ODU–VCU men's basketball rivalry
SportCollege basketball
First meetingFebruary 5, 1969
ODU 101 - VCU 69
Latest meetingDecember 11, 2021
VCU 75 - ODU 66
Statistics
Meetings total97
All-time seriesVCU leads 53–44
Largest victoryODU by 32 on Feb 5, 1969
VCU by 32 on Dec 29, 1983
Longest win streakVCU, 10 (2001–2005)
Current win streakVCU, 3 (2019–present)
Locations of Old Dominion and VCU

The Old Dominion–VCU men's basketball rivalry is a men's college basketball rivalry between the VCU Rams of Virginia Commonwealth University and the Old Dominion Monarchs of Old Dominion University. This rivalry is said to be one of the most competitive among middle level Division-I basketball programs.[1]

Background

College Comparison
Old Dominion VCU
Founded 19301838
Location Norfolk, VARichmond, VA
Conference Sun BeltAtlantic 10
Students 24,12532,303
School colors         
Nickname MonarchsRams
Mascot Big BlueRodney the Ram
Arena Chartway ArenaSiegel Center
Capacity 8,6397,617

The rivalry between Virginia Commonwealth University and Old Dominion University exists primarily because of the similar histories of the two Virginia public universities. Both schools have historic affiliations with The College of William & Mary (W&M). One of VCU's predecessor institutions, the Richmond Professional Institute (RPI), became part of W&M in 1925. ODU was founded in 1930 as the Norfolk Division of W&M.[2] In addition, from 1960 to 1962, both RPI and the Norfolk Division were part of The Colleges of William & Mary, a short-lived university system consisting of W&M and its affiliated institutions.

VCU, located in the state capital of Richmond, is just 90 miles down Interstate 64 from ODU, located in Norfolk. Both schools are major research universities located in an urban environment. They are also both very large universities consisting of a diverse student body; with students primarily coming from middle-class backgrounds.

Throughout much of the history of the rivalry, ODU and VCU had been in the same conference, most recently the Colonial Athletic Association. This ended after the 2011–12 season when VCU joined the Atlantic 10 Conference. ODU left the CAA for Conference USA a year later.

Rick Kiefner, a 1969 graduate of ODU, believed the animosity and rivalry may have started due to an incident during the 1970 season. A group of ODU fans, including Kiefner, had chartered a bus to travel to a VCU game in Richmond, but, instead of the tickets they had paid for, received a box of screws in the mail.[3]

Game results

Old Dominion victoriesVCU victories

Notes

  1. Ted Constant Convocation Center's interior was renamed Chartway Arena on June 20, 2019.[lower-alpha 2]
  2. "ODU Names Chartway Arena at the Ted Constant Convocation Center". Old Dominion University. Retrieved 2022-07-21.

References

  1. Daily Press (15 February 2009). "Rams vs. Monarchs is best CAA duel". dailypress.com. Retrieved 21 July 2022.
  2. "The Contributions of Education: To the College, Town, Region, Commonwealth and Beyond". The College of William & Mary's School of Education. Education.WM.edu. Retrieved December 22, 2011.
  3. Molinaro, Bob (15 Feb 2009). "Electricity is in the air when ODU hosts VCU". The Virginian-Pilot. Archived from the original on 19 Jul 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
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