If you’re looking for the hottest name tied to the Syracuse Orange men’s basketball job, start here:
Bryan Hodgson.
He has picked up steam as a big time candidate from a few national reporters. The resume alone makes him compelling.
Western New York roots — born in Olean, raised in Jamestown, a 2005 Jamestown High School graduate. Regional ties matter at Syracuse. Understanding the winters, the chip-on-the-shoulder mentality, the blue-collar pride — that matters too.
But this isn’t a sentimental pick.
It’s a results pick.
Hodgson won 20 games in his first season at Arkansas State. Then 25 in Year Two. That’s real program-building, not inheriting a machine. Now at USF, in his first season, he has the Bulls near the top of the American Athletic Conference. Three head coaching seasons. Three immediate jumps.
That trajectory isn’t luck.
It’s infrastructure-building.
And then there’s the story — the part that tells you who he is.
Hodgson was placed in foster care at 18 months old after suffering horrific burns at the hands of his biological mother’s boyfriend. He arrived at Larry and Rebecca Hodgson’s home wrapped in a blanket, burned and in slippers.
They were foster parents to 112 children over 13 years.
They adopted Bryan.
He grew up the son of a foster child mother and the grandson of a World War II POW who survived being shot down over Belgium. If you’re looking for resilience, Hodgson has it in his family and proved it himself many times over.
Hodgson credits adoption with changing the entire arc of his life. He has said plainly: none of this — not Division I basketball, not recruiting at the highest level, not head coaching success — happens without that foundation.
That kind of origin story doesn’t guarantee wins.
But it does tell you something about how someone handles adversity.
Syracuse right now needs more than X’s and O’s. It needs belief restoration. It needs a recruiter who connects with families. It needs someone who understands how to build relationships and culture from scratch.
Hodgson’s career path reflects that same grind. Student assistant. Junior college assistant. Volunteer at Midland (Texas) CC. Assistant at Buffalo under Nate Oats. Recognized nationally as one of the top young assistants in the sport. Then head coach — and immediate success.
He didn’t skip steps.
He earned them.
The question Syracuse has to answer isn’t just whether Hodgson can coach.
It’s whether the program is ready to align its resources behind someone who has proven he can build.
Because if you believe in resilience, relationships, and relentless upward trajectory, Bryan Hodgson checks every box.
And he understands exactly what it means to come home.
