James Madison walks into a building that just won 6 straight to close last season, and Old Dominion is ready to prove last year's turnaround was no fluke.
Bush’s Picks
JMUODU
JMUODU
OverUnder
Best BetJames Madison
JMU's talent floor is just higher right now — two First Team All-Sun Belt honorees up front and a proven workhorse back in Pettaway give the Dukes a foundation ODU can't match while it breaks in a first-time starter. Preseason polls have JMU as the East favorite for a reason, and that talent gap should show up even on the road.
James Madison
+First Sun Belt team ever to reach the CFP
+Preseason pick to win Sun Belt East
+Greenberg, Thomas, Pettaway all preseason All-Sun Belt
−Only 5 returning starters from CFP roster
−61 newcomers, first-year head coach Napier
−Projected to fall roughly 50 spots in SP+
Old Dominion
+Went 10-3, closed 2025 on a 6-game win streak
+Won Cure Bowl 24-10 over South Florida
+Picked second in Sun Belt preseason polls
−Lost OC Kevin Decker to Memphis
−Starting QB Colton Joseph transferred to Wisconsin
−Ranks 114th nationally in returning production
This one kicks off Sun Belt play for both sides, and it's a rematch of two programs trending in opposite directions on the surface but carrying real questions underneath. JMU was the first Sun Belt team ever to reach the College Football Playoff last year, and it enters 2026 under first-year head coach Billy Napier tasked with keeping that momentum alive. ODU, meanwhile, jumped from 5-7 to a 10-3 Cure Bowl-winning season under Ricky Rahne and gets its signature league test right out of the gate at home.
The roster turnover on both sides is the real story here. JMU brings back just 5 starters and 34 letterwinners from a CFP team, plugging in 61 newcomers — 39 of them transfers — to replace what walked out the door. ODU's rebuild cuts differently: offensive coordinator Kevin Decker left for Memphis and starting QB Colton Joseph transferred to Wisconsin, leaving dual-threat Quinn Henicle, who has all of 2 career starts, to run the show behind center.
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JMU James Madison
ODU Old Dominion
Both teams enter this preseason with real buzz — JMU picked to win the Sun Belt East, ODU tabbed second in the conference polls — which sets up an opener with actual standings weight instead of just early-season noise. Where the value shows up is in how sharp the market treats a defending-champ favorite breaking in a new staff against a hot team defending its own home turf.
JMU's frontline talent is what separates the Dukes from the pack early. Center Zach Greenberg and edge rusher Amar Thomas both landed First Team preseason All-Sun Belt honors, and running back George Pettaway — already pushing 1,200 rushing yards across his first two seasons — gives Napier a proven engine to build around while everything else gets sorted out.
James Madison Dukes
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Old Dominion Monarchs
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Injury report — info via ESPN.
ODU's counter is continuity in the building even without continuity on the depth chart. Rahne's staff turned a 95th-ranked SP+ team into a top-50 outfit in one year, and that six-game closing streak, capped by a 24-10 Cure Bowl win over South Florida, says this program knows how to finish. The Sun Belt opener at home against the champs is exactly the kind of statement game Rahne has been building toward.
James Madison Dukes
Sep 19?@ San Diego State—
Sep 12?vs Wagner—
Sep 5?vs Liberty—
Old Dominion Monarchs
Sep 19?vs East Carolina—
Sep 12?@ Virginia Tech—
Sep 5?vs Norfolk State—
Recent form.
The swing factor is simple: can Henicle handle a defense anchored by Thomas off the edge, and can JMU's overhauled two-deep hold up on the road in a building that's been rocking since October. Whichever quarterback questions get answered first probably decides this one.
