Bryan Hodgson on The Field of 68's "Off the Carousel" is a Must-Listen
New Providence head coach Bryan Hodgson kicked off The Field of 68’s Off the Carousel series with an insightful, wide‑ranging conversation with Jeff Goodman.
Hodgson touched on a bit of everything in this podcast, including his decision to come to Providence, the extensive homework he did on Dink Pate, going head-to-head with Dan Hurley and other Big East coaches, the Friar fanbase, and conversations with Billy Donovan and Ed Cooley after taking the job.
It’s a must-listen for all Friar fans.
Here are some highlights:
On the potential of wing Dink Pate: “He’s all of 6’8. He can play one through the four with the way we play. He’s versatile. He became a much-improved shooter over the past 12 months in the G League.”
“I did as much homework on him as any young man I’ve ever recruited. I called six NBA front offices and eight NBA G League head coaches, and it was a unanimous no-brainer. One G League head coach was like ‘Is this a serious question? He had like 25 against us and the guy I had guarding him was an ACC Player of the Year a few years ago.’”
Hodgson expects an early adjustment to college basketball, but noted, “When it clicks, he’s going to be special.”
He called Pate’s energy “infectious” and noted Pate is very excited to experience college after joining the G League at age 17.
On the talent of his big men: Hodgson pushed back on the notion that his main focus was on the backcourt and wings in the portal.
“Our guards are getting a lot of attention, but if you take a look at our average height, we’re going to be right there with anybody. We’ve got two 6’11, 240s coming. Arrinten Page was 6’10 and a half, 242 on his visit. Samson Aletan from Yale is all of 6’11, 240.”
Page is a versatile scorer, while Hodgson believes Aletan can unlock more of his offensive game playing in PC’s system.
On the Providence fanbase: Hodgson had high praise for Providence fans, but certainly seemed aware of the negativity that crept into the AMP and online last year.
“You see the fanbase on Twitter and they are brash. Now that’s my fanbase, so I’ve got their back. We do want to treat people with respect, that’s for sure, and if I ever feel like they don’t then I’m going to call them out. That’s how I operate, but the support is unbelievable. I’ve had great fanbases everywhere I’ve been, but this city and this state just rally behind this basketball team.”
On Dan Hurley and upcoming Big East battles: Goodman joked that he could see Hodgson and Hurley exchanging words next year on the sidelines, which led to Hodgson speaking of his respect for Hurley and meeting Hurley’s wife at the Final Four this year.
“I love Dan. We’re talking about a Hall of Fame coach. Every year he’s right there in the conversation to win a national championship. I’ve got a great relationship with him.”
And on the potential scenario in which tempers heat up and words are exchanged? “Dan’s not going to shy away from it and I’m not going to either.”
What can Providence fans expect from Hodgson away from the floor? “I’m going to be heavily involved in this community and I’m going to be in the trenches with them. I think that’s what this fanbase appreciates from a coach. To be honest with each other, Ed (Cooley) was loved, man. The dude’s from Providence and was heavily involved in the community, and we’re going to do that as well.”
“I think those are the guys they connect with — not saying other guys haven’t done that, but I’m not on a pedestal. I wasn’t a big-time player, I worked my way up from junior college and I’m extremely honored to be here.”
On Cooley and how he’ll handle when Georgetown returns next year: “It’s pretty simple to me. We’re going to treat him with elite respect. The guy won a lot of basketball games here. He is a big part of Providence College basketball history. We want to kick their ass, that’s for sure, but when he’s here we’ll treat him with class and respect. You can be a fan and talk junk and do the deal, but at the end of the day don’t make it overly personal. That’s important to me because we want to represent this college in the right way.”
Hodgson shared that he spoke with Cooley after taking the job and that Cooley genuinely praised the college and program during their conversation.