Dodgen signs with MTSU

 During her sophomore year, White County High School’s Gracie Dodgen made a verbal commitment to play basketball at Middle Tennessee State University, and, on Nov. 11, 2020, right before the start of her senior season, she made it official when she signed her letter of intent while surrounded by family, teammates, and coaches.

“A lot of stress was taken off my shoulders when I made that commitment two years ago,” Dodgen said,

Dodgen said after verbally committing to what is her dream school, she was able to play the game she loves without any worries, but that signing that letter this week took that to a whole different level.

“Today, actually fulfilling my dream to play college basketball feels so good, and it shows that hard work really does pay off,” she said.

Dodgen’s father,  Michael Dodgen, who is also her high school coach, said  that hard work is what he is most proud of.

“The fact that she’s able to accomplish things at a high level, that she’s been very successful at a high level, that’s what I’m most proud of,” he said. “In this day, a lot of kids, if it’s not instant satisfaction, they stop working. Not Gracie. She is 100 percent dedicated and had probably given up a lot of things that other kids have and do because she is always working on basketball.”

Gracie Dodgen said she knew at 4 years old that she was in love with the game of basketball and is thankful for both her family, who provided her with both support and opportunities to play and train even at an early age, and for God, who she says blessed her with a talent that she intends to use for as long as she possibly can.

She also said she always wanted to go to MTSU, so when the coaching staff made her an offer during her sophomore year, it was an easy choice.

“There’s a bunch of players that I look up to who have played there,” Dodgen said and adding there were other colleges interested in her talents, but the choice was easy for her. “When I went down there to visit, it felt like home to me. I just didn’t waste any more time – I wanted to commit.”

Gracie Dodgen, who says she plans to major in media communications, hopes to make Sparta proud while she strives to put together a great career at the Murfreesboro university.

“I am going to miss the fans here at Roy Sewell Gymnasium; they are so supportive of everything I do,” she said. “The atmosphere and the fan base here are so amazing.”

Gracie Dodgen has put together an impressive career in the gym of which she is so fond. She holds all of the three-point records for the Warriorettes and said those were records she had always envied.

“Scoring my thousandth point during the second game of my junior year was a pretty special moment, too,” she admitted. “Getting to share that with my teammates and my dad being my coach and being there on the floor with me, it was really something I won’t forget.”

Gracie Dodgen admits being coached by her father, who has coached her for seven years, including years of AAU ball, has been hard, but says she wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.

“It is hard, but he pushes me to levels I haven’t been pushed to by anyone else, both as a player and a person,” she admits. “So, I am grateful to have him as my coach.

Both Dodgens, father and daughter, say they work hard to separate basketball from family and leave what happens in the gym at the gym.

“If we don’t, my mom cuts that off very quickly,” Dodgen laughed, while her father quickly agreed.

“It’s probably harder on her, than it is on me,” Michael Dodgen said, adding he is speaking from experience as he played ball for his father when he was younger. “It’s always different, and we try to leave basketball at the gym, but it’s hard.”

Michael Dodgen said the moment “his player” signed that letter of intent to play at MTSU, he knew what a fantastic opportunity it was for not just her but also for her team and her school, but Michael Dodgen, “the father,” also knew how important this was to his family.

“She has her education paid for,” he said, indicating that was a huge relief. “Basketball aside, the education part is the best part. When you see that dollar figure down there and you see that it’s taken care of, as a parent, you are extremely happy about that.”

As he prepares to coach his daughter one final season, both father and daughter are hoping for a season full of memories, but Michael Dodgen is hoping that Gracie Dodgen takes all of the lessons she’s learned with her when she walks out of Roy Sewell Gymnasium and heads to Murfreesboro.

“I hope that most of all she has learned to just work hard and not take anything for granted,” he said, pointing to the current pandemic as proof that the next game is never a guarantee. “Everything has to be 100 percent every day.”