For Villanova’s Matthew Hodge, a long wait is almost over: ‘It’s everything I’ve worked for’

It took Matthew Hodge a little while to find the good.

His freshman basketball season at Villanova was underway, and the prized recruit in the Wildcats’ 2024 class was forced to watch. Hodge watched Villanova lose a home game to Columbia, then watched the Wildcats lose a Big 5 game at St. Joseph’s while his status for the 2024-25 season was up in the air — his fate in the hands of the NCAA.

Finality came the day after that loss on Hawk Hill when the NCAA denied his waiver appeal and upheld its ruling that Hodge, who spent his childhood in Belgium before moving to the U.S. in 2022, failed to meet the requirements needed to be deemed academically eligible.

Hodge said in the days leading up to the final decision that he felt basketball was being “taken away” from him and he didn’t understand why. He graduated on time from St. Rose High School in Belmar, N.J., and was a student in good standing at Villanova.

Villanova argued in its appeal that Hodge had no say in the New Jersey school system that “deemed his [Belgian] coursework and grades good enough to make him a junior in good standing.” Villanova also said that because Hodge was in Belgium during the COVID-19 pandemic, his studies were disrupted, too.

None of it mattered in the end, and so Hodge, who would have been an instant contributor as a 6-foot-8 freshman wing, had to watch and figure out where to find the positives. He relished being able to test himself against Eric Dixon, who went on to lead the NCAA in scoring. He learned how to handle the ups and downs of a basketball season, and, on a more granular level, how to handle being in close games.

“I feel like I’ll be ready for those moments even though I didn’t play,” Hodge said earlier this month. “I’ll be ready because I was with those guys last year.”

He’s one of only two remaining.

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The coach who recruited him to Villanova, Kyle Neptune, was fired after the season. A mass exodus in the transfer portal followed, and Hodge and junior guard Tyler Perkins are the only two scholarship players Villanova fans won’t have to go to their game day program to double-check faces to names. Perkins is the only returner who played. Hodge said it was an easy decision to stay. He had an established relationship with new coach Kevin Willard, who recruited him to play at Maryland.

It’s been a while since Hodge played in a meaningful basketball game. March 8, 2024, to be exact, the day he led St. Rose to a blowout victory for the NJSIAA Non-Public B state championship. The 20-month wait to play meaningful basketball officially will end Nov. 3, when the Wildcats open the Willard era against BYU in Las Vegas. But first up are a couple of exhibition contests, the first of which is Sunday at home against Virginia Commonwealth.

Hodge said he hasn’t forgotten his game day routine and is looking forward to everything being back to normal.

“It’s going to be weird,” he said. “There are going to be some nerves, which is normal. It’s everything I’ve worked for.”

Hodge said he has improved the most on the mental side of the game since he showed up on campus, thanks to being forced to watch last season. But he also thinks his jump shot is improved, as is his ability to play without the ball. Willard said earlier this month that Hodge’s versatility stands out. The Wildcats have used a few small-ball lineups that feature Hodge at center. Hodge said he didn’t envision playing there but he’s not against it. His shooting ability will allow Villanova to space the floor, and his ability to put the ball down and drive should present him with some mismatch opportunities against slower big men.

“Matt might be the greatest human I’ve ever coached just because he’s such a great person,” Willard said. “He’s so coachable, he listens, he competes at the highest level. I think for Matt it’s just going to be, once those lights go on, just getting used to that again. It’s been a while.

“It’s just reps. It’s kind of nerves. I think he’s very excited to finally play a game. What happened to him last year was obviously not the greatest thing, but I think he’s ready to play.”

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Hodge is one of several unknowns for Villanova as the 2025-26 season nears. The Wildcats will rely heavily on freshman point guard Acaden Lewis. Willard stressed that there will be some growing pains with some young and inexperienced players, Hodge among them.

But Lewis said he has liked playing with Hodge so far. Lewis called himself a flashy player who likes to hit “home runs.” Hodge, on the other hand, “is the king of singles,” Lewis said. He rebounds and makes open shots, Lewis explained.

“You need someone like that that’s just going to be a rock for your team,” Lewis said. “He’s not going to make very many bad plays for us this year. There’s going to be games where I may make a couple bad plays and we need someone to calm us down and be there for everyone. That’s exactly what Matt Hodge is. I think he’s just a perfect player you want to play with and not the guy you want to play against.”

For Hodge, all of the buildup is nearing its end. He’ll finally play a game in a Villanova uniform on Sunday. He’ll get another exhibition warmup next Friday at Virginia. Then, come November, the past can finally be in the past, and an awkward first chapter to his college career will be behind him.

“Now I can say it was a good thing even though it wasn’t ideal at first,” he said. “What I learned over the year helped me a lot.”