The Paris News

Behind every successful operation, one person typically lurks as the decision-maker, the person everyone looks to for guidance.

For Paris Junior College, that man is Ross Hodge.

Fresh off a Region 14 championship, Hodge now leads the Dragons in their first trip to the national tournament in Hutchinson, Kan., since 2004-2005 when they left as national champions.

Hodge, in his second season, wasn't with the team then, nor did he ever plan on becoming a head coach. Yet, here he stands, pacing the sidelines while contorting his face into any number of shapes depending on the circumstance.

The 27-year-old Hodge played college basketball, and because he wasn't the most athletically gifted player, he had to “think the game,” as he says. Even then, coaching didn't seem like a realistic option for a guy pursuing his Master's Degree in kinesiology.

But it happened and seems to have worked out for the best.

“I'm not holier-than-though, but I am a man of faith and believe everything happens for a reason,” Hodge said. “I don't know exactly what reason it was for me, but I was extremely fortunate, extremely blessed to get the job at an early age.”

Replacing a coach who was extremely successful didn't seem to bother Hodge, who had no head coaching experience, but played under former PJC coach Bill Foy, and then served as Foy's assistant.

In Hodge's first season, the Dragons went 27-5. This season they are 28-5.

Vroom, vroom

Hodge deflects just about any question or comment regarding his early success as a head coach. If he doesn't immediately turn the focus to the sophomore leadership on the team, he talks about the program Foy built during his 11-year tenure at PJC. Foy left PJC to become assistant coach at the University of North Texas. He compiled a 227-125 record, made eight trips to the regional tournament, including five regional finals appearances, and was named NJCAA Coach of the Year after his Dragons won the 2005 national title.

Foys replacement is continuing the Dragons' tradition.

One of Hodge's favorite ways to wiggle out of a question regarding what he's accomplished during his short coaching life is to say, “It was like getting handed the keys to a Ferrari for your first car.”

Although PJC athletic director Jim Moffitt and Foy agree, they only agree to a point.

“He was left a good team, but he did very well with that team,” Foy said. “The true measuring stick was determined this year. People throughout the coaching fraternity were saying, 'Let's see what he does this year.' He proved to everybody he is a tremendous coach.”

Moffitt, along with PJC President Pam Anglin, had the unenviable task of trying to replace a coach who earned a national championship. The move to hire Hodge after a brief three-week search paid off.

“He's being humble,” Moffitt said. “You can inherit players, and if they don't respond to you, then you don't have success. It all goes back to his personality and his connection with the modern athlete.”

PJC freshman center Charles Funches thinks Moffitt is spot-on with that assessment.

“It's due to the fact he played,” Funches said. “He's older than us, but not that much older, so he can connect better.”

Region 14 Most Valuable Player Eric Tramiel said Hodge knows the ins-and-outs of college life, which helps him relate to players who are seven or eight years younger.

“He's been in our shoes — lived in the dorms,” Tramiel said. “We have the same background.”

Hodge has an open door policy with his players, who can walk into his office or home and talk about whatever they need to get off their chest. It can range from girls, to family issues, to playing time.

“With as much as we demand of those guys, if they don't feel like you have a genuine interest in their life, it's not going to work,” Hodge said. “I want them to be successful in life — not just here.”

Practice makes pretty good

In an era when coaching jobs are about as stable as an intoxicated clown walking across a tightrope on stilts, maintaining the team's respect is paramount for success and job security.

This is an area where Hodge excels, and the reason is simple. He's honest.

“He's straight forward and he doesn't lie,” PJC sophomore guard Courtney Waters said. “It gives the team a lot of faith.”

Freshman point guard Raymond Sims, who might catch Hodge's wrath more than most due to the position he plays, said Hodge scolds a player when necessary and picks a player up when necessary.

“Everybody thinks a coach is wrong sometimes,” Sims said. “But, we sat down as a team and decided he's right.”

No mutiny. Just a shared agreement their coach was actually right.

Hodge said his former coach at Texas A&M-Commerce, Sam Walker, once gave him a rude awakening, but he admired the honesty and wants to make sure players know where they stand with him.

“Sam Walker told me, 'You had a great junior year, but I'm going to try to bring in better players, and try to bring in someone better than you,'” said Hodge, who had just averaged 7.3 assists, third-best in the nation. “I respected that, and guys appreciate that.”

Players also respect a man who spends hours upon hours preparing for the next game, whether it's watching game film, or running his team through practice.

“I try not to measure our success in wins and losses,” Hodge said. “The last two years, we've had several three-point, two-point, four-point wins that could've gone either way. We've been fortunate in a lot of games, but I think you create your own luck. The harder you work, the luckier you get.”

Hodge is 12-5 in games decided by four points or less, including a 50-49 thriller in the Region 14 championship game to advance the Dragons into the national tournament.

“People don't know how hard he works,” Moffitt said. “He doesn't just throw it out there and play. I'll guarantee when you win a lot of those close games, it's because you're prepared. Ross is a hard-working dude.”

'I wasn't ready

to get a real job'

Hodge didn't have coaching aspirations as a child. He didn't want to be the next Dean Smith, Bobby Knight or John Wooden.

Why would he?

None of the aforementioned trio had as much success in their first two years as a head coach as Hodge has had in his.

They all went on to have spectacular careers, but in the early stages, not one of them had a winning percentage in the same ballpark as Hodge.

Hodge's gaudy .846 winning percentage and sterling 55-10 record dwarfs the two-year winning percentages of Smith, Knight and Wooden.

Smith lost 15 of his first 38 games in two seasons at North Carolina. Wooden was 44-15 at Indiana State, and Knight was 31-16 at Army.

If not for Hodge's competitive personality, he may have never had the chance to tell his daughter, Emery, he had a better record than three coaching legends.

“After I finished playing, I wasn't ready for a real job,” Hodge said. “I wasn't really sure I wanted to be on that side of it.”

But, he had just a few classes remaining to earn his Master's degree in kinesiology at Texas A&M University-Commerce, and took a job as a graduate assistant at the school under Walker, for whom he played the prior two seasons.

It was then Foy began to actively court Hodge for an assistant coaching job.

Hodge balked.

“I told coach Foy 'no' like three times for this job,” Hodge said.

Foy said he pursued Hodge when he hired Brad Enright, and continued to pursue him because of Hodge's familiarity with Foy and the system. Hodge played for Foy after he made the Dragons as a non-scholarship player. After a redshirt season, Hodge earned a scholarship and played at PJC for two seasons before moving on to TAMU-C.

“I did have to coerce him to come to Paris,” said Foy. “It's always a plus to bring in someone familiar with what you're trying to do. I just thought it was a better stepping stone for him.”

If a high school baseball coach had his way, Hodge wouldn't have had a playing career, much less a coaching career. Hodge was a strong baseball player, and the coach wanted him to focus on that sport.

“He told me, '5-10 white guys don't play basketball,'” Hodge said. “I said, 'OK, I guess we'll see.'”

I'd like to thank…

Although Hodge is the king of his small, but growing kingdom, he has a large support staff at PJC willing to help. From the president to the athletic director down to the lowest-tenured professor, the Dragons are high on everyone's priority list.

Winning the JUCO national basketball championship seem to have that effect.

“Our administration is second-to-none,” Hodge said. “I tell people all the time the best thing about Paris Junior College is our teachers. It's not a 9-to-5 job, an 8-to-noon job for them. They do whatever it takes to help people succeed, and not just the athletes, but regular students.”

Perhaps the guy who gets overlooked the most throughout all the winning streaks, national rankings and conference championships sits right next to Hodge during each game and whose office is right next door.

PJC assistant coach D' Hudson has been an integral part of the Dragons' success, but goes largely unnoticed.

“He is the guy who really holds the operation together,” Hodge said. “If I put in a lot of hours, I don't even know how to describe the amount of hours he puts in.

“He does the study hall. He does a majority of the recruiting this time of season. He stays on top of things in the dorms. He makes sure guys are taken care of. He's their friend, he's their mentor, and he's their coach. He's invaluable.”

Hodge is also well aware how fortunate he is to have a group of players who have bought in to his philosophy. But, much of that is by design.

PJC sophomores Marcus Carson and DeCarlos Riley, who are in their first year with the program, said Hodge recruits character as much as talent, although talent is aplenty on the Dragons.

“He recruits the tough players,” Riley said.

Carson said Hodge “gets good people in his program.”

Can it last?

Coaches often don't last in one place for too long.

Young successful coaches find bigger and better opportunities, and coaches who don't win find themselves out of opportunities.

Although Hodge has minimal head coaching experience, if he's able to maintain the current status of the program, it's only a matter of time before bigger schools take notice.

“When I came to Paris as coach Foy's assistant, I never envisioned myself as a head coach,” Hodge said.

That was then, and this is now.

Now Hodge is likely to become a candidate for assistant coaching jobs at bigger schools, a la Foy. Maybe not this season or next, but when athletic directors see a possible diamond in the rough, they start mining.

But, Hodge likes Paris. He likes the atmosphere, the support and the city. He likes seeing his fiancée Shelly, and their daughter, Emery Linden, after games.

“I love Paris,” Hodge said. “I care about every aspect of this school.”

Hodge also isn't foolish enough to never consider leaving, no matter how much he loves Paris. Although the grass isn't always greener on the other side, it is sometimes.

“As opportunities come, I think it's something you just have to sit down and talk with your family, pray about,” Hodge said. “As far as my career goals, I just want to keep doing what I've been doing.

“I don't have a timeline — in five years I'm going to be a Division 1 assistant, in 10 years I want to be a Division 1 head coach. I just want to allow things to happen as they may.”

Moffitt said he didn't know how long it would take before other programs starting inquiring about Hodge.

“I don't have a good answer for that,” he said. “You don't know when someone is going to offer you a job. There are certain jobs you don't want because you cannot win no matter how hard you work. I always tell them, 'Make sure when you leave, you have a better job than you have here.'”

Right now, with a national tournament looming, a bride-to-be and a young daughter, Hodge has to be pretty content.

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