NORFOLK, VA (WTKR)- Mike Jones and Odell Hodge are getting ready to shape the future of Old Dominion basketball, but have been thinking about its past a lot the last several days.
Former Monarch Mario Mullen, who helped ODU upset Villanova in the 1995 NCAA Tournament and a teammate of Jones and Hodge, passed away Friday after a medical emergency at at the age of 50.
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"We had seen him just recently," Jones recalled. "He was so excited for us and ready to jump two feet in and supporting everything we're building here, so to have such a drastic change with him was very unexpected."
"It shook me to my core, I think a lot of guys that played with us, played with Mario, especially after we had the chance to see him last week," added Hodge. "He was in great spirits, energy level was great, the vibe was good and to get the news three days later... shucks."
Mullen suited up for Old Dominion from 1992-1996, earning CAA All-Freshman honors in 1993. He averaged 8.4 points and 4.8 rebounds during his college career, one that was interrupted by a serious car accident that sidelined him for part of his tenure with the Monarchs. The time he shared with his teammates left a lasting impression on Jones and Hodge.
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"He'd give you the shirt off his back," Jones said. "One of the funniest guys, one of the guys you wanted to hang out with, people kind of gravitated to him. I have very fond memories. He had a big old cargo conversion van that he would drive all of us around in, had the captains chairs in it before that was really a thing and we spent a lot of time riding places in that van."
"I felt like myself and Mario were the missing pieces to a team that was already established," Hodge noted. "Great success together, but most importantly, one of my closest friends. Roommates, not only a teammate, but roommates, funny, always laughing and joking around."
Prior to his college career at ODU, Mullen made a name for himself at Bayside, leading the Marlins to back-to-back state titles in 1990 and 1991 and pulling in state player of the year honors in 1991. He found himself back in the high school game as a coach, leading Ocean Lakes since 2020 and trying to help grow the game even more in the 757.
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"To see him give back to the community, give back to the game of basketball that we all love, it's remarkable," Hodge said. "It just says so much about him as a human being and he's doing great things in the teaching aspect at Ocean Lakes."
Jones has been reading some comments in recent days from parents of players that Mullen coached, as well as players themselves.
"I almost wish I would've been able to see him coach because I could not be more proud to see the things that people are saying about him," the head Monarch noted. "To me, that just speaks to the trajectory that he was going to be going on as a coach and pouring into young people. We lost a treasure, man. We lost somebody who would've had a huge impact on this game given the time to do it."
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Now Jones is the man in charge of their old college program with Hodge by his side. In their discussions leading up to the season, Mullen was excited to have his two former teammates back with the silver and blue.
"The very first person I saw when I walked into the Big Blue Room at my (introductory) press conference was Mario Mullen," Jones recalled. "He told me he wasn't going to able to make it because of school. There was no chance he wasn't going to be there, but he wanted it to be a surprise and it was."
Jones added that he and the administration have been in discussions about how the Monarchs can honor Mullen during the season, but those plans are in the early stages and the head coach emphasized that nothing will be done without Mullen's family's permission.
