Jaguars rookie offensive guard Cooper Hodges is getting his chance in the NFL thanks to the lessons learned from a close-knit family and community.
Hodges, who started all 51 games he played at Appalachian State, is only the fourth First Coast product to be drafted by the Jags, following Mathis , Webb and Quarterman . Williams, Ross and Tarle were free-agent signings.
Hodges said the support of his hometown has been powerful motivation throughout his high school, college and now professional career. He said winning or losing — and in this case, making the Jaguars or not — will never change that. Cooper’s grandparents on his mother’s side are Neal Stavely, who was a transportation officer for the state prison system, and Eileen, who worked for the phone company. They moved from Bainbridge, Ga., to Macclenny in 1968 and had Alicia 10 years later.Brad and Alicia Hodges were high school sweethearts. Brad played defensive end for Baker County’s first-ever district championship team in 1989 .
They raised their boys with time-honored values and rituals in an idyllic country setting more than an hour from the nearest shopping mall or beach. With their own upbringing as a base, they taught their sons the tenets of faith, an honest day’s labor, respect for elders and the importance of education.
Cooper not only wanted in, but he wanted to face the biggest 8-year-old on the team. When the whistle blew, Cooper scored a clear victory. When Neal Stavely would pick up his grandson from middle school football practice, it wasn’t uncommon for Cooper to polish off an entire pizza and a 2-liter bottle of soda. More than once, Alicia Hodges’ refrigerator would be emptied when Cooper and his friends came sweeping in after school.Cooper Hodges read an article one day about how Tim Tebow put on some needed weight by eating huge bowls of cereal at night.
Brad Hodges got a clue about that kind of mindset years before that when he was driving Cooper home after a Little League practice. His son turned to him and said out of the blue, “You’re tough on me.”
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