“Being a part of a varsity team is one of the most rewarding things a student can experience,” says David Hodge, Head Coach of Chatham’s Cross Country and Track & Field teams. “There are tangible benefits: higher graduation rate and higher GPA, for example. There are also other benefits: having a sense of accomplishment, bonding with your teammates (who often become friends for life), greater time management skills, and greater work ethic. All of these will carry over into their professional lives, and make them better people once they leave campus.” Luckily, Hodge wants to give interested Cougars the opportunity to be one of his varsity athletes: he’s recruiting for both of his teams.
Hodge has first-hand experience with the lifelong benefits of athletics. “Growing up, athletics and competition were a fabric of my family,” he says. “My father played and coached, and my older brother played three sports as well.” By high school, Hodge competed in basketball, cross country and track & field: strong preparation for his time as a college athlete. “At Grove City College,” he says, “I played basketball for one season, and ran track & field all four years.” A letter winner in track & field every season, he took over as team captain for two. “Grove City made everything possible for me, plain and simple. I became a better person, a better Christian, and a better athlete at Grove City. I also met some of my best friends there – some who were on my teams, and some who had nothing to do with athletics.”
Though Hodge got his BA in History, he switched up his academic life with a Sports Management Masters of Science degree from Slippery Rock University. Hodge’s first job post-grad was major: Head Cross Country Coach and Assistant Director of Recreation at Virginia’s Hampden-Sydney College. “I learned a lot from my time there, mainly because it was my first coaching position,” he says. “I got to experience firsthand what works, what doesn’t work, how to engage with my student-athletes, etc. It was a great first step for my coaching career.” A few years later, Coach Hodge is now a member of the Chatham community, bringing his love of athletics to Chatham: “My time as an athlete definitely shaped the person I am, both inside and outside the realm of athletics. I learned time management skills, how to dedicate myself to something, and what it really means to work hard. The experiences I had, namely at GCC, stay with me today as I coach my student-athletes.”
Running for Hodge is certainly challenging but definitely a blast. “[Student-athletes] should expect to work hard every single day,” he says, “and do little things that otherwise they may not think of. We try to focus on details as much as possible, because it is often those seemingly minute things that end up making the biggest difference. At the same time, we enjoy our time together and have fun. What a lot of student-athletes may not realize is that you have the most fun when you are successful. At Grove City, we won four PAC Championships in the four years I was there. That is fun.”
Being chosen for one of Hodge’s teams means joining an extraordinary group of women who take his philosophy of endless passion seriously. “They show up every day and work hard, and they are just great people to be around,” he says. “I firmly believe that being a good person allows you to be a good athlete. These young women are outstanding people and citizens, and that is why they will be successful in life.” How does Coach Hodge find such amazing athletes? “Pretty simply,” he says, “I look for ones that are dedicated. A phrase I often tell my teams is: do not do something just to do it. Give 100% in everything you do. If you simply go through the motions, you are wasting time.”
Of course, Hodge says, dedication isn’t just for athletes; it’s critical to a good college experience. “My tip for all people, not just student-athletes, is this: make the most of today, and do not wait until tomorrow to work hard. If you put something off today, you will likely put it off again and again in the future. Pretty soon, you will be graduating and look back and say, ‘I wish I would have worked harder at this.’ Do not look back with regret. Work hard today, and every day.”
If you’re interested in joining the cross country or track & field team, email Coach Hodge at dhodge@chatham.edu.