CASTINE – Mike Hodgson knows he has big shoes to fill as the new football coach at Maine Maritime Academy.

After all, John Huard, who left to become head coach of the expansion Shreveport (La.) Pirates of the Canadian Football League, compiled a 32-20 record in his seven seasons at MMA. The Mariners were 9-1 and won ECAC Northeast and New England Football Conference titles last fall.

But the former University of Maine player and assistant coach and Princeton University assistant coach is ready for his first head coaching job.

“John did a great job here. John built a great foundation. I would like to take the good points from what he did, translate a lot of those into what I’m doing and go from there,” said Hodgson, a 1979 University of Maine graduate who has spent the last nine years at Princeton.

“The thing I have to do is be me. There are a lot of things I believe in, a lot of things I think I can accomplish here,” said Hodgson. “They’ve got this football program to the highest level it’s been in a long time, and it’s my job to maintain that and take the next step.”

The 37-year-old Hodgson has a basic philosophy.

“My philosophy is to make sure our players understand the total picture,” explained Hodgson. “I want them to give 100 percent academically, 100 percent to their playing abilities on the football field and 100 percent to their growth emotionally and from a maturity standpoint.”

Hodgson outlined his approach to the MMA game.

“We’re blessed with one of the better tailbacks in the country (Rob Marchitello). We’ll run the multiple-I which will be very similar to what they’ve had here before,” said Hodgson. “We will establish the run.”

As for defense, Hodgson said, “I want to make sure people sitting in the stands at MMA can close their eyes and hear us play football. I want a hard-nosed, aggressive group on defense.”

Maine players fit into Hodgson’s equation.

“Every kid I’ve ever dealt with from the state of Maine, whether it be guys I played with or players in our program now, they’ve always been tougher than a bag of hammers,” said Hodgson.

He intends to develop a rapport with the state’s high school coaches.

“I want to make sure every high school player in the state has the opportunity to come here and get involved with our football program if that’s what he wants,” said Hodgson, who will also recruit out of state.

He won’t be offering scholarships, but he will be selling an attractive package that includes a field with a new artificial surface field, a nice campus, a quality education and a promising future upon graduation.

“The thing you have to understand about Maine Maritime Academy is that your scholarship starts when you graduate, and it lasts 40-60 years,” said Hodgson. “It’s not a four-year deal here. That’s very important for the kids we’re going to recruit to understand.”

He will hire one full-time assistant as soon as possible to be the defensive coordinator, he said, “because I’ve spent more time in offense and that’s my area of expertise.” He wants to hire four young, enthusiastic in-terns to fill out his staff.

MMA Athletic Director Bill Mottola said more than 50 people applied for the job.