Wavering Hodgson narrows his choice to either Penn or Rutgers

It has all come down to Penn and Rutgers, but Indiana-transfer Rob Hodgson still has not made up his mind where he wants to attend school and play basketball this year. Hodgson last year transferred from Indiana when Hoosiers coach Bob Knight informed him he would be redshirted for his rookie season there. He attended Suffolk Community College last semester. Up until recently he had also been thinking of going to St. John's and Fordham, but he dropped them from consideration last week, his father, Bob Hodgson, said last night. A native of Mastic Beach, N.Y., Rob Hodgson is the third all-time leading scorer in New York state high school history. Hodgson's mother had indicated a decision would be made yesterday, but Bob Hodgson said last night he did not know when his son would decide. "He's waffled quite a few times," Bob Hodgson. "He'll think he's reached a decision, and then he'll turn right around and say, 'Well, I really don't know.' It's at the point now where if he's confident about one school for any kind of extended period of time, that's where he'll decide to go." Bob Hodgson did say the fact that his son has taken so long making a choice is a positive for coach Fran Dunphy and the Penn basketball program. "Earlier Rutgers was out in front, so in that sense things are looking up for Penn. It's 50-50 right now," Bob Hodgson said. Rob Hodgson has had to take numerous factors -- athletic, academic and financial -- into account in making his decision, his father said. In each of those areas, Penn and Rutgers, which will be in its first season competing in the Big East Conference in 1995-96, are profoundly different schools. "It's not like deciding between Syracuse, St. John's and Georgetown," the elder Hodgson said. "Those are all scholarship schools with similar situations and programs. Penn and Rutgers are very, very different. It's not so much deciding between the schools in this case as it is a philosophical struggle he has going on inside himself. What kind of path does he want to take?" It all comes down to the respective strengths of the Big East and the Ivy League. Rutgers can give Hodgson a scholarship and the opportunity to be on television 17 times in 1995-96, as opposed to three TV appearances for the Quakers. But Penn "has a rich basketball tradition," Bob Hodgson said. "It doesn't have to take a backseat to anybody." While Bob Hodgson played basketball with Rutgers coach Bob Wenzel in high school, he called Dunphy "a great person. His achievements at Penn speak for themselves." Rob Hodgson has also met Penn co-captains Ira Bowman and Tim Krug, his father said. Academically, Bob Hodgson said, Penn and the Wharton School have an advantage. However, Hodgson should graduate in three years and wants to spend his fourth and final year of eligibility pursuing a master's degree. Ivy League rules prohibit graduate students from competing in athletics, Bob Hodgson said. That could be a point in Rutgers' favor. A scholarship to Rutgers might seem inviting when compared with the cost of tuition at Penn, which does not offer scholarships in accordance with Ivy League restrictions. But Bob Hodgson insists the schools' respective price tags will not be a factor. "We really don't want financial considerations to enter the picture," he said. "If he wants to go to Penn, we'll find a way to make that work." Because he transferred from Indiana before any games were played, Rob Hodgson will have to miss just four games rather than a full season. But Hodgson is filing an appeal in the hopes of getting himself declared eligible for the start of the season.

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