LITTLE ROCK –
Roger Woods brings a unique blend of size and skill to Little Rock basketball that doesn't have much parallel around the Sun Belt Conference. You won't find many 6-5, 230-pound players as comfortable handling the ball on the perimeter as Woods.
Ever since he started playing organized basketball in the fifth grade, Woods has been one of the more versatile players. He was always big – 5-9 in early middle school and full grown by eighth grade – and always a good ball handler. He never put a major emphasis on ball handling or any of the other guard skills that complete his game today. According to him, they came naturally.
Because of that combination of size and skill, his game has always defied a traditional position.
"Everything. Everywhere," Woods said when asked what position he played in little league.
The same holds true for another sport he starred in as a kid: football. Woods played through ninth grade and was, according to his own modest memory, "the best." He played mainly played defensive end, safety and tight end, but was also the team's punter and a kick-off specialist. His middle school team never kicked field goals or he would've handles those duties, too.
His natural talent for football is obvious – tremendous size with long arms and quick feet. Despite that, it was never his favorite sport. He mostly saw it as a way to spend time in basketball's offseason. Once basketball became more a more serious endeavor, he let football go.
"I just liked basketball," Woods said. "Football doesn't last very long."
One constant in Woods' basketball life, from little league through high school, was his close friend and teammate Jarvis Summers. Summers, who went on to become an All-SEC guard at Ole Miss, also served as Woods' measuring stick for improvement.
"We played together in fourth and fifth grade, and when he got older, I was able to lead the team myself," Woods said. "Then in middle school, same thing. Then once we got to high school, it was the same thing. Once he left, I was able to lead the team."
To Woods, it was obvious that Summers was a great player. His ability to handle those transitions after Summers' departures improved his confidence.
Playing with Summers at powerhouse John W. Provine High School in Jackson, Miss., Woods was getting plenty of recruiting attention as a junior. He was handed a dose of bad luck as a senior, however, when he tore his meniscus in what was the second-to-last game of his career. He didn't have surgery to repair the tear until almost three weeks later. His rehab lasted six months, including three of those months on crutches.
Despite averaging 22.1 points and 12.0 rebounds as a senior, Woods felt like some teams scaled back his recruitment after the knee injury. One school that continued to recruit him was Southeastern Louisiana, where he would eventually play his freshman season of college basketball.
"I felt like some programs backed off," Woods said. "But (Southeastern Louisiana) stuck with me. I was at a point where I was second guessing if I wanted to play basketball or not, but they stuck with me."
That first year at Southeastern Louisiana was a difficult one for Woods. He started 17 games, but said he knew from day one that his knee wasn't 100 percent.
"I knew it from the first basketball workout," Woods said. "I wasn't the same player at all."
He didn't have his normal explosiveness or athleticism, and it showed in his game. His weight had increased and his conditioning worsened as a result of the inactivity over the summer. More importantly, his confidence slipped as the season went on.
Woods made the decision at the end of his freshman year to transfer to a junior college. He had his share of junior college attention out of high school, but at the time decided he wanted to play Division I. One school that stuck with him the longer than others was Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. Even after he chose Southeastern Louisiana, they made it clear they would always be interested should he change his mind.
"That's where I regained my confidence and was able to have a little bit of success," Woods said.
Before getting to that point, he took some time off. Woods stayed away from basketball that summer, instead using that time to rehab his knee.
"I didn't play much basketball in the summer," Woods said. "I tried to play, but I couldn't move the same way. I just rehabbed as much as I could."
By the time he returned to action that fall, Woods knew his knee had improved. He led Mississippi Gulf Coast to 19 wins while averaging 19.5 points and 6.8 rebounds. He shot 52.2 percent from the floor and took 213 free throws on the year – an average of 8.2 per game. He scored in double figures in all 26 games that season.
"The biggest thing there was the coaches accepted me for me," Woods said. "They let me play all over the court – drive, kick, get my teammates involved."
Playing in Mississippi Gulf Coast's dribble-drive offense, Woods was able to get back into a comfort zone. He could catch the ball away from the basket, face his defender and make decisions accordingly. Woods was named First Team All-Region 23 and First Team All-Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges (MACJC) at the end of the season.
After one season at Little Rock that saw him make a smooth transition back the Division I level, Woods is now preparing for a senior season under a new staff. In a twist on the returner-newcomer relationship, he has sought a good deal of advice from
Thomas Brandsma. Brandsma has played the last three seasons under head coach
Chris Beard at Angelo State and McMurry.
"I talk to Thomas a lot," Woods said. "He's been there before, he's been playing with coach Beard for three years, so he's experienced. He's a good person, good player."
The main challenge Woods faces this year will be replicating his big offensive numbers from last season while increasing the team's number in the win column.
"I just want to win," Woods said. "I don't care about individual stuff. I just want to win the Sun Belt Championship. I'm excited for the new brand, the new court, the new jerseys, all that. Sky is the limit."
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