Old Dominion–VCU men's basketball rivalry explained

Wide:	yes
ODU–VCU men's basketball rivalry
Team1:	ODU Monarchs
Team2:	VCU Rams
Sport:	College basketball
Firstmeeting:	February 5, 1969 ODU 101 - VCU 69
Mostrecent:	December 11, 2021 VCU 75 - ODU 66
Total:	97
Series:	VCU leads 53–44
Largestvictory:	ODU by 32 on Feb 5, 1969 VCU by 32 on Dec 29, 1983
Longeststreak:	VCU, 10 (2001–2005)
Currentstreak:	VCU, 3 (2019–present)

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

! style=""

scope=row	Founded	align=center	1930	align=center	1838
scope=row	Location	align=center		align=center	Richmond, VA
scope=row	Conference	align=center		align=center	Atlantic 10
scope=row	Students	align=center	24,125	align=center	32,303
scope=row	School colors	align=center		align=center
scope=row	Nickname	align=center		align=center	Rams
scope=row	Mascot	align=center	Big Blue	align=center	Rodney the Ram
scope=row	Arena	align=center		align=center	Siegel Center
scope=row	Capacity	align=center	8,639	align=center	7,617

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.<ref>Web site: The Contributions of Education: To the College, Town, Region, Commonwealth and Beyond. The College of William & Mary's School of Education. Education.WM.edu. December 22, 2011. 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.^[2]

Notes and References

Web site: Rams vs. Monarchs is best CAA duel. Daily Press. 15 February 2009. dailypress.com. 21 July 2022.
Web site: Molinaro . Bob . 15 Feb 2009 . Electricity is in the air when ODU hosts VCU . unfit . https://archive.today/20120719140128/http://hamptonroads.com/2009/02/electricity-air-when-odu-hosts-vcu . 19 Jul 2012 . The Virginian-Pilot.