Hall of Fame
Perhaps no one symbolized the passion for sports and competition better as an athlete at Staten Island Community College than William J. Hodge. As a teenager, wherever “Billy” was going, chances are he was running, and the fleet of foot racer was getting there awfully fast. That sprint to excellence followed him at SICC after a successful career at Monsignor Farrell High School and he helped serve as a foundation for the College’s then-cross-country and track and field programs.
As captain of the units, Hodge helped then coach, Nick Farkouh, build the program, and he was excellent both on and off the field. At the time, it was unheard of for a CUNY school to be invited, let alone win an event at the annual Penn Relays, but Hodge and his fellow harriers did just that, claiming gold as a member of the one-mile relay team at SICC in 1970. He ran the fastest quarter-mile of the bunch, a record that stood till the record books at SICC were officially closed. The accolade earned him popularity, but ever the sportsman, Hodge refused to be interviewed unless his three fellow relay partners were interviewed as well.
That marked brand of excellence followed Hodge upon graduation where he immersed himself into coaching and eventually carved out a niche in collegiate sports that extended far beyond CSI’s reach. He helped pioneer the track program at Moore High School, then he hit the college ranks, coaching at nearby Wagner College in 1979. He would go on to coach at Columbia University, Bucknell University, Lafayette College, Mt. Olive College, Robert Morris University, Rider University and Belmont Abbey College. Hodge did not just enjoy coaching, he enjoyed building programs, and made it his staple at every stop. He was named a Coach of the Year in four different NCAA Division I conferences.
At 59 years of age, Hodge was lost to us when he suffered a heart attack while at Belmont Abbey’s conference championship meet in 2010 having taken over the program just months prior. Although he was taken from us much too soon, Hodge left behind an indelible mark on those around him both on the track as an athlete and on the sidelines as a coach.
