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IU basketball

That's exactly why I want to see it continue.
Well, there is the potential entertainment value out there. I’d agree with that. The problem is that Cignetti could be one on the football side to blurt out something like: “We kicked this motherftuker’s ass in the first half and we’re going to ram it up their ass in the second.”
 
Stevens is possible. Not likely but possible.

Dusty is the most likely choice but also the worst choice by far imo. Pray for Beard.

This isn’t a job for nice guys.
The blood in the water around Beard is getting worse. Now there is an online rumor that he actually beat up his GF in front of his Texas team- it’s a bit ludicrous given I was on Orangebloods when he was hired and not one iota of that story
 
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If Iowa moves on from Fran, McCollum has been linked to them since that's where he's from.

Timing is everything. (See Dusty May.) I doubt they fire Fran, and he says he's not leaving. McCollum will have a decision to make. (Again, see Dusty May.)
 
I've always liked Fran. That would be a tough way for him to go out. Reminds me of how we treated Mallory.

I agree. I always thought his teams played hard for him.

Going to the tournament 7 of the last 11 years at a school like Iowa (i didn't include the covid season) is pretty impressive.
 
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His time at Iowa State wasn't a positive.
True. He struggled and got fired. However, he learned from it, adjusted, and has become a good coach. Creighton isn’t an easy place to win and he has turned them into a top 25 program. He’s not a home run hire, but he would have IU as a top 15 program.
 
True. He struggled and got fired. However, he learned from it, adjusted, and has become a good coach. Creighton isn’t an easy place to win and he has turned them into a top 25 program. He’s not a home run hire, but he would have IU as a top 15 program.

I definitely agree with you. I'd be more then happy with him.

I'm not sure there's a home run hire out there that won't have people up in arms.
 
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Why? I’d take McCollum over him in a heartbeat
There's an arrogance about not bringing in D2 guys at football and basketball. Yes, he was at Northwestern Missouri. He still has to recruit and scrape and claw for guys probably a lot more so than at the D1 level. 395-91 is no joke.

Yes he came to Drake when Drake was a darn good program, but he is not dissimilar to Lance Leipold. I realize that this is a bit like the "messi short, all short players can be like Messi" argument, but there's a nice track record with him. Would he take IU over Iowa?

It might be a good opportunity to start fresh and find someone with some juice and energy who can actually teach.
 
There's an arrogance about not bringing in D2 guys at football and basketball. Yes, he was at Northwestern Missouri. He still has to recruit and scrape and claw for guys probably a lot more so than at the D1 level. 395-91 is no joke.

Yes he came to Drake when Drake was a darn good program, but he is not dissimilar to Lance Leipold. I realize that this is a bit like the "messi short, all short players can be like Messi" argument, but there's a nice track record with him. Would he take IU over Iowa?

It might be a good opportunity to start fresh and find someone with some juice and energy who can actually teach.

Well said.

Ben McCollum will have several options after this season. It'll be interesting where he chooses.
 
Well said.

Ben McCollum will have several options after this season. It'll be interesting where he chooses.
He may not want to come. He just navigated the most difficult gauntlet in college basketball in arch madness. That bulldog griff they’ve got there seems like a bff that if you couldn’t take with you, you wouldn’t leave. I’d show that big bullie the shed at iu before anything else
 
There's an arrogance about not bringing in D2 guys at football and basketball. Yes, he was at Northwestern Missouri. He still has to recruit and scrape and claw for guys probably a lot more so than at the D1 level. 395-91 is no joke.

Yes he came to Drake when Drake was a darn good program, but he is not dissimilar to Lance Leipold. I realize that this is a bit like the "messi short, all short players can be like Messi" argument, but there's a nice track record with him. Would he take IU over Iowa?

It might be a good opportunity to start fresh and find someone with some juice and energy who can actually teach.
I want a smart, high IQ coach who is driven. Not sure who fits that description.

With the Div 2 guys, the big question is probably one of recruiting. IU wants to be nationally relevant, so we need to recruit kids good enough that have a shot at the NBA (not just one per team; multiple). Can a Div 2 guy who has never put a guy into the NBA convince these kids and their families that he can do that? Say what you will about Woodson, but he had the pedigree to at least make that argument.

For the decision maker, I’m not sure how you predict who can and cannot do this if they’ve not done it before. Again, maybe the new landscape changes this dynamic and it’s just all about who pays the most in NIL. If so, all the more reason we need some sort of GM, dedicated solely to the business side of all this.
 
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Well said.

Ben McCollum will have several options after this season. It'll be interesting where he chooses.
Well Drew not coming is a bummer (at least for me it is). McCollum might be this year's Josh Schertz with the difference being 2 additional years at D1 compared to 1 for McCollum--but McCollum has way more years experience as a head coach. It is very hard to win a national championship at any level, and McCollum won it 4 times at NW Missouri State. Josh has had a nice year for St. Louis--not a easy place to do well. I would have liked to see McCollum have experience as an assistant under a different coach, but the guy got offered a head coaching job at NW Missouri State.
 
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I want a smart, high IQ coach who is driven. Not sure who fits that description.

With the Div 2 guys, the big question is probably one of recruiting. IU wants to be nationally relevant, so we need to recruit kids good enough that have a shot at the NBA (not just one per team; multiple). Can a Div 2 guy who has never put a guy into the NBA convince these kids and their families that he can do that? Say what you will about Woodson, but he had the pedigree to at least make that argument.

For the decision maker, I’m not sure how you predict who can and cannot do this if they’ve not done it before. Again, maybe the new landscape changes this dynamic and it’s just all about who pays the most in NIL. If so, all the more reason we need some sort of GM, dedicated solely to the business side of all this.
All the D2 guys recruit and they put a ton of time into the process. We have 3-4 guys on our current roster who think they are or actually are NBA type players, and we aren't that good. We spent more on basketball NIL than any other other school in the last 2 years--that is not working for Woodson and his failure to recruit complimentary pieces (like shooting guards for example), is a big piece of the incomplete puzzle.

IU's pro day for football this year was gigantic--biggest pro day they have had in terms of number of players participating and number of scouts. Nobody looked at that roster in June of 2024 thought "better save the date".

A coach who wins matters. Money matters. Take a look at Drake's roster--their two best players are NW Missouri state players- Bennett Stirtz and the Abreau kid. Stirtz is fantastic. Almost 20 points a game and playing up in competition against Vandy and KSU, he averaged 19 points and 7.5 assists. No clue if he is an NBA player, but Stirtz can play anywhere and win.

Would McCollum be a risk? He would be a risk. Frankly, at this point, any one coming to Indiana is a risk because they have to rebuild the roster in all likelihood. I think the Peegs guys correctly think they might not have more than 2 guys on the roster when the new coach comes in.
 
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All the D2 guys recruit and they put a ton of time into the process. We have 3-4 guys on our current roster who think they are or actually are NBA type players, and we aren't that good. We spent more on basketball NIL than any other other school in the last 2 years--that is not working for Woodson and his failure to recruit complimentary pieces (like shooting guards for example), is a big piece of the incomplete puzzle.

IU's pro day for football this year was gigantic--biggest pro day they have had in terms of number of players participating and number of scouts. Nobody looked at that roster in June of 2024 thought "better save the date".

A coach who wins matters. Money matters. Take a look at Drake's roster--their two best players are NW Missouri state players- Bennett Stirtz and the Abreau kid. Stirtz is fantastic. Almost 20 points a game and playing up in competition against Vandy and KSU, he averaged 19 points and 7.5 assists. No clue if he is an NBA player, but Stirtz can play anywhere and win.

Would McCollum be a risk? He would be a risk. Frankly, at this point, any one coming to Indiana is a risk because they have to rebuild the roster in all likelihood. I think the Peegs guys correctly think they might not have more than 2 guys on the roster when the new coach comes in.
I agree re risk. The only coach that has proven himself to a degree at D1 that would probably come is Beard, but he's probably too toxic for the administration.
 
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