DENVER – Scott Grode had to bide his time before becoming one of the best men's soccer players in MSU Denver history.
 
A brief trial as a midfielder in preseason camp didn't work out, and as a freshman in 2008 he was stuck behind a couple of high-scoring forwards – Kellen Johnson and Ola Sandquist.
 
"In club soccer I played all over the place, and when he (then-coach Ken Parsons) recruited me, he said that I would start out as an outside midfielder and then work my way in," Grode said. "I'd get a feel for college ball, the speed of it, and work my way to center midfield, and possibly forward.
 
"We gave it maybe two weeks and realized that it was not a great fit … but my freshman year was great because we had two amazing forwards and I got to play behind them and get a feel for the college game and saw how they did things. That gave me a blueprint."
 
Grode took that blueprint and enhanced it into a masterpiece of a career, one that will culminate on Saturday as he is inducted into the MSU Denver Athletics Hall of Fame, along with outstanding Roadrunners men's soccer player and long-time women's assistant coach Dave Morgan, women's soccer All-American Rachel Zollner Tabbal, women's basketball All-American Vanessa Edwards and volleyball star Julie Green. The 7 p.m. ceremony at the SpringHill Suites at MSU Denver follows a 6 p.m. social hour.
 
Grode had three goals and one assist in a reserve role his freshman season, then took off from there.
 
"You look at his tape as a freshman and his tape as a senior, and his growth over four years was phenomenal," Parsons said. "His game was so complete by the time he was done.
 
"He's more of an intrinsic person. It didn't take us to find a lot of extrinsic ways to motivate him. He was always thinking of ways to be more successful."
 
Grode finished fourth in program history with 90 points, fifth with 37 goals, and tied for fourth with 10 game-winning goals. He played for teams that were a combined 59-27-9, including 34-15-7 in regular-season RMAC play, and he was part of NCAA Tournament teams in 2008 and 2011.
 
"The biggest complement for Scott is that opposing coaches would say that it was so difficult to put together a scouting report on him because he could beat you in so many ways," Parsons said. "They'd try to come up with a plan for him, but he'd find other ways to beat you, or find ways to bring other players into the game."
 
Grode said that one of the biggest things he improved was his accuracy.
 
"I definitely improved my shooting in front of the goal," he said, laughing. "I took a lot of shots (he's the program's all-time leader), and I didn't score as many as probably should have, especially my freshman and sophomore years – I was just shooting with power, every shot on the laces as hard as I could. Once I slowed down my game I could find more placement, and things started to click.
 
"I tried to be versatile in my approach. I had a lot of speed – that was one of my assets. And I tried to be relentless, yet patient at the same time, in trying to find a way around the defense."
 
As a senior, Grode led the Roadrunners' NCAA Tournament team with 17 goals and 39 points, earning All-America second team while also capturing Player of the Year awards on the region and conference levels.
 
"He knew that having one tool in the bag wasn't going to be enough to make him successful," Parsons said. "He increased his ability year-over-year to figure out more ways to beat you. He could be a finesse finisher. He scored a good number of his goals with his head."
 
After living in Denver for 14 years, Grode moved two years ago to Indianapolis, where he is regional vice president of sales for Transamerica Corporation. His parents, Ken and Julie, sister Angie, and girlfriend Lucy Roper will be among his guests in his return to campus.
 
"My family, I have to thank them a lot for support me, back in my club career when we were traveling all over," Grode said. "Without them, I don't think I would be where I am today."
 
When Grode was considering his options coming out of his Arizona high school, Parsons' pitch resonated with him.
 
"He was a little different in his approach," Grode said. "He said I would leave as a better person, a better student, and a better soccer player and athlete. I thought that was kind of cool."
 
Grode made that promise a reality, and he delivered a Hall of Fame career.
 
"When I got the news, I was pretty shocked and excited to hear it," he said. "Looking back on my career, it started out pretty rocky – my first year away from home, but Ken and my parents were in my corner pushing me through it. It was difficult time, but I'm so glad and grateful for the opportunity I had. To get to the point where I would be inducted into the Hall of Fame, I would've never guessed that my freshman year. But I tried really hard. It's a true honor to be inducted."