09-21-2007, 12:42 PM
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THU., SEP 20, 2007 - 9:05 PM
UW football: Oh brother, UW's Hodge succeeds, too
By TOM MULHERN
608-252-6169
tmulhern@madison.com
Linebacker Elijah Hodge was an eighth grader when he met University of Wisconsin football coach Bret Bielema for the first time.
Bielema was the linebackers coach at Iowa and on a recruiting visit to Boyd Anderson High School in Lauderdale Lakes, Fla., to see Abdul Hodge, Elijah's older brother, who ultimately signed with the Hawkeyes and had a terrific college career.
The school produced four recruits, signed by Bielema, who all went on to NFL careers.
"(Elijah) was walking up the stairwell when I went to go recruit Abdul," Bielema said. "He was just this little eighth-grade kid, big eyes, big ears. It always sticks in my mind, the first time I met him."
After one year at Boyd Anderson, Elijah Hodge transferred to Dillard in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
"I saw Elijah in the spring, I said, 'Why'd you (transfer),' " Bielema said. "He goes, 'I got tired of people calling me 'Little 'Dul'. My name's Elijah.' For whatever reason, that kind of always stuck in my head."
That's why when UW was recruiting against Iowa and Ohio State for Elijah Hodge, who is now the Badgers' starting middle linebacker as a third-year sophomore, Bielema was more concerned with the Buckeyes.
"When I would recruit, I would say, 'You want to go there (Iowa) and be called Little 'Dul?'" Bielema said. "I thought he was going to go to Ohio State, I really did. I think 'Dul came through and told him, 'If you're not going to come to Iowa, you're going to go to Wisconsin.' I think he helped us in the long run."
Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said he initially wasn't aware of Elijah Hodge's desire to get out of his older brother's shadow.
In hindsight, though, Elijah never talked about his desire to play with his brother, Ferentz said. That should have been a sign.
"Ultimately, that's really what it came down to: He wanted a chance to break out on his own, and I think that's what he chose to do, certainly," Ferentz said. "With the exception being, he's wearing Abdul's number (52)."
Elijah Hodge was not available for comment this week, since Bielema did not allow defensive players to talk to the media.
Abdul Hodge, who is on injured reserve in his second year with the Green Bay Packers, was in New York for surgery on both knees on Tuesday. But he still hopes to be at the game Saturday night when the Badgers face the Hawkeyes at Camp Randall Stadium.
"My brother knows I'm a Hawk," Abdul Hodge told the Des Moines Register. "He knows I'll be hoping he has a good game, a great game, but he also knows that I can't pull against my team."
When asked about the similarity between the brothers on the field, Ferentz said: "I think there's definitely some parallels and obviously some differences as well. Bottom line is they're both good football players. If Elijah's career is 50 percent as productive as Abdul's, he's had a great career."
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