Four-star recruit Jayden Hodge will commit to Northwestern, Hodge announced Monday afternoon on Instagram. The Belgium native will enter campus next fall as the highest-ranked NU men’s basketball recruit in the modern era, according to 247 Sports’ composite ranking.
“It was definitely a hard decision,” Hodge told The Daily. “But I felt confident and thought about it for a while, and I’m happy that I’ve made this decision.”
Hodge attracted significant buzz among recruiters because of his unique two-way playmaking abilities. In 2024, he led Belgium to a seventh-place finish in the FIBA U18 EuroBasket championship, averaging 15.9 points, 6.9 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game. Beyond his offensive firepower, Hodge was a defensive pest, averaging 1.7 steals per game and just under one block per game.
Following a recruiting cycle with three of NU’s highest recruits in program history — Tre Singleton, Jake West and Tyler Kropp — coach Chris Collins is showing no signs of slowing down.
When Hodge visited campus in June, he received a tour from longtime friend and South Florida transfer Jayden Reid, a former roommate and teammate of Hodge’s older brother, Matthew. Hodge said he was struck by the beautiful campus and the academic rigor. More than anything, he said he felt truly wanted by Collins and the entire program.
“Northwestern has great coaching staff, and they made me a priority as a high schooler this year,” Hodge said. “Coach Collins really came in and started coming to my games, so the connection just got better and better every single day. I felt like I could go (to NU) and work hard and try to bring an impact immediately.”
With offers from schools including Georgetown, Mississippi State and Vanderbilt, Hodge said he faced a difficult decision. He said he had the most trouble choosing between NU and Old Dominion. Hodge’s father, Odell Hodge, was a two-time CAA Player of the Year at the latter, and he currently serves as a special assistant to the head coach at his alma mater.
But college basketball wasn’t even on the cards for Jayden Hodge a couple of years ago, when he and his family were still living in Antwerp, Belgium. When he was a freshman, the family moved to Belmar, New Jersey to play for Brian Lynch, Odell Hodge’s former professional teammate and his sons’ godfather, at St. Rose High School. The brothers dominated, helping St. Rose achieve a No. 1 overall ranking in New Jersey.
With Matthew Hodge leaving to play for Villanova in the 2024-25 season, Jayden Hodge had to take a commanding role as a junior. And that he did, leading St. Rose to its second Shore Conference Tournament Championship, scoring 19 points and 10 rebounds in the finals before winning Shore Sports Insider’s Player of the Year award.
Ahead of his senior season, Jayden Hodge transferred to perennial high school powerhouse Montverde Academy, led by head coach Steve Turner, hoping to ride his success all the way to the Chipotle Nationals in April. Hodge decided to commit early in the year to give his full attention to Montverde.
“I’m here to get better and prepare for the college level, playing under coach Turner, who is a great coach,” Hodge said. “I believe we are going to have a great team this year, and we’ve been putting in a lot of work.”
Hodge had a simple message for NU fans eager to see his game at Welsh-Ryan Arena: He’s all about the end result.
“You can expect a player who plays to win,” Hodge said. “Every time I step on the court, I make winning plays. I’ll dive on the floor, play both sides of the ball and guard every position on the court. I’ll just do anything on the court that helps the team win.”
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