College Basketball 2007-2008

[Flames24Rulz]

Great win for SIU last night over Drake. I still believe we are the most talented team in the conference. Can't wait until the conference tourney.

[illiniguy]

Once Sampson is canned, I have to wonder if IU comes sniffing around Bruce Pearl? I doubt that he'd leave what he's building in Knoxville, but it would most assuredly be interesting.

 

Is there anything that could make Illini fans hate IU any more than Pearl being the head coach?

IU is not going to go after Bruce Pearl. Pearl will never work in the Big Ten. I would imagine IU looks at Licklighter, Anthony Grant, Scott Drew, or Sean Miller. Hell maybe they even try and get Matta, he grew up a huge IU fan.

 

No way would Lickliter or Matta leave. Lick isn't a true Hoosier like our last guy. He already left the one school he had loyalty and ties to. I think Iowa is a better fit for his personality than IU. Miller would be a good target.

 

Thank you Exile for talking about Drew, I was about to say the same thing when I saw his name mentioned. I laughed a couple weeks ago when the national media was praising him after that 5 OT win for how much he's cleaned up that program and the amazing turnaround he's had. Well yeah the turnaround has been something, but it's not so amazing when you hear about how he's done it.

 

Please IU, please bring Steve back home. It would be so sweet to beat him at a "real basketball school" when he's "back in red" and hear what excuses he would come up with. I actually liked Alford a fair amount and defended him quite a bit when he was here, but he did himself no favors on the way out.

IU offers and Licklighter is gone in a second. You would blink and he would be driving out of Iowa City.

[snoodmonger]

If I was IU, Id fire Sampson, and hire......Scott Skiles. I swear he would be a great college coach.

with out giving it much thought so far, i'm interested in looking at Scott Drew at Baylor.

 

You do NOT want Scott Drew to follow Kelvin Sampson. Drew as a clean-up specialist is laughable.

 

i honestly don't know a lot about him, buy why do you say that?

 

he's just one of the guys that popped in my head when i started thinking about what's next.

 

He's done a good job at Baylor, but inside coaching circles he's probably considered dirtier than Sampson ever will be. His international connections are shady at best. While recruiting Kenneth Harris, Drew made a very large donation to a foundation run by Harris's AAU coach. Almost immediately after, Harris commits to Valpo. No one will touch that though, because his AAU coach is a reverend and it's a Christian group. Almost all coaches bend or break rules. However, Drew has hid behind international obscurity and religious righteousness to cheat. Please IU, stay away.

 

 

He has a dirty reputation in the Big Twelve. Lots of alleged negative recruiting.

[soapy]

He's done a good job at Baylor, but inside coaching circles he's probably considered dirtier than Sampson ever will be. His international connections are shady at best. While recruiting Kenneth Harris, Drew made a very large donation to a foundation run by Harris's AAU coach. Almost immediately after, Harris commits to Valpo. No one will touch that though, because his AAU coach is a reverend and it's a Christian group. Almost all coaches bend or break rules. However, Drew has hid behind international obscurity and religious righteousness to cheat. Please IU, stay away.

 

 

He has a dirty reputation in the Big Twelve. Lots of alleged negative recruiting.

 

Interesting. I haven't heard any of this before. If there is any truth to it, I'd certainly stay away.

[Exile on Waveland]

like i said in the other thread, devin ebanks will be consulted about as to what to do with sampson.

 

the iu administration has proven time and again that all that they want to do is win, and couldn't care less about the rules.

 

Time and again? They hired Sampson, but that's not "time and again." That's simply once. This is the same school that fired Coach Knight and kept Mike Davis for six years -- I'd say they care very little about winning. I don't like Sampson and didn't want him hired, but the administration has made one mistake regarding rules. I've also very rarely, if ever, defended IU's administration. If they don't fire him, then it'll be two.

 

Sampson does have a clause in his contract stating he can be fired for just cause if he violates any rules. However, as a public employee, he has a right to due process. (I'm a law student, not an attorney, so feel free to correct me anyone.) If Sampson is let go before June, IU would either open itself up to a lawsuit a la Jim O'Brien-Ohio State or they'd have to negotiate a buyout.

 

I wanted Scott Skiles or Mike Montgomery last time. Still do.

 

i think by the time knight got fired, many had felt that the game had passed him by. the quality of recruits he was bringing in just wasn't cutting it. i really think that they wanted to hire or promote an african-american for recruiting purposes. davis prolonged his tenure with an appearance in the nc game, plus, he was bringing in fairly decent recruits--he just couldn't do anything with them.

 

they obviously brought in sampson to go after gordon, thinking that he would get them back to elite status as a major destination for top high school talent-sampson has also brought in devin ebanks, and like i said, firing samspon will only be a last resort as an act of good faith toward the ncaa--it will be a risk/reward situation--if they lose ebanks, they will want to make sure that they don't get levied with heavy sanctions, but if they aren't going to get punished much, they might as well keep sampson and ebanks.

 

they ignored his reputation when they hired him, they ignored his phone violations, essentially slapping him on the wrist and firing a coach who didn't know sampson at ou.

 

they've wagered everything on sampson and his recruiting tactics and it's blown up in their faces, i have absolutely no sympathy for them, in fact, i can't help but admit a healthy bit of schadenfreude, as an illini fan. i hope the next coach does things the right way, i've always had respect for the iu program and view the job as a top 5 one nationally.

 

When Coach Knight was fired at IU, the roster was stocked with three future NBA players (two top-16 draft picks). Included was top-5 prospect Jared Jeffries, who Coach Knight had just beat out Duke for. His incoming class was one of the best in the nation; along with Zach Randolph, JJ was considered the best incoming freshman. His recruiting had slipped in the mid-90's -- because he left it to his assistant's and the state of Indiana dried up -- but it had rebounded emphatically. (The Patterson-Miller-Reed class was actually another top-5 class. He also reeled in Jason Collier and Luke Recker. Recruiting talent wasn't the issue, it was recruiting talent that could play for Coach Knight.)

 

Davis was certainly protected for public relations reasons; there is no doubt about this. It has all but been admitted. But he was NOT recruiting well -- unless you think a team made up of entirely shooting guards can win. Davis was an unmitigated disaster on the recruiting trails while at IU.

 

I will not, and cannot, defend the hiring of Sampson. I was distraught when he was named coach, I'm apoplectic now. That was a tragic mistake by the administration. However, besides that, they have proved intimately concerned with violations. IU has perhaps the best compliance system in big-time collegiate athletics. The oversight committee caught Sampson's wrongdoings. IU then self-reported to the NCAA. The school then hired outside counsel, the very well respected Ice Miller, to conduct an independent investigation and advise them how to proceed. After the report, they self-imposed sanctions and again reported to the NCAA. This is way more than most schools would have done -- especially regarding phone calls. The next step will be Sampson's dismissal, which I think is certain to come. It's just a matter of time -- it may not be until due process has run its course in June.

 

Indiana is a top program that has always done things the right way. The administration mortgaged that reputation with Sampson and is now paying for it dearly. And will continue to pay for in the coming years. I just hope they do the right thing and clean up the mess they got the program into.

[hawkeyecub]

Once Sampson is canned, I have to wonder if IU comes sniffing around Bruce Pearl? I doubt that he'd leave what he's building in Knoxville, but it would most assuredly be interesting.

 

Is there anything that could make Illini fans hate IU any more than Pearl being the head coach?

IU is not going to go after Bruce Pearl. Pearl will never work in the Big Ten. I would imagine IU looks at Licklighter, Anthony Grant, Scott Drew, or Sean Miller. Hell maybe they even try and get Matta, he grew up a huge IU fan.

 

No way would Lickliter or Matta leave. Lick isn't a true Hoosier like our last guy. He already left the one school he had loyalty and ties to. I think Iowa is a better fit for his personality than IU. Miller would be a good target.

 

Thank you Exile for talking about Drew, I was about to say the same thing when I saw his name mentioned. I laughed a couple weeks ago when the national media was praising him after that 5 OT win for how much he's cleaned up that program and the amazing turnaround he's had. Well yeah the turnaround has been something, but it's not so amazing when you hear about how he's done it.

 

Please IU, please bring Steve back home. It would be so sweet to beat him at a "real basketball school" when he's "back in red" and hear what excuses he would come up with. I actually liked Alford a fair amount and defended him quite a bit when he was here, but he did himself no favors on the way out.

IU offers and Licklighter is gone in a second. You would blink and he would be driving out of Iowa City.

 

What are you basing that off of? Obviously IU is a superior program and no one would dispute that. But IU would be facing sanctions that could really make it tough on him and don't return a ton. He has a 7 year contract paying him roughly the same that IU was paying Sampson and would have to pay a $3M buyout if he left.

He's not a quick fix guy and knows he has patience and time at Iowa. That wouldn't be the case at IU. We have $40M worth of renovations to Carver plus a new practice facility coming that he's helped put together. He has no ties to IU at all. Plus he's a really low-key guy who doesn't enjoy a lot of limelight.

 

Maybe you're right. Like I said no one would argue that the IU job is a better gig. I just don't think the timing is right and I think the Iowa job fits his personality better.

[illiniguy]

Once Sampson is canned, I have to wonder if IU comes sniffing around Bruce Pearl? I doubt that he'd leave what he's building in Knoxville, but it would most assuredly be interesting.

 

Is there anything that could make Illini fans hate IU any more than Pearl being the head coach?

IU is not going to go after Bruce Pearl. Pearl will never work in the Big Ten. I would imagine IU looks at Licklighter, Anthony Grant, Scott Drew, or Sean Miller. Hell maybe they even try and get Matta, he grew up a huge IU fan.

 

No way would Lickliter or Matta leave. Lick isn't a true Hoosier like our last guy. He already left the one school he had loyalty and ties to. I think Iowa is a better fit for his personality than IU. Miller would be a good target.

 

Thank you Exile for talking about Drew, I was about to say the same thing when I saw his name mentioned. I laughed a couple weeks ago when the national media was praising him after that 5 OT win for how much he's cleaned up that program and the amazing turnaround he's had. Well yeah the turnaround has been something, but it's not so amazing when you hear about how he's done it.

 

Please IU, please bring Steve back home. It would be so sweet to beat him at a "real basketball school" when he's "back in red" and hear what excuses he would come up with. I actually liked Alford a fair amount and defended him quite a bit when he was here, but he did himself no favors on the way out.

IU offers and Licklighter is gone in a second. You would blink and he would be driving out of Iowa City.

 

What are you basing that off of? Obviously IU is a superior program and no one would dispute that. But IU would be facing sanctions that could really make it tough on him and don't return a ton. He has a 7 year contract paying him roughly the same that IU was paying Sampson and would have to pay a $3M buyout if he left.

He's not a quick fix guy and knows he has patience and time at Iowa. That wouldn't be the case at IU. We have $40M worth of renovations to Carver plus a new practice facility coming that he's helped put together. He has no ties to IU at all. Plus he's a really low-key guy who doesn't enjoy a lot of limelight.

 

Maybe you're right. Like I said no one would argue that the IU job is a better gig. I just don't think the timing is right and I think the Iowa job fits his personality better.

Because a coaches ultimate goal is to win a national championship. How are you going to do that at Iowa? Your state rarely produces top flight talent. When it does, Kansas is usually there to take it from you. At IU if he does things the right way he would get enough time to turn things around. He would also be able to recruit a much more fertile state.

[Exile on Waveland]

Once Sampson is canned, I have to wonder if IU comes sniffing around Bruce Pearl? I doubt that he'd leave what he's building in Knoxville, but it would most assuredly be interesting.

 

Is there anything that could make Illini fans hate IU any more than Pearl being the head coach?

IU is not going to go after Bruce Pearl. Pearl will never work in the Big Ten. I would imagine IU looks at Licklighter, Anthony Grant, Scott Drew, or Sean Miller. Hell maybe they even try and get Matta, he grew up a huge IU fan.

 

No way would Lickliter or Matta leave. Lick isn't a true Hoosier like our last guy. He already left the one school he had loyalty and ties to. I think Iowa is a better fit for his personality than IU. Miller would be a good target.

 

Thank you Exile for talking about Drew, I was about to say the same thing when I saw his name mentioned. I laughed a couple weeks ago when the national media was praising him after that 5 OT win for how much he's cleaned up that program and the amazing turnaround he's had. Well yeah the turnaround has been something, but it's not so amazing when you hear about how he's done it.

 

Please IU, please bring Steve back home. It would be so sweet to beat him at a "real basketball school" when he's "back in red" and hear what excuses he would come up with. I actually liked Alford a fair amount and defended him quite a bit when he was here, but he did himself no favors on the way out.

IU offers and Licklighter is gone in a second. You would blink and he would be driving out of Iowa City.

 

What are you basing that off of? Obviously IU is a superior program and no one would dispute that. But IU would be facing sanctions that could really make it tough on him and don't return a ton. He has a 7 year contract paying him roughly the same that IU was paying Sampson and would have to pay a $3M buyout if he left.

He's not a quick fix guy and knows he has patience and time at Iowa. That wouldn't be the case at IU. We have $40M worth of renovations to Carver plus a new practice facility coming that he's helped put together. He has no ties to IU at all. Plus he's a really low-key guy who doesn't enjoy a lot of limelight.

 

Maybe you're right. Like I said no one would argue that the IU job is a better gig. I just don't think the timing is right and I think the Iowa job fits his personality better.

 

Couple things:

 

1. IU actually returns a solid core next year. Crawford and Bassett both average double figures and Ellis goes for 7.3 ppg, 7.6 rpg and 4.0 apg. They also have a four-star center sidelined with an injury (however, that player, Eli Holman, looked a long, looooong way away from being ready). They are going to have major issues inside, however. Who knows what will happen with the recruiting class, as well. Regardless, IU shouldn't be devoid of talent at all.

 

2. I still don't think the sanctions will be debilitating, especially if IU does the right thing and dismisses Sampson.

 

I'm unsure if IU would even look at Lickliter, or if he'd jump, but IU fans would love him and his style, in my opinion.

[SouthSideRyan]

I don't know how you can say IU returns a solid core next year when they're losing what are clearly their 2 best players off a team that hasn't beaten anyone. They won't be a disaster, they should make the tourney(barring transfers should some bad NCAA news come down) but I don't see them much better than middle of the pack Big 10 next year.

[hawkeyecub]

Once Sampson is canned, I have to wonder if IU comes sniffing around Bruce Pearl? I doubt that he'd leave what he's building in Knoxville, but it would most assuredly be interesting.

 

Is there anything that could make Illini fans hate IU any more than Pearl being the head coach?

IU is not going to go after Bruce Pearl. Pearl will never work in the Big Ten. I would imagine IU looks at Licklighter, Anthony Grant, Scott Drew, or Sean Miller. Hell maybe they even try and get Matta, he grew up a huge IU fan.

 

No way would Lickliter or Matta leave. Lick isn't a true Hoosier like our last guy. He already left the one school he had loyalty and ties to. I think Iowa is a better fit for his personality than IU. Miller would be a good target.

 

Thank you Exile for talking about Drew, I was about to say the same thing when I saw his name mentioned. I laughed a couple weeks ago when the national media was praising him after that 5 OT win for how much he's cleaned up that program and the amazing turnaround he's had. Well yeah the turnaround has been something, but it's not so amazing when you hear about how he's done it.

 

Please IU, please bring Steve back home. It would be so sweet to beat him at a "real basketball school" when he's "back in red" and hear what excuses he would come up with. I actually liked Alford a fair amount and defended him quite a bit when he was here, but he did himself no favors on the way out.

IU offers and Licklighter is gone in a second. You would blink and he would be driving out of Iowa City.

 

What are you basing that off of? Obviously IU is a superior program and no one would dispute that. But IU would be facing sanctions that could really make it tough on him and don't return a ton. He has a 7 year contract paying him roughly the same that IU was paying Sampson and would have to pay a $3M buyout if he left.

He's not a quick fix guy and knows he has patience and time at Iowa. That wouldn't be the case at IU. We have $40M worth of renovations to Carver plus a new practice facility coming that he's helped put together. He has no ties to IU at all. Plus he's a really low-key guy who doesn't enjoy a lot of limelight.

 

Maybe you're right. Like I said no one would argue that the IU job is a better gig. I just don't think the timing is right and I think the Iowa job fits his personality better.

Because a coaches ultimate goal is to win a national championship. How are you going to do that at Iowa? Your state rarely produces top flight talent. When it does, Kansas is usually there to take it from you. At IU if he does things the right way he would get enough time to turn things around. He would also be able to recruit a much more fertile state.

 

I'm not going to argue that it's much easier to win at IU and Iowa may never win a title.

 

In regards to the Kansas thing, that was more an issue of Iowa coaches leaving. Raef was the only one who really spurned the other two for Kansas. Hinrich was committed to Iowa State until Floyd left. Collison was Iowa's until the Dr. Tom fiasco. His family was lifelong Iowa fans/boosters. Then Bowlsby pushed Davis out, but Davis went to the president and made sure he could coach that last year on his contract. He then refused to recruit anyone at all during his lame-duck year and Collison had no choice.

 

I think Lickliter could have guided the Horner/Brunner/Haluska group that mostly underachieved under Alford but still got a 3 seed to a much deeper run in the tourney. Possibly a Final Four. We also passed over Kyle Korver (whom Lick would have drooled over) and All-MVC guys in Jacobson and Funk who really would have rounded out that squad.

Gatens is a top 100 kid and some have Cougill (who is committed in the '09 class) ranked that high. There are two top 100 kids in the '10 class in Derby and Barnes (likely to ISU).

 

I'm not dellusional at all about Iowa. You can't win just recruiting Iowa. But there is good talent to supplement and you have some fertile ground surrounding you which he's doing a good job with in '09. Indiana obviously provides much more.

 

I think more than anything it's timing. If he had stayed at Butler it would make a ton of sense. You may be right though.

[Exile on Waveland]

I don't know how you can say IU returns a solid core next year when they're losing what are clearly their 2 best players off a team that hasn't beaten anyone. They won't be a disaster, they should make the tourney(barring transfers should some bad NCAA news come down) but I don't see them much better than middle of the pack Big 10 next year.

 

That's about what I'd expect. Middle of the pack Big Ten and NCAA tournament berth, assuming no big defections because of the Sampson/NCAA situation. I'd say a team that can do that has a solid core, but that's just semantics. I just meant that a new coach at IU next year wouldn't be walking into a 8-24 disaster. Without mass defections, I doubt next year's talent level keeps a coach from coming to IU.

[illiniguy]

I don't know how you can say IU returns a solid core next year when they're losing what are clearly their 2 best players off a team that hasn't beaten anyone. They won't be a disaster, they should make the tourney(barring transfers should some bad NCAA news come down) but I don't see them much better than middle of the pack Big 10 next year.

 

That's about what I'd expect. Middle of the pack Big Ten and NCAA tournament berth, assuming no big defections because of the Sampson/NCAA situation. I'd say a team that can do that has a solid core, but that's just semantics. I just meant that a new coach at IU next year wouldn't be walking into a 8-24 disaster. Without mass defections, I doubt next year's talent level keeps a coach from coming to IU.

If Ebanks shows up you should be pretty good, if this plays out bad and he is let out. Well you could be pretty bad too.

[Exile on Waveland]

I don't know how you can say IU returns a solid core next year when they're losing what are clearly their 2 best players off a team that hasn't beaten anyone. They won't be a disaster, they should make the tourney(barring transfers should some bad NCAA news come down) but I don't see them much better than middle of the pack Big 10 next year.

 

That's about what I'd expect. Middle of the pack Big Ten and NCAA tournament berth, assuming no big defections because of the Sampson/NCAA situation. I'd say a team that can do that has a solid core, but that's just semantics. I just meant that a new coach at IU next year wouldn't be walking into a 8-24 disaster. Without mass defections, I doubt next year's talent level keeps a coach from coming to IU.

If Ebanks shows up you should be pretty good, if this plays out bad and he is let out. Well you could be pretty bad too.

 

If the recruiting class doesn't show up, then there will be basically no size to speak of at all. Nor any depth. IU would be totally reliant on whatever last minute recruits (JUCO's) the new coach could pull in for depth and inside play. With the recruiting class, IU figures to be pretty good. Not great, but pretty good.

 

From what I'm hearing, Sampson's job is in serious jeopardy. Immediately. I'm starting to doubt he coaches this weekend, though it may be via suspension not dismissal due to legal ramifications.

[mul21]

From what I'm hearing, Sampson's job is in serious jeopardy. Immediately. I'm starting to doubt he coaches this weekend, though it may be via suspension not dismissal due to legal ramifications.

 

As I'm sure somebody else has already said, this makes the most financial sense for IU considering the clause in Sampson's contract about violations. If they do it now they'll get hit with the wrongful termination suit, but if they just suspend him now and wait until the June hearing/conviction to axe him they're fine.

[Exile on Waveland]

From what I'm hearing, Sampson's job is in serious jeopardy. Immediately. I'm starting to doubt he coaches this weekend, though it may be via suspension not dismissal due to legal ramifications.

 

As I'm sure somebody else has already said, this makes the most financial sense for IU considering the clause in Sampson's contract about violations. If they do it now they'll get hit with the wrongful termination suit, but if they just suspend him now and wait until the June hearing/conviction to axe him they're fine.

 

Exactly. Sampson's contract allows a "just cause" firing due to any violations. However, as a public employee, he is protected by due process. He hasn't yet had a chance to defend himself -- that won't come until June. The University can either a) fire him now and risk a wrongful termination suit a la Jim O'Brien-OSU; b) suspend him indefinitely and fire him later; or c) negotiate a buyout package and terminate him now. The best option is probably b), as it allows them to save face in the meantime and, eventually, dismiss him free of any buyout (assuming the NCAA is correct about the violations).

[illiniguy]

From what I'm hearing, Sampson's job is in serious jeopardy. Immediately. I'm starting to doubt he coaches this weekend, though it may be via suspension not dismissal due to legal ramifications.

 

As I'm sure somebody else has already said, this makes the most financial sense for IU considering the clause in Sampson's contract about violations. If they do it now they'll get hit with the wrongful termination suit, but if they just suspend him now and wait until the June hearing/conviction to axe him they're fine.

I've read that the state of Indiana doesn't have the same laws as Ohio. Thus you can fire Sampson for any reason without being subjected to the same penalties that OSU was with O'Brien.

[hawkcub]

Once Sampson is canned, I have to wonder if IU comes sniffing around Bruce Pearl? I doubt that he'd leave what he's building in Knoxville, but it would most assuredly be interesting.

 

Is there anything that could make Illini fans hate IU any more than Pearl being the head coach?

IU is not going to go after Bruce Pearl. Pearl will never work in the Big Ten. I would imagine IU looks at Licklighter, Anthony Grant, Scott Drew, or Sean Miller. Hell maybe they even try and get Matta, he grew up a huge IU fan.

 

No way would Lickliter or Matta leave. Lick isn't a true Hoosier like our last guy. He already left the one school he had loyalty and ties to. I think Iowa is a better fit for his personality than IU. Miller would be a good target.

 

Thank you Exile for talking about Drew, I was about to say the same thing when I saw his name mentioned. I laughed a couple weeks ago when the national media was praising him after that 5 OT win for how much he's cleaned up that program and the amazing turnaround he's had. Well yeah the turnaround has been something, but it's not so amazing when you hear about how he's done it.

 

Please IU, please bring Steve back home. It would be so sweet to beat him at a "real basketball school" when he's "back in red" and hear what excuses he would come up with. I actually liked Alford a fair amount and defended him quite a bit when he was here, but he did himself no favors on the way out.

IU offers and Licklighter is gone in a second. You would blink and he would be driving out of Iowa City.

 

What are you basing that off of? Obviously IU is a superior program and no one would dispute that. But IU would be facing sanctions that could really make it tough on him and don't return a ton. He has a 7 year contract paying him roughly the same that IU was paying Sampson and would have to pay a $3M buyout if he left.

He's not a quick fix guy and knows he has patience and time at Iowa. That wouldn't be the case at IU. We have $40M worth of renovations to Carver plus a new practice facility coming that he's helped put together. He has no ties to IU at all. Plus he's a really low-key guy who doesn't enjoy a lot of limelight.

 

Maybe you're right. Like I said no one would argue that the IU job is a better gig. I just don't think the timing is right and I think the Iowa job fits his personality better.

Because a coaches ultimate goal is to win a national championship. How are you going to do that at Iowa? Your state rarely produces top flight talent. When it does, Kansas is usually there to take it from you. At IU if he does things the right way he would get enough time to turn things around. He would also be able to recruit a much more fertile state.

 

I'm not going to argue that it's much easier to win at IU and Iowa may never win a title.

 

In regards to the Kansas thing, that was more an issue of Iowa coaches leaving. Raef was the only one who really spurned the other two for Kansas. Hinrich was committed to Iowa State until Floyd left. Collison was Iowa's until the Dr. Tom fiasco. His family was lifelong Iowa fans/boosters. Then Bowlsby pushed Davis out, but Davis went to the president and made sure he could coach that last year on his contract. He then refused to recruit anyone at all during his lame-duck year and Collison had no choice.

 

I think Lickliter could have guided the Horner/Brunner/Haluska group that mostly underachieved under Alford but still got a 3 seed to a much deeper run in the tourney. Possibly a Final Four. We also passed over Kyle Korver (whom Lick would have drooled over) and All-MVC guys in Jacobson and Funk who really would have rounded out that squad.

Gatens is a top 100 kid and some have Cougill (who is committed in the '09 class) ranked that high. There are two top 100 kids in the '10 class in Derby and Barnes (likely to ISU).

 

I'm not dellusional at all about Iowa. You can't win just recruiting Iowa. But there is good talent to supplement and you have some fertile ground surrounding you which he's doing a good job with in '09. Indiana obviously provides much more.

 

I think more than anything it's timing. If he had stayed at Butler it would make a ton of sense. You may be right though.

 

Do people really think IU would go for a coach who has been at a fellow big ten school for not even a year. Especially when there are no ties to IU. This idea is insane. Licklighter may leave my hawkeyes some day. But it will not be next year to join the mess IU has created for themselves.

[SouthSideRyan]

I agree regarding Lickliter. I don't think he's a realistic choice.

[Sosa21MVP]

I'd take Lickliter in a heartbeat. Who cares about IU ties? RMK didn't have any IU ties and wasn't even from Indiana. Lickliter is a hell of a coach and seems to have class and integrity. But yeah, I don't see him being pursued by IU....won't stop me from being wishful though. :mrgreen:

[SouthSideRyan]

I'm really gonna be torn if they wind up buying out Sampson or suspending him and letting Dakich take over. (As I stated earlier, I'd be happy if they gave the job to him because I don't see him as a guy that will make IU any sort of powerhouse.)

 

In order for him to keep the job after being interim this year, they'd have to have a decent finish, and I'd rather Indiana lose every game. But I don't want to see Sean Miller wind up at IU if they lose every game. Decisions...

[snoodmonger]

Prediction:

 

Indiana hires Bruce Weber and takes BAM's long awaited good recruiting class with him. Illiniguy sets himself on fire.

[SouthSideRyan]

Prediction:

 

Indiana hires Bruce Weber and takes BAM's long awaited good recruiting class with him. Illiniguy sets himself on fire.

 

I chuckled.

[SouthSideRyan]

Sampson will live to coach another game or 2.

[CP_414]

Sampson will live to coach another game or 2.

 

 

I don't think Greenspan should be conducting this investigation. He is the guy who brought in Kelvin, and he must know a lot of people want him out with Sampson. I would prefer someone from the University side or a 3rd party did the investigation. The quicker IU cuts the cord, the better the chance that the NCAA is easier on them.

[hawkeyecub]

My god that was the worst half since Louisiana-Monroe.