Ken Rood was a guard for the Hofstra men's basketball team from 1973 to 1977 and served as a two-time team captain. He was a member of two NCAA Tournament teams and concluded his career with 1,368 points, ranking fourth all-time at the time of his graduation. He is currently 16th on the Pride's all-time scoring list.

Rood also finished in the top 10 in the East Coast Conference in scoring during each of his final two seasons. A member of two ECC Championship teams in 1976 and 1977, Rood averaged 15.4 points and 16.1 points per game in his final two seasons in a Hofstra uniform. In 1975-76, Rood ranked fourth in the NCAA in free throw percentage at .875 

In Hofstra's first-ever Division I NCAA Tournament game, Rood shined with 18 points and four assists versus Connecticut. Rood had another outstanding showing in the 1977 NCAA Tournament against Notre Dame, scoring 16 points to go along with six rebounds, two assists, and one steal. 

A decorated high school star at St. Anthony's High School in Smithtown, New York, Rood was an All-Long Island selection and led the team to its first-ever LICHSAA championship. 

A 1977 cum laude graduate with a degree in geography, Rood would earn his MBA in marketing from Hofstra in 1979. He served as national sales manager for Fieldcrest Cannon between 1984 and 1987, before taking over as president of Ralph Lauren Polo. He served as president for nearly 18 years and is now an operating partner at Marvin Traub Associates as well as the founder and president/CEO of KJR Home, LLC.