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The University of Mississippi Athletics
SPOTLIGHT: All Eyes Turn To Hodge
10/20/2009 | Football
By Austin Miller
Athletics Media Relations Assistant
With the graduation of deep threat Mike Wallace, now with the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers, it's the oft-unheralded senior wide receiver Shay Hodge's time to shine.
Hodge talked about filling the void and how it would take a team effort to replace what Wallace produced on the field.
Off to a fast start in 2009, Hodge is third in the SEC in receiving yards (64.8 ypg) and fourth in receptions (4.3 rpg).
At Vanderbilt, Hodge caught eight passes for 122 yards, his second 100-yard receiving game of his career, and hauled in two touchdown passes. But his biggest play of the night was a 48-yard reception on third-and-16 in the first half of a 23-7 victory. Describing the play, Hodge says, "I was happy to get a chance to show what I can do; to show that I'm not just a possession receiver, but that I can get past people and make plays."
Hodge finished just short of the century mark against UAB, collecting seven catches for 99 yards.
Getting past people and making plays are nothing new to Hodge, especially when one remembers last year's 31-30 stunning victory over then fourth-ranked and eventual National Champion Florida in "The Swamp." He caught three passes for a career-high 133 yards, including a career-long, eventual game-winning and season-defining 86-yard reception with 5:26 remaining in the game. Hodge calls it the biggest play he has ever made.
Hodge is part of a senior class which endured losing campaigns his freshman and sophomore seasons respectively, including a winless SEC record in 2007. Last year, he helped lead the Rebels to a 9-4 record and 47-34 Cotton Bowl victory over Texas Tech en route to a final No. 14 ranking in the Associated Press poll.
"All of a sudden we win, and then this year we got a whole bunch of hype. It was different, we had to learn how to handle that hype."
Despite a 16-10 loss to South Carolina on national television and a 22-3 loss to third-ranked Alabama, Hodge stays positive and looks ahead to the remaining 2009 season.
"We have to get in the film room and get better. What we're doing on offense is not acceptable," Said Hodge, prior to the UAB game. "We have to find out what went wrong. We have to go practice and get better."
As the season progresses, Hodge will look to continue to move up in the record books, ranking among the top-10 Ole Miss receivers in receptions (122), receiving yards (1801), and touchdowns (17). He currently sits second all-time in touchdowns, seven shy of tying all-time great Chris Collins' mark of 24.
Looking back at his career in Oxford, Hodge reflects, "It means a lot to me. This place made me grow up. I came here not knowing that I was going through all these changes, getting bigger, learning from coaches, learning from the people around me. It was a great place to come. I wouldn't trade it for anything."
