Ross Hodge promoted to head coach at North Texas
Associate head coach Ross Hodge has been elevated into the head coaching role at North Texas, the school announced Sunday. Hodge has been on Grant McCasland‘s staff for the last seven years – six at UNT – and has been a key member of the Mean Green teams that went to the NCAA Tournament in 2021 and won the NIT this week.
“I’m excited to announce the elevation of Ross Hodge to serve as our next head coach for UNT Men’s Basketball,” AD Jared Mosley said. “Ross has been an integral part of the culture and identity of this team the past six years and has earned the opportunity to lead us into the American Athletic Conference. His experience as a head coach who won more than 85 percent of his games over five seasons, his ability to attract high-level talent, and his track record of building a championship culture will serve our program well moving forward.”
Hodge is a Dallas-native who played at Texas A&M-Commerce and got his coaching career started there, as well. He has five years of head coaching experience at two junior colleges in Texas, going 146-24 overall and finishing as NCJAA National Runner-up in 2011. He first synched up with McCasland at Arkansas State in 2016 after spending the previous five years working with Larry Eustachy at Colorado State and Southern Miss.
“For the past six years we have poured our hearts into building a championship level program that this university and community can be proud of,” Hodge said. “I’m forever grateful to all the players and staff, past and present, who have helped us get here. We look forward to building on that amazing success and competing for more championships. My family and I couldn’t be more excited to continue being part of the Denton community and Mean Green Nation.”
The Mean Green have been one of the best mid-major programs in the country since 2017, winning 20+ games in every year but COVID-shortened 2020-21 and regularly appearing the postseason. McCasland’s tenure was bookended by a CBI championship in 2018 and the NIT crown in 2023, and in 2021 upset 4-seed Purdue in their opening round NCAA Tournament game in Indianapolis.
The program is moving to the AAC in July, kicking off a new era of Mean Green athletics after ten years in Conference USA.
credit to North Texas Athletics for the image
