Hodge’s reply caught the player off guard.
“I said, ‘I can tell you as officials we get just as excited as you do.’ The player looked at me like, ‘Really?’ And I said, ‘We don’t jump up and down, but we are excited, too.’ ”
That kid-like appreciation for the game was one of the things that kept Hodge on the football field for almost four decades. The 66-year-old Elizabethton native hung up his TSSAA whistle at the end of the 2022 season, but he may not be completely done.
Hodge retired from his position as a graphics designer with Ballad Health earlier this year. He and his wife, Susan, will be moving to Ruskin, Florida — which is located south of Tampa — in a few days, and Hodge may pick up some games in the Sunshine State.
“I’ve gone back and forth on whether I will continue officiating,” Hodge said. “I’m leaning toward continuing for two or three years. I will see how it goes health-wise.”
The main reason he may stay involved is the reason he has officiated for 38 years: “Because it’s fun,” he said. “I know that’s a simple answer, but I have a lot of fun out there. Every game I’ve called, it’s always fun to do it.”
Hodge heads into the locker room and begins the process of looking back for what was good and what wasn’t.
“Yes, we do that,” Hodge said. “One thing I like to do is watch the games on HUDL or whatever platform I can find, and just analyze each play. More often than not, everything is good. You know if you have managed the game and maintained control. Sometimes you come off the field and know it could have gone better.”
“One game that stands out is we had a play at the goal line,” Hodge said. “The wing guys didn’t come in as quickly as I wanted, and they didn’t know if the ball crossed the goal line or not. And the umpire looked confused. I asked where they had the ball marked, and they said short.
“During the delay to make the call, we had a couple of unsportsmanlike penalties against the team with the ball. So that backed them up 30 yards, and they didn’t score. That team ended up winning, but it left a bad taste in our mouths because the unsportsmanlike penalties might not have occurred if we had a quick definitive call.”
THROUGH THE YEARS
Hodge grew up in Elizabethton before attending East Tennessee State University and graduating in 1978. He worked with Lowe’s and Parks Belk before eventually putting in 20-plus years with Mountain States Health Alliance and Ballad Health.
Hodge called 56 playoff games, six semifinal contests, and three state championship games. He called the 2000 Class 1A title game when unbeaten Christ Presbyterian Academy defeated University School of Jackson, 49-27. In 2009, he called the Class 5A title game, where Beech beat Columbia Central, 47-33. And in 2017, he was on the field for Alcoa’s 31-20 win over Covington for the Class 3A championship.
Hodge said he believes officiating hasn’t changed much over his four decades.
“You have some coaches or assistant coaches who are a little more demonstrative than others,” Hodge said. “And you have players who can get a little wild with each other. But through the years I haven’t noticed a lot of difference in those things.”
“The big thing is communication. They may not like the call, but they don’t have a big gripe a lot of times if they can see you and hear you.”
Hodge said there are many people who helped him become a better official.
Included in the mix were Ralph Stout, Cradic, Larry Hutchinson, David Birkner, Joel Pierce, Ron Fox and Shelby Miller.
“I’ve tried to take what I’ve learned from these people and pass it on to younger officials,” Hodge said.
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