rushing. Despite this, he could not get the offense rolling when it mattered and fumbled on Appalachian State’s final drive. Kohl will have to play a clean game to lead his team to a win.
Senior running back Rashod Dubinion rushed 10 times for 38 yards and a touchdown. He was second on the team in carries, which was not the norm earlier in the season. The offense will have to keep finding ways to get Dubinion involved to compete for victories. Last week marked his lowest output of the season. Dubinion, who leads App State in rushing with 705 yards, has had two games with 100+ yards and two others with at least 95.
Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Davion Dozier has been stepping up for the Mountaineers. Against Coastal Carolina he had 4 receptions for 70 yards and a touchdown. However, he could have had 2 touchdowns, but a dropped ball negated what would have been a walk-in touchdown late in the game. These mistakes need to be cleaned up as they head into the gauntlet of their conference schedule.
Redshirt sophomore linebacker Colton Phares led the team in tackles once again with 11 tackles. Phares has a team-best 49.0 tackles for the season, with a team-high 6.5 tackles-for-loss.
Old Dominion Key Players
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Colton Joseph is a dangerous dual threat quarterback. He has thrown for 1,690 pass yards and 16 touchdowns on the season. He is also their leading rusher with 487 yards and 6 touchdowns. The defense will have to keep their eyes in the backfield if he decides to take off.
When Joseph doesn’t take it himself, junior running back Trequan Jones is getting the rest of the carries. On 14 fewer carries, Jones has 481 yards and 4 touchdowns. These two will dominate the ODU run game.
Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Tre’ Brown III is the Monarchs’ leading receiver with 511 yards and 4 touchdowns. He averages 73 receiving yards per game and if the Mountaineers defense is focused on the run he could go over that number.
Sophomore safety Jerome Carter is the Monarchs leader on defense in tackles with 56 total tackles and 2 interceptions. Kohl has yet to throw an interception but that could change against this defense.
Keys to Victory
The Mountaineer defense will have to get back on track. Against the Chanticleers, they simply could not tackle on first contact, allowing an average of 6 yards per carry. Against a high powered ODU rushing attack these mistakes will not be acceptable. In order to win this game the defense will have to go back to who they were in the games against Charlotte and Lindenwood where they gave up a combined 24 points.
“That’s where it starts. It starts with us. It starts with us not being App, making sure we get aligned the right way, executing the call the right way and we’re getting them down on the ground,” Loggains said.
Sun Belt Conference Football Standings
(After Oct. 18, 2025 Games)
| School | Conference | Conf. PCT | Overall | Overall PCT | Streak |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EAST DIVISION | |||||
| James Madison | 4-0 | 1.000 | 6-1 | .857 | W5 |
| Coastal Carolina | 3-1 | .750 | 4-3 | .571 | W2 |
| Marshall | 2-1 | .667 | 4-3 | .571 | W2 |
| App State | 1-2 | .333 | 4-3 | .571 | L1 |
| Old Dominion | 1-2 | .333 | 4-3 | .571 | L2 |
| Georgia Southern | 1-2 | .333 | 3-4 | .429 | W1 |
| Georgia State | 0-3 | .000 | 1-6 | .143 | L4 |
| WEST DIVISION | |||||
| Southern Miss | 3-0 | 1.000 | 5-2 | .714 | W3 |
| Troy | 3-0 | 1.000 | 5-2 | .714 | W4 |
| Arkansas State | 2-1 | .667 | 3-4 | .429 | W2 |
| ULM | 1-2 | .333 | 3-4 | .429 | L3 |
| Louisiana | 1-2 | .333 | 2-5 | .286 | L2 |
| Texas State | 0-3 | .000 | 3-4 | .429 | L3 |
| South Alabama | 0-3 | .000 | 1-6 | .143 | L6 |
Max Schwanz is the sports editor for The Appalachian, the student newspaper at Appalachian State University. A journalism major and digital marketing minor from Cornelius, N.C., you can find more of his work at The Appalachian.
