Signal Mountain Eagle football player TaDarrell Hodge, center, sits with his mother Shartella Brown on her school bus Monday at the end of the school day. His “second mom,” Schyler Smith, upper left, lives atop Signal Mountain and he is living with her so he can play at one of the top football programs in Hamilton County.The road to a better life can be traveled by any means necessary. For Signal Mountain junior TaDarrell Hodge, like for his older brother TaDarrius, it was a clunky yellow school bus driven by their mother that delivered them to opportunity’s doorstep.
For four years, the Hodge brothers were among dozens of inner-city kids provided transportation to Signal Mountain Middle/High School, which offered more academic opportunities as well as a solid football program.
The boys’ mother, Shartella Brown, was one of the bus drivers who delivered kids to Signal Mountain. TaDarrius took advantage of his opportunity by earning a scholarship to continue playing football at Alabama A&M, and TaDarrell was following a similar path.
TaDarrell, at 6-foot-3 and 260 pounds, is rated as one of the area’s top prospects for next season. The junior has been a two-year starter for the Eagles and projects as either a defensive end or tackle by several college scouts who said they will be recruiting him.
But when the funding for the transportation program for the inner-city students dried up, TaDarrell and his family faced a tough decision.