Steve Napolillo got his man. After the dismissal of Kim English, Providence was looking for a guy to take on the job as head basketball coach of the Providence Friars. Bryan Hodgson is now the next head coach of the Providence Friars.
We did an extensive coaching profile on Bryan Hodgson earlier this week. Check that out below.
The Hodgson Hire and A Reflection on Providence
The Providence Crier guys want to make note of how Hodgson ending up as Providence’s lead man is a ringing endorsement for the state of the basketball program. Providence went nose to nose with Syracuse and came out on top because the Friar basketball program has a healthier NIL and is a more appealing job than Syracuse in the current state of college basketball. Imagine stating that in a serious manner 15-20 years ago?
Times have changed, and Providence is no longer one of the “have nots”. The Providence coaching job is a Top 25 job in the country due to the collective efforts of the Providence community.
Friar alums, donors, school employees, and fans should take a bow because this doesn’t happen unless everybody is rowing the boat in the same direction. It’s a testament to how serious Providence is about winning on the big stage.
I listened to this quote from Cal early this morning and couldn’t help but feel pride in knowing Providence fits into this category.
Tip of the Cap to Nap
I also want to take a moment to applaud Steve Napolillo. Kevin Farrahar and I were on a podcast together yesterday, and we both in unison agreed that if we were in Nap’s shoes, we’d probably play it “safe” with this potential hire and bring a veteran coach in that would provide stability.
Hodgson’s hire is Nap at the poker table doubling down on the English hire, and I genuinely commend him for trusting his gut. He knows his career is on the line, and he isn’t “playing it safe”.
Despite the English hire not working out, I praise Nap for taking a hefty cut at the plate, and he’s doing it again with Hodgson (albeit with Shark having a more credentialed resume). If Nap is going down, he is going down swinging.
This hire is Nap trying to get Providence to the upper echelon of college basketball. If it fails, it fails, but you absolutely have to applaud Steve for pushing his chips all-in. That is a guy I can get behind and support. Well done.
Hodgson the Program Fixer
Hodgson brings with him a resume of success. In his three years as a head coach, he has shown the ability to turn two programs around extraordinarily quickly. In those three years, he has achieved the benchmark 20 win season each time.
In the season before Hodgson took over Arkansas State and USF, they each had 13 wins. They were well below .500, and I think Hodgson turning them around in the first year was incredibly appealing to the Providence brass. As we saw with Willard this year at Villanova, NIL and a good coach can turn a flailing program around extremely quickly.
While expectations should be tempered with Hodgson, it’s also equally fair to expect Providence to compete for an NCAA tournament bid due to how quick adept coaches can turn around a team in one calendar year.
Roster Composition – USF Roster
In this era of free agency and NIL, it would be foolish to not look at the current roster of South Florida and see who has eligibility for the 2026-2027 season.
The first name that jumps out is Wes Enis. Enis was a junior this past year, as he played his first two years at the Division 2 level. Enis is a 6’2 guard who averaged 16 points on this USF team. Enis shoots 35% from deep and 81% from the charity stripe. Simply put, he’s a bucket. I’m sure Hodgson will be bringing him along to lead the Friar offense.
CJ Brown is another backcourt name to monitor. The 6’2 guard has spent his first two years in college at USF and hung around when Hodgson was hired, so there is a chance Brown is loyal to USF. If he follows Hodgson, he’d likely be starting alongside Enis in the backcourt. Brown is in the mold of a true lead guard that facilitates the offense, exemplified by his 4.7 assists/game to 2.0 turnovers/game. He’s not an effective or efficient shooter, but Hodgson should have enough scorers around him while Brown is the table-setter.
Xavier Brown is another 6’2 guard. By way of James Madison, Brown was in line for a major roll this year before injury derailed his season. Brown will be another veteran body in the backcourt.
Beyond those names, there aren’t many others that would be obvious additions from the USF roster for the Friars. Hodgson is going to have a massive rebuild on his hands even if he stayed at USF, as the team was very senior laden. Thus, he may look towards the PC roster, particularly at the 3-5 positions, and see which players he would like to retain.
March 23rd Update
I’ve given a deeper dive on the roster after seeing the below tweet. Do I think these are locks to join? No, but the below is causing me to re-evaluate the freshman on the USF roster who were buried behind seniors this past year and could be contributors at Providence as Sophomores and beyond. As everybody knows, I love roster continuity so if he can bring a few freshman who will be Friars for the next 2-4 years, sign me up. Hodgson has an eye for talent so I’d gladly bring along all five freshman.
Caleb Sanders – 6’6 Small Forward from Florida. He played sparingly, in only 11 games with 2 starts, but would bring more size to the PC roster at the 3/4 spot. He may know Jamier from the Florida AAU circuit? From his high school stats, he seems to be an on-ball defensive pest.
Gavin Hightower – 6’1 guard from California. Hightower was actually a key cog for USF as a role player, playing in 26 games and averaging 10 minutes as a true freshman. He saved his best for last, scoring 12 points with 4 rebounds, 3 assists, and FOUR steals against Louisville. Bring him along as the guard of the future after Enis and the Browns graduate.
Tristan Beckford – 6’5 wing from Canada. Similar stat line to Sanders where he played 21 games with 1 start, but only averaged 7 minutes.
Onyx Nnani- 6’9 Forward from Canada. You may need to bring him on name alone, but he would provide size to the frontcourt, and we all know PC desperately needs that. He redshirted this year and would have 4 years of eligibility.
Adriel Nyorha – 6’5 wing from Canada. Very similar story to Beckford and Sanders. 26 games played, 2 starts, 10 minutes.
Roster Composition – Retaining PC Players
If I’m Hodgson, I’m prioritizing Jamier, Mela, and Oswin over all others on the Providence roster to help fill the holes on the roster in the front court, as the backcourt should be in a very good place with the USF transfers.
Even with a backcourt coming with him from Tampa, I’d also imagine retaining Vaaks is on the priority list due to his stellar freshman campaign and range from deep. Hodgson can sell him on his fit in his prolific three ball offense. To a lesser extent, the same pitch should be given to Harrell and Barron.
Thankfully, NIL is in a good spot, and Hodgson shouldn’t have many issues restocking the roster regardless of what the Providence players do in the portal.
Hodgson’s Fit with the Providence Community
I’ve long said that this next hire needs to be a culture hire. Providence is a unique job: the fans are rabid, they are passionate, and they expect the head coach to love the Friars as much as they do.
Hodgson’s origin story is going to fit like a glove with the blue collar mentality of the Providence faithful. Providence is a gritty town where you have to scrap and claw for everything, and I think Hodgson both can understand and appreciate that.
Hodgson spent most of his youth in foster care before getting adopted. He was not gifted any jobs in his coaching career. He grinded as a grad assistant at Fredonia State of all places and went the JuCo coaching route before landing on the staff of Nate Oats at Buffalo.
Hodgson is an underdog story, and he will absolutely resonate with the people and fanbase of Providence.
Let’s welcome Bryan Hodgson as the next coach of YOUR Providence Friars.
Go Friars!