"We're going to compete at the highest level -- and I can promise you that." Bryan Hodgson introduces himself to Providence

Photo courtesy of Providence athletics

As Bryan Hodgson introduced himself to Friartown on Tuesday, he spoke of the culture he intends to build, the expectations he’ll demand, and the challenge he welcomes from a ravenous fanbase and a ferocious league.

“We’re going to be on the national stage and we’re going to compete to win the Big East right away,” Hodgson told Providence’s fans and the players seated in the front row.

“We’re going to compete to win more than the Big East right away. We’re going to be playing in the NCAA Tournament and we’re going to compete at the highest level — and I can promise you that.”

Watch enough of these press conferences, and they become almost cliché (Hodgson even joked about every coach saying they want to play “fast”), but he struck just the right tone throughout. There was matter-of-fact confidence, appreciation, and determination during his 45-minute introduction.

His conviction stood out more than anything.

Leaving Alumni Hall, I wondered if others had the same thought I did as Hodgson spoke of all he wants to accomplish: “I think I believe him.”

Hodgson doesn’t end up at Providence without the dogged pursuit of PC Athletic Director Steve Napolillo.

The AD came under fire as the past two seasons unraveled, but Hodgson said Napolillo was relentless in pursuit of him, calling him time and time again throughout the process.

“Everything led me back to Providence and Steve,” Hodgson said. “His passion, his vision, the love that he has for this place, quite frankly, it was unmatched. It was truly unmatched. Ultimately, Steve made my family and I feel that there was no better place for me, my wife, and my son than Providence College.”

“I really can’t stress enough the importance of him in this process because for me to make this move it had to be with someone I fully trusted.”

Napolillo referenced Hodgson’s nickname when introducing his new coach, “This is the Ocean State. Father (Sicard) and I went shark hunting and we got the great white shark.”

Hodgson’s first words as he took to the podium? “This is unbelievable. This is absolutely phenomenal. To walk into this room and see the amount of people that are in here — I can tell you I coached in a game last week, in a conference tournament to go to the NCAA Tournament, the championship game — there’s more people in this building right now than there were in that crowd. So thank you very much.”

He thanked his wife, Jordan, and young son, Jett, quipping, “If you ever want to question my recruiting abilities, just take a look at my wife Jordan… I am the founding member of the out-kick your coverage club and I’m very proud of that.”

Hodgson shared that his wife is a former Division I basketball player, the daughter of a coach, and her brother played at Alabama.

“She’s going to be a tougher critic than anybody that’s in this room,” he said.

Turning his attention to the current group of Friars, Hodgson made it clear he’s open to building around some of them.

He then shared with the crowd what he told the players when first meeting them on Monday: “I’m going to tell you something I said to them. Some may not like it, but it’s the reality and it’s who I am. We’re going to re-recruit these young men, and we’re going to build a program around several of them. I sat in that room yesterday and I told them something that I meant: if you leave here, if you leave Providence basketball, I promise you, in about four or five months you’re going to regret that decision.”

“We are going to recruit relentless competitors. That’s all we know. There’s nothing soft about what we do. We attack every game with a relentless mindset. We take pride in being tenacious on both sides of the basketball.”

Hodgson also shared somewhat coincidental thoughts on what this program will look like going forward.

Taking over a team that struggled defensively, he shared, “As far as defensively, we will be suffocating. We will be detail-oriented in our approach.”

“I can tell you right now, and I know this will be music to your ears, we had a top-40 defense in all of college basketball this year, and we had the number one defense in the American Conference.”

He also didn’t shy away from talking about the strong financial situation Providence is in. The Friars most likely wouldn’t be introducing Hodgson without it.

“We are going to be excellent stewards of every dollar that’s put into this program. We’re going to take a very detailed and analytical approach to building this roster,” he said.

“We are going to make sure that we put together a team, that we didn’t just buy a bunch of guys because we were the highest bidder. I don’t operate that way. We are going to find the right men for Providence College basketball — and they are going to reflect that in everything they do in this community and on the basketball court.”

Ultimately, Bryan Hodgson was hired to revive a program that not only fell on hard times the past two seasons, but one that saw large portions of its fanbase direct its considerable ire at anyone affiliated with those struggles.

Hodgson is undeterred.

“There’s people that that intimidates — this fanbase, the expectations that this fanbase and the community has,” he said. “I’m here to let you know, if you think you’re going to intimidate me with that stuff, I thrive on that. I love every second of it and I promise you I’m going to be just as intense as you are.”

“Long story short, bring it. I’m here for it.”