Exclusive: Ross Hodge Offers Candid Thoughts on NCAA Tournament Expansion

PITTSBURGH – As Ross Hodge prepares to lead the Mountaineers into his second season in West Virginia, he’s doing it with the benefit of a new format change for the NCAA Tournament.

While capping off year one by winning the College Basketball Crown was a nice way to start off his tenure, Hodge knows reaching the NCAA Tournament on a regular basis is the goal for a program like WVU.

Fortunately for Hodge, his 2026-27 team will potentially be able to endure a few more hiccups than his first group and still be granted access to the madness of March. The NCAA Tournament approving expanding the field to 76 teams should make getting there a little easier. But with that said, the decision to add more teams, is a polarizing one for fans, with some feeling the NCAA Tournament was fine as is and going from 68 to 76 waters down the competition.

Courtesy of WVU Athletics

Making his first statement since the new became official, Hodge can see both sides to the debate.

“You always want to get in. I probably see both sides of the argument. I’m not supper passionate either way,” said Hodge when asked by WV Sports Now at the Pittsburgh stop of the WVU Coaches Caravan on Friday, May 8.

“On the one side… ‘Are you watering it down? Are you adding more confusion to it? But then on the other side, I think any time you are giving student athletes an opportunity to further their careers and play on that stage and be part of that tournament, then that’s probably good. If you’re creating more opportunities for athletes, it’s probably never a bad thing. I see the other side, too. Me personally, 68 felt like a good number. It felt kinda right. But again, change has been a central part of the industry the last few years and you gotta be willing to adapt and be uncomfortable.”

Regardless of Hodge’s diplomatic response or the recent expansion, the pressure is on Hodge to make West Virginia an annual NCAA Tournament team again – the last time WVU missed out on the “Big Dance” three or more years in a row was 1999-2004. To Hodge’s credit, he has put together a roster that’s earned national recognition, both for the transfer players and a high school class headlined by five-star Miles Sadler, an incoming freshman he feels is as good as advertised.

Find more coverage of Ross Hedge and the WVU basketball program at WV Sports Now.