NORFOLK, VA (WTKR)- After two years as an assistant at Old Dominion, Odell Hodge was seeking other opportunities. Turns out his next opportunity is just across town from his previous spot.
Hodge is the new head boys varsity basketball coach at Granby High School, taking over for Levi Wall.
"I was very happy to have the opportunity," the former Monarch said. "I'm humbled by the opportunity. It's a tradition here and let's try to keep that tradition going."
The new head Comet has plenty of experience leading high school players in Europe. After he and Mike Jones mutually agreed Hodge would seek other endeavors, he was able to find a basketball gig that kept him in Hampton Roads.
"The 757 is home away from home," Hodge noted. "In the 90's I spent so much time here. Then I went away, I came back and I wasn't ready to leave quite yet, so why not do something to try to pay it forward for these high school students?"
The former ODU star returned stateside to take an assistant job with the Monarchs. Despite parting ways, Hodge says he and Jones continue a close friendship and he has nothing but high hopes for his alma mater.
"That's part of the business," he pointed out. "I'm still going to be a supporter of Mike Jones and ODU basketball. It's my alma mater. My jersey, it's hanging up in the rafters so you don't turn your back on a program that's been great to you throughout your whole career."
Now he's starting his new chapter at Granby, looking to return the Comets to the top of the Eastern District and beyond. The program finished 15-7 this past season and has its eye on competing with the likes of powerhouses Norview and Lake Taylor.
"We're going to be fierce," he said of what the Comets will look like under his leadership. "We're going to get in your face, we're going to pressure you, we're going to guard you. We're going to shoot a lot of threes and we're going to rebound the basketball."
Hodge scored more than 2,100 points and pulled down nearly 1,100 rebounds during his career in the silver and blue. His 2,530 career points in high school for Laurel Park rank sixth all-time in VHSL history.
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