FB: Old Dominion Athletic Conference

The Third Division · January 14, 2026, 08:22:26 PM

Gallaudet is gonna be independent this upcoming season.

Probably best for the program since they went 1-8 last season.

Patrick Coleman · January 14, 2026, 08:31:38 PM

Here's that story:
https://www.d3football.com/notables/2026/01/gallaudet-to-try-hand-as-independent

Not sure that being independent and having a messy schedule with club teams on it is the right move. It seems rash to jump out of the ODAC after one year when there was already an established window for review at the two-year mark. Seems like Gallaudet's athletic department leadership doesn't understand how hard it is to operate as an independent in Division III. Le Fors didn't even get a chance to recruit before this season, although certainly Chuck Goldstein was on the job and doing that work.

It seems rash and premature for Gallaudet to jump out after one year. If the ODAC was too tough -- we all knew that from day one. But it's hardly a positive sign to any new conference if you jump out of your old one after just one year. Doesn't speak well for the stability of a conference-school/program relationship.

The Third Division · January 14, 2026, 09:32:14 PM

Here's an interesting schedule. What region is Gallaudet in? 1? 2? 3? does it depend on what conference they were in last?

This is important for knowing their playoff eligibility status.

The Third Division · January 14, 2026, 09:33:59 PM

Their next best options are the Middle Atlantic Conference or USA South.

Patrick Coleman · January 14, 2026, 10:53:56 PM

The MAC already has 10 teams, though. That's not a likely spot for them to land.

The USA South has an even number of football programs. I don't think they are likely to extend their footprint another 200 miles in order to go to nine programs.

Gallaudet plus Keystone together in the MAC in football is not great for the competitiveness of the conference, but if they are able to hang in at 12 teams, they can play in divisions and only take the hit of playing one of them per year.

bonesmjb731 · January 15, 2026, 06:52:15 AM

Gallaudet makes sense in the Landmark with Catholic U. Give the Landmark 8 members. Keystone to MAC to bring conference up to 11 teams

jknezek · January 15, 2026, 08:23:58 AM

Man the ODAC just can't hold on to members. I don't know what Gallaudet expected though. Winning a game was more than I expected from them, but Averett or Guilford gave them a chance every season to get a win or two. And yes, I'm aware Guilford absolutely pasted them this year, but let's be realistic about the program outside of 2012-2015.

Anyway, I don't see how this helps Gallaudet. Does it help the ODAC? I suppose it depends on who the teams can add OOC, but it definitely adds to schedule heartburn. RMC playing Gallaudet doesn't really do much but take up a weekend, but that's not much different from Averett or Guilford, and if you have to add Apprentice to fill the weekend, that's not helpful either.

With both Averett and Guilford in and out of money trouble, ODAC football has to be sweating bullets. Thank goodness for Roanoke, and here's hoping someone can convince Lynchburg to start football.

Patrick Coleman · January 15, 2026, 11:19:54 AM

Quote from: bonesmjb731 on January 15, 2026, 06:52:15 AMGallaudet makes sense in the Landmark with Catholic U. Give the Landmark 8 members. Keystone to MAC to bring conference up to 11 teams

Eleven teams is kind of the worst place to be -- one short of 12 where you can play in divisions and have an 11th-game championship game, and one more than 10, which is an even number and makes scheduling easy.