Connect with us

West Virginia

Should Ross Hodge Be a Serious Candidate for West Virginia?

Published

on

Should Ross Hodge Be a Serious Candidate for West Virginia?


Some of the biggest names in West Virginia’s coaching search are now officially unavailable. Ben McCollum landed with Iowa, Niko Medved to Minnesota, Ryan Odom to Virginia, and Will Wade to NC State. Yes, McCollum and Medved were more likely than the others, but still, some of the top names on Wren Baker’s have been crossed off.

So, where does West Virginia go from here?

Utah State’s Jerrod Calhoun remains very much in the mix and is still viewed as a favorite, but who else is there?

North Texas’ Ross Hodge and Wake Forest’s Steve Forbes are a couple of names that have been floated around on social media, but Hodge is the candidate fans need to take seriously.

Advertisement

Hodge was the associate head coach at North Texas for six years when Wren Baker was the school’s Vice President and Director of Athletics before moving to West Virginia in 2022. Baker knows how instrumental Hodge was in the Mean Green’s run under now-Texas Tech head coach Grant McCasland and has continued that momentum in his first two years as the head man.

Earlier this season, Hodge broke the program record for most league wins in a coach’s first two years with 19 but added five more to that, bringing the new mark to 24. Four of the Mean Green’s eight losses this season came to NCAA Tournament teams – McNeese, Utah State, High Point, and Memphis. Despite being ranked 65th in the NCAA’s Net rankings, North Texas was left out of the tournament. His team is set to play in the quarterfinals of the NIT against Oklahoma State on Tuesday night.

While Hodge isn’t viewed by the fan base as a top-tier candidate, you have to keep in mind that this time next year, assuming he has another stellar season, he would be one of the handful of guys Power Four schools will get into a bidding war for. Hiring him this cycle would be getting ahead of that.

MORE STORIES FROM WEST VIRGINIA ON SI

What Mark Kellogg Said Following the Loss to North Carolina

JJ Quinerly Surpasses 2,000 Career Points

Advertisement

Bob Huggins Mentioned in Latest Head Coaching Vacancy

Former No. 1 Player in West Virginia Enters Transfer Portal: Can WVU Get in the Mix?



Source link

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

West Virginia

Critically wounded West Virginia National Guard member being moved to in-patient rehabilitation

Published

on

Critically wounded West Virginia National Guard member being moved to in-patient rehabilitation






Source link

Continue Reading

West Virginia

E-News | Downtown Dash planned Dec. 13

Published

on

E-News | Downtown Dash planned Dec. 13


Join the Main Street Morgantown family-friendly holiday shopping event from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday (Dec. 13) in Downtown Morgantown. 

The event will feature a district-wide scavenger hunt for a chance to win prizes and the opportunity to explore holiday pop-up markets by Hoot and Howl, The Co-Op and Apothecary Ale House.

While exploring downtown shops, participants who spot DASH the Dog can collect stamps. Each stamp brings participants closer to the chance of winning prizes from downtown merchants such as gift cards and goods. To qualify for prizes, completed Downtown Dash Guides with five or more stamps must be turned into Hoot and Howl, The Co-Op, Apothecary Ale House or at Breezeline’s play-to-win tent on Courthouse Square.

Advertisement

As a break from shopping, parents and their little ones can visit Kids Craft, Cookies & Cocoa Central at the WARD Building to enjoy a complimentary hot cocoa and cookie bar and children’s crafts provided by Hotel Morgan sponsored by Main Street Morgantown and Breezeline.

Visitors can also visit the beautiful 25-foot-tall holiday tree on display at Courthouse Square, a collaboration between the City of Morgantown, Monongalia County and Main Street Morgantown.   

Sponsored by Breezeline, the Downtown Dash celebrates the holiday season, promotes walking and shopping throughout the downtown district, and supports local businesses by driving foot traffic directly to storefronts.



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

West Virginia

West Virginia First Foundation lauds Wheeling police for crisis intervention success

Published

on

West Virginia First Foundation lauds Wheeling police for crisis intervention success


The West Virginia First Foundation visited the Wheeling Police Department to commend its efforts in addressing the area’s mental health and opioid crisis.

Wheeling Police Chief Shawn Schwertfeger presented to the WVFF board, highlighting the department’s progress.

Schwertfeger attributed a 14% decrease in Group A crimes from 2024 to 2025 to the department’s crisis intervention program.

“Just another great partnership,” he said. “More collaboration in this area that we are very proud of and we want to keep the momentum going,.”

Advertisement

WVFF Executive Director Jonathan Board praised the program’s success.

“This in particular, the CIT program, that isn’t just in the ether, but is showing success – actual scientific success about de-escalation, about bringing together services providers and to boots on the ground and first responders, this is vitally important to not only this region but the entire state,” Board said.

The visit was part of WVFF’s ‘Hold the Line’ tour across the state.



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Trending