MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. — There was so much excitement it's as if this hadn't happened in five years. Oh, that's right, it hasn't. The ODU football team enjoyed day one of their Myrtle Beach Bowl adventure. It's their first bowl game since the 2016 Bahamas Bowl.
The day started on campus with a great send off rally. The pep band, the cheerleaders and the ODU faithful, including school president Hemphill raised the energy to the next level.
The team safely arrived in Myrtle Beach in the early afternoon and started to find their sea legs. Speaking of which, head coach Ricky Rahne was amused by some of the players' reactions, "Yeah, there were some "oohs and ahhs." Our hotel is nice. The beach is right there. It's so funny. They act as if they haven't seen a beach and it's like, 'Hey guys, it's 10 minutes from our university.'"
The Monarchs hit the practice field tomorrow for the first time in South Carolina. There are several planned activities for the team outside of the football. Rahne wants them to soak it all in, "That's why these bowls are so important to college football. Giving all these kids these memories, this is awesome."