Look where we are. look at Wiscy's results the last 15 years. They had an interim coach the same year that iU did. L'ville had the balls to do it right. Why IU, just why?
Why didn't IU handle the interim coaching job like Wisconsin and L'ville did?
- Thread starter jimmygoiu
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I uses to think the same thing; however, Davis didn't hurt IU as bad as his replacement did.
That’s pretty faint praise.
IU should never have hired Mike Davis full-time...whatever Kelvin Sampson subsequently did.
They were both bad hires. Which one was worse is neither here nor there.
So Ryan replaced a retired Dick Bennett and IU replaced a fired legend a month before the season started. Do you see the difference?
Davis is doing a solid job with TSouthern. He wasn't ready for IU or UAB, but would make a solid Mid Major coach, imho. I wouldn't want him back at IU, but would take him over most of our recent hires. I think CTC landed at a good place for him. Obviously, Sampson landed at a place that doesn't care if he is giving lots of players second or third chances based on talent. So, I feel like it is a good place for him. DD can role people up and is a good talker. So, I feel he is in a great place. It's worked out better for our recent coaches than it has for us, but I'd say CAM will get that turned around...
It was all about politics. Everyone knew Davis wasn't the guy but liberal IU was afraid of being called racist.
Who would you have hired, and who do you think would have accepted the job, under the circumstances?
And they probably would have been labeled that given Davis did an ok job the 1st year given the circumstances and had player support. IU was on a no win position.
If UL can pluck Chris Mack away from Xavier then I give the previous IU admin an F for the previous 3 hires in Davis, Sampson, and Crean. Especially under the circumstances of the FBI stuff looming. The only hire I feel good about is Archie.
This x 1000. All of our "under the circumstances" talk is garbage if they get Mack.
Whoever I would’ve hired would’ve at least had been a head coach at some point. The fact that we hired somebody who had never been — not at a mid-major, not at a high school — still befuddles me. What were they thinking?
Louisville is supposedly on the verge of hiring Chris Mack. So don’t tell me that established coaches don’t take on good programs in bad circumstances.
Pitino went to UK in the wake of the Sutton scandal. Turned out pretty well for him and them.
It's important to note that without Davis being hired Samspon never gets hired. Greenspan wanted Beilein but was overruled by Herbert who insisted that no white coach would be allowed to replace Davis.
Kelvin Sampson had been a head coach at a major university. So had Tom Crean.
Interesting thoughts. Beilein was my number one choice. I share your thought about Herbert, but there were two trustees(as I recall, and who still remain unnamed) who wanted a minority coach.
Don't forget that while Davis was still interim coach, you had players (led by Dane Fife) that were demanding he be made the full-time coach. I also recall Kent Benson demanding that Davis be hired on Senior Night.
Wisconsin had an interim coach the same year that Davis was interim coach. Wisconsin named Soderberg the interim coach when Dick Bennett suddenly retired just before the season started. Aftert the interim season, Wisconin did a job search and selected Bo Ryan. IU did no search after the season and named Davis the full time coach. Do you see the difference?
I still don't think Mack goes to Louisville. A graduate of St. Xavier High School and X here in Cincinnati, it's going to take one hell of an offer from Louisville to make that move. After the way both X and UC lost on Sunday, Mack may be even that much more determined to get X over the hump. As a non-fan of both programs it is all I can do to refrain from laughing at all of the local despair, what with X and UC flags at half-staff in numerous places. Anyway, with Mack reportedly in Louisville, talking about the job, I'd still bet he stays .... But, I've been wrong before.
There's also something about him I just don't like. Maybe it's that a few of his players - Macura, in particular - have been jerks around town. Mack doesn't do anything to discourage it.
I think he goes to The Ville because how much further can he really go at X? He has set a expectation that I'm not sure he can consistently continue to live up to.
I was convinced that Dakich would follow Knight had he had a chance to retire. I remember going to Mike Davis' first game as head coach and realizing "oh my gawd he doesn't know the motion offense". Heck, he even admitted it. And at that point I thought, how is it that a 3 year assistant coach doesn't know the offense? I don't know how that happens. I mean, the guy was paid to be an assistant coach at Indiana. He spent all day on basketball. Every day. And he didn't know the offense after 3 years. It was a terrible omen.
Davis and Sampson weren’t the problem. They weren’t the solution, but they didn’t kill our brand.
Crean killed the brand, dug a massive grave, threw the program in the bottom, and shoveled dirt on top for 9 years. All on SB Fred’s watch.
Crean killed the brand, dug a massive grave, threw the program in the bottom, and shoveled dirt on top for 9 years. All on SB Fred’s watch.
Matt Roth and Derek Elston were also Sampson recruits.
Unfortunately, IU players demanded Davis be hired and threatened a mass exit if he wasn't. I think they were still in shock over Knight's firing and weren't of sound mind at the time.
Then the irony of it all is that he won two outright Big Ten regular season championship by a two game win margin, as well as Big Ten Coach of the Year honor. When is the last time that has happened to an IU team or coach prior to Tom Crean?
I’m talking about the Davis hire.
The fact that we made another bad hire (or two) following it doesn’t mean anything.
It was a bad decision...and not made any better by successive bad decisions.
Indiana University put a guy who had never been a head coach in charge of the basketball program. Stew on that for a minute.
Who cares? Davis took us to the title game. Both were fool’s gold. Crean just milked it for longer.
I remember Dane Fife being one who specifically threatened to transfer if Davis wasn't hired. I don't think he was considered an "inmate" in the "asylum" of IU basketball.
Who cares? ans. - Hoosier Nation Our players should have had the clear sense to wait and see who the new hire was before threatening to transfer only after a thoughtful committee search. Everyone was in panic mode immediately after Knight was fired and rightfully so!
Yet, Davis took IU to the national championship game and beat Duke in 2002. Everyone seems to forget that. I'm looking forward to what Archie can do. First season over, now let's get on with it!
Obsessing over events from 18 years ago when we currently have an excellent coach is definitely very healthy and productive.
Actually, the would-be racist claims would have based on the actual protestations of a vocal corner of the fan base. The administration should not have based Davis’ permanent hiring on that, but their concern about it was more than a random odd notion. Davis was not the answer, though, and it is not just hindsight, of course.
Sampson was considered a minority with his American Indian blood. This appealed to Herbert and others.
With this comment, you seem to forget that Davis won with Knight's players who were playing with a chip on their shoulders over the abrupt firing of their beloved coach. Davis never duplicated this feat with his own talent.
Hence, we always saw Mike Davis sitting on the sideline with his hand over his mouth in a gesture of the dumbfounded. FWIW, I never thought Dakich would follow Knight. I'm sure Dan had delusions of grandeur at the thought of the possibility.
Here is another thing to stew while you're at it...IU has pulled the same stunt with their football coach. Neither coach ever played in school their respective sports they now coach.
