After graduating from the University of Texas at Austin where he played quarterback for the Longhorns, Dodge went into coaching, primarily at the high school level.

[1] He moved on to the college level as head coach of the University of North Texas football team, but he was released after acquiring a 6–37 record.

Dodge played quarterback at Thomas Jefferson High School in Port Arthur, Texas, under coach Ronnie Thompson where he set several state records.

From 1982 to 1983, Dodge was a backup quarterback, though he did get his first start as a freshman in the 1982 Sun Bowl when Robert Brewer broke his hand 5 days before the game.

[4] In 1983, Dodge was named the starter for the opening game, but a shoulder injury in the final preseason scrimmage on Sep 9,[5] sidelined him for a month and he didn't reclaim the starting role until early November.

Despite the quarterback troubles that resulted in rotating starters, the Longhorns went undefeated during the regular season and, but for a disappointing loss to Georgia in the Cotton Bowl, would have won the national championship.

But the title run was ended during a 29–15 loss to Houston in which Dodge threw 0 completions in his first 13 passes (but 4 of his 5 record interceptions) and was benched for Bret Stafford.

Dodge led the team to a win over #12 TCU the next week, but lost again to Baylor in the following game—while setting school records for single season passing yards and completions.

The season finished with two more losses, to Texas A&M when Dodge was benched for Stafford, and to Iowa in the 1984 Freedom Bowl when the Longhorns gave up 55 points, the most since 1904.

Dodge would not see significant playing time again until the final game of the regular season when he came off the bench versus Texas A&M to score the Longhorns only touchdown that day.

[10] Dodge's passing effort currently ranks fourth on the UT single-game chart, behind Major Applewhite, Colt McCoy, and Brown.

And that I had the opportunity to play at the University of Texas, where I don't know that you can have a better training ground to be a coach.Soon after graduation, Dodge pursued a coaching career at the high school level.

Dodge's Southlake Carroll then proceeded to win three straight championships from 2004 to 2007, tying the state record set by Abilene High School's in the 1950s.

[12] Dodge brought most of his original college coaching staff from the high school ranks, and the team struggled to compete against non-conference and Sun Belt foes.

Deloach had a terrific run as UNT's secondary coach from 1998 to 2000 and was a fan favorite for his stellar work as defensive coordinator from 2000 to 2002.

[17] Dodge focused heavily on upgrading the team's defensive talent with several good recruits from the junior college ranks in 2009.

Going into the 2013 season, Athlon Sports rated Todd Dodge as the seventh worst college football tenure in the BCS era.

[24] In January 2024, Dodge came out of retirement to take the head coaching job at Lovejoy High School in Lucas, Texas.

The couple have a son, Riley Dodge, who played wide receiver and quarterback at North Texas, and a daughter, Molly.