 According to Senior Associate Athletic Director Debbie White, ODU had tried several times to restart a football team.The university wanted to improve ties to alumni, who often stated in exit interviews before graduation their wish for an ODU football team, and rarely revisited the campus.On June 14, 2005, the Board of Visitors unanimously approved with a 14–0 vote to create a new football team to compete, along with the university's other sports teams, at the NCAA Division I level.