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I’m confused too. Why did the planes meet in Boco? Did they want to tell us no to our face? Why did I get a good message about the family paying the salary. Just don’t get a lot of it. But we’ll get someone good. I believe in Dolson

Dolson will absolutely NOT have egg on his face. He got rid of a lame duck coach who wasn’t coming close to expectations. He tried, and I don’t want to say he failed because he got outbid. Whoever the next coach is, they deserve a chance because who knew of Brad Stevens before he was hired at Butler.

I think the real rumor is that there is a Butler Forum...

Can't believe the amount of people saying Dane Fife. Indiana cannot afford to get it wrong. Fife is a gamble we cannot take right now.

Really, who cares if we took a hit with our credibility??? We aren’t news reporters, this isn’t our job. We are guys on a message boards with some good connections that can and have been wrong. If my sources (they haven’t just so everyone knows) sent me a message and said this is all a smoke screen to fan the flames then I’d share it. Only time I don’t share it is when I’m asked not too. They want it shared, unless they say otherwise

Archie was the wrong guy. End of that story. Now it’s time to just see what happens next.

I’m not above it. I’m rooting for Brad to fail now. Not very mature of me. I’ve been scorned. Lol. Sent from my iPad using BtownBanners mobile app

This....a thousand times this. All of the posts that we were given by people with information were not owed to you, me, or anybody else. They didn't have to share any info they were given and after the reaction from some of you, I bet they probably wished they didn't. I appreciate every bit of info and it makes these boards so much more fun to read.

This still isn’t making any freaking sense at all. I need to give up trying to figure stuff out but there were too many people saying it was done. Totally confused, maybe it’s because I’m drunk again

This is so petty of me, but after the salt that was thrown in that press conference I am hoping he crashes and burns in Boston and then finds himself coaching for some NBA backwater in a few years thinking, "Maybe I should have taken that Indiana job." Super petty, but that is where I am.

Hire the North Texas coach. It looks like he can beat Purdue.

Pretty silent and stunned

Maybe he comes here, says he roots for the Colts, prefers fair food to Texas B-B-Q and swerves to avoid potholes on SR37.

Beard is only 46. He is a fantastic coach and a charismatic leader. Beard would be... perfect.

A little more salve for our wounds from a FB poster. Congratulations to the Purdue Boilermakers on their 82nd consecutive year of not winning an NCAA National Championship!! Even IU has not been able to achieve such greatness!!! North Texas "MEAN GREEN", thank you

After sleeping on it, I believe two things. First, anyone holding out hope that this is all part of some elaborate ruse will ultimately be sorely disappointed. Second, like others, I lost a lot of respect for Stevens due to his performance at the press conference today. Frankly, he came off as a bit pathetic. The pandering to a fan base that wants your head on a stick isn't some kind of Machiavellian, next-level genius thing. It was just an awkward dude trying to fit in. That having been said, he's still a great coach and would have been the ideal fit had he wanted to come. But he doesn't. So on to the next one.

For a few hours, it wasn't easy to digest the whole situation. I can clearly see now that the Stevens camp approached the IU opportunity as 'just another job'. We thought and hoped that Stevens had certain level of emotional attachment to IU men's basketball, but it was our wishful thinking. I mean personally a similar thing happened to me so I understand; I got an offer and said yes to the prospective employer, but then my then current employer gave me a promotion and topped the other company's offer, so I stayed. But I did that because it was just a job; it wasn't a very difficult decision to me because I had no emotional attachment. It's ok that we don't land Stevens for whatever reason, but it left a bit of bitter taste in my mouth because I, we unnecessarily believed that Stevens would have deep affection towards the state of Indiana and IU men's basketball. In the end, he now calls himself a Masshole and cheers for Patriots.

People have deluded themselves into believing that if an IU guy just came home they'd all of a sudden be good at coaching. Get an IU guy on the bench, fine. But the head job? That needs to be earned.

The masses are clearly testy today. I’d recommend watching a full day of basketball. Have peace in knowing Dolsen and the donors want IU to be a winner. That’s why Archie is gone now. We have to have some peace and trust. If it’s not Brad Stevens there are reasons for that. I think we aim big still. And if not, and you hate the new coach, drop IUBB for new hobbies. That’s my plan. Sent from my iPad using BtownBanners

Long time lurker, first time poster. Just want to say how much I have enjoyed this board over the last few days. I also appreciate the insiders here who have given info. Don’t let anyone’s frustration get to you. Know many appreciate your contributions. I look forward to seeing how this saga ends!

New member, first time poster. I'm not even an IU fan but I've just found this Stevens saga and this thread over the past week fascinating. I've been rooting for you guys to get him. Just an incredibly great story for CBB imo and for a fan base that needs and deserves it. I'm trying to think of parallels. Roy Williams? I still don't think that the Stevens saga is 100% over. There have been credible sources saying that there has been dialogue behind the scenes for a bit and that the quotes from BS yesterday were kind of stunning. I even received inside info off of this board the other day that backed it all up. So you can definitely in the least say that he is interested in the IU job. IMO he wants to focus on his task at hand and is sick of the noise distracting him. That task is in a bit of a mess right now. IMO his words from yesterday were out of frustration from the IU noise and the team being in a major rut (12-16 in last 28 games). He likes his job, his players, and his family situation in Boston. So it's a bit unrealistic imo to expect him to quit during the season when they're struggling but still have hopes in the playoffs, especially as COMPETITIVE as he is. I don't believe it's a $ thing either. There might be contract technicalities that need ironed out but one side offers significantly more long term security than the other. There were similar comments from Brian Kelly when he was at Cincinnati during an unbeaten season and ND rumors were flying. He essentially said that he's not leaving Cincinnati, he loves it here, great place to raise a family, loves the local food, yada yada...With Nick Saban he was genuinely torn between building the Dolphins and going back to college where he felt deep down he was a better fit and even told his wife that he was staying in Miami before coming home from the office and changing his mind again after sitting down that night with his wife and the Bama AD. So IMO, and I'm just a nobody, everyone needs to chill this weekend and breathe, as hard as it is. And Dolson should maybe give BS some space, focus on backup candidates, but not give up on him because it would be worth sacrificing recruiting and transfers for one season in order to get the right guy.

Lol

The older I get, the less I care about what others think and say. You really can’t control it anyway. It’s very freeing.

People are going to start nitpicking and criticizing Stevens now to feel better about being rejected. Their way of saying: "He's not that good. We dodged a bullet." "We didn't want him anyways." It's all nonsense. He would've been a great hire.

Or maybe IU was lead to believe Brad was really coming. I’m telling you, I don’t mind being wrong but when everyone else is as clueless as to what went wrong as I am that are really connected something strange had to happen. We will probably never know the full story.

He isn’t “right” until IU officially announces a coach. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

All of these people coming out of the woodwork to **** on information that quality posters decide to share with us need to seek help. Same thing with the "Brad was never considering IU crowd." That mentality is the problem with this fan base. Not the insiders and others who decide to be optimistic about something they are passionate about. Just a really sad look all around.

The only idiot out there who would give a raise to the coach of a team whose record is 20-21 is the same idiot who thinks a roster of Tatum, Brown and Marcus Smart can compete with the Nets and Lakers.

Mods your jobs just got harder after this news I’m sure. Thanks for all you guys do, I know it’s not easy and you are just as frustrated as the rest of us

Nate Oats has been a head coach for 6 seasons. In those 6 seasons he has won: -3 conference coach of the year awards -4 conference tournaments -3 conference regular season titles Plays a fun style, has no filter, is young, is affordable outside of his buyout. I’m in.

Apparently more. Remove the fact that he went to IU and no one would even know who he is. Same goes for any other "IU guy"

Alford won't be hired or even considered. Not sure how many times people need to be told that.

I wasn't from Indiana, but I went to IU, and after graduation I moved out of Indiana. But even I felt some of Stevens comments to be mildly insulting. Each of us has own heritage, roots, and culture that has made who we are. I know it could be a matter of personal preference; some say when in Rome, do as Romans do. But I have a different point of view. What I saw today was Stevens begging for love, desperately trying to fit into the Masshole culture instead of trying to be himself and do what he does best that is to coach basketball. Maybe he doesn't realize a lot of people in his home state have great pride in him. That's why I said in my previous post that he was just an individual trying to looking out for himself. As Stevens being a well known and respected figure in Indiana, I guess I wanted to see something better than that.

My wife just cheered for Purdue, does anyone know any good divorce attorneys?

Idk. He ripped my guts out. Seemed pretty convincing. Went the extra mile by saying he roots for the patriots. What a bastard

I've never understood this. Arguably our greatest Coach was not an Indiana guy until he became one. I don't care if we hire a guy that grew up wearing Black and Gold, or UK Blue. I just want someone that will win consistently, and will bring in players that won't sully the name of Indiana University.

I’m more disappointed in some of the posted reactions on this board than I am to Stevens news. We have a few people that had some knowledge of the proceedings sharing that knowledge. Not for money, not for notoriety, but because they care about IU basketball and know others do as well. They do not deserve the vitriol that some of you are showing. If you don’t like the board, leave, but don’t make it toxic for the rest of us.

You fire Archie Miller 10 out of 10 times if you just have a 1% chance at Brad Stevens. Now if Archie was successful that’s a different story, but it was literally the worst 4 year stretch in IU basketball history.

Lol, Brad didn’t burn any bridges by not taking the IU job. He turned down a college job to stay with the freaking Boston Celtics. He didn’t drop a nuke on assembly hall. He could wake up tomorrow and tell Scott Dolson that he wants the job and Scott would have the brinks truck outside Brad’s house immediately. The reaction to Brad turning down the job is what happens when people take anonymous sources as gospel. People were posting that random Ohio State account like he was Woj or Shams.

Underrated option. My kid is VERY smart on this stuff. He thinks that if Mack has info about the NCAA dropping the hammer on UL, Mack makes as much sense as anyone.

Y’all are reading into that way too much

I keep reading that it would be too tough to pry Beard out of Texas -- but look at what the hell just happened. We supposedly went in lock, stock and barrel on a coach who grew up in Indiana, played college ball in Indiana and cut his coaching teeth in Indiana. Said he was a huge IU fan growing up. We were told his wife -- who also grew up in Indiana -- wanted to come home. And now? He's a Masshole and loves the Patriots, and either his wife's push to get back to Indiana wasn't enough -- or it was just a ruse. Home is where you hang your hat. If we make the right sale to Beard, who knows? Maybe something clicks when he's in Bloomington. Maybe he meets with "The General -- Robert Montgomery Knight" (just using that gadawful reference Vitale always used) who sells him on IU. Since he came back last season, I think it's safe to say RMK's bitterness has waned quite a bit. Beard seems to have a big personality -- unlike Bennett or Archie or Holtmann -- so I don't see the "fishbowl" that is IU as being a detriment. Maybe he realizes if he comes to B-town and succeeds, he'd be revered. I don't know much about Lubbock, but I would think when TT is playing well, they're all in, but when they're not -- they're sorta like "Meh." Until the past few years, nobody really knew a thing about Texas Tech basketball anyway. IU basketball has been a brand for years -- it's down a bit now, sure, but it can get back with the right person at the helm. Winning in B-town would be much, much different than doing so in Lubbock.

Context…2 weeks ago we were just hoping that Miller would be fired so we could seek a better coach to move the program forward. I think we would, at that point, have been very happy with several of the guys below as significant improvements. If Dolson has big money available and is willing to go big, why not march down a list similar to this one? In terms of desirability, being ’proven’, and fit; not perceived availability... 1) Donovan, 2 NCAA titles, NBA experience, conference titles 2) Wright, 2 NCAA titles, conference titles 3) Bennett, 1 NCAA title, ACC titles 4) Beard, 1 NCAA title game, conference titles, learned directly from the best (Knight) 5) Musselman, NBA experience, conference titles 6) Oats, conference titles, style of play, up and comer 7) Matta, if healthy, 2 final fours, conference titles 8) Beilein, 2 final fours, conference titles Others are purposefully not included as likely not being good fits (Pitino, Pearl, Calipari, Sampson, etc.) Even if you ended up with Beard, Mussleman, Oats, or Matta, for example, it seems like a clear improvement over where we were two weeks ago.

Archie needed to go. It was the right decision. Brad Stevens is a good coach, but he isn’t the greatest coach ever. There are several good coaches out there that can take IU back to a top program. Now isn’t the time for self loathing and dispair. It’s time for resolve, intelligence, and decisive decision making. Stevens was #1 on the list but there are others on that list and feelers put out to them prior to Archie being let go. All is not lost. Boosters aren’t spending that kind of money without the full picture of who the top target is and what’s the backup plan if the top guy says no.

I don’t totally get Stevens trying to placate the Southie crowd with his Masshole comment and SNL-level stereotypes. The guy has an accent befitting the stock boy of a Terre Haute Kroger, and it’s those same Massholes that want him fired.

Go get Beilein, build a nice foundation of winning over the next 3-4 years, Brad will get fired eventually, come crawling to IU - we tell him to shove it no massholes allowed and hire whatever IU guy Beilein puts on the bench with him.

My $.02....and moderately long. First of all, f** Miles Brand. He set this tone. Same goes for the BOT. Second, nobody knows ****. I’m once removed from a VERY VERY good friend of Dolsen. Very good. He knows absolutely nothing. They talk at least weekly and have for years. Nothing. We have been burned one too many times. Y’all know nothing and your sources don’t either. I hoped they did and believed, but once bitten, twice shy. Third, and I say this with the most measured response I can give, f** Brad. Assuming this all plays out as expected and as being reported. He will do absolute **** for the next 3-4 years. And then get fired. He will never be respected for his coaching acumen by the overpaid narcissists he babysits. We thought he LOVED basketball like us. And more important, we thought he lived and breathed Indiana basketball (state, not university). Clearly, he has different priorities than what we thought made him special. His choice and no grudge. We just misjudged. But one final comment. Any self respecting Hoosier who calls themselves a masshole and say they root for the patriots ain’t no Hoosier. Fuggem. Even if it’s just a diversion, that statement is disqualifying for so many reasons. Qualifier: my wife is a new englander and she readily admits how utterly insufferable those people are. Now, on with it. I’d be happy with Beard but I’m at the point where I think we have to take a flyer. Somebody who has a fire in their belly. Somebody who hates losing more than they love winning. And somebody who thinks the paycheck is just a bonus. Y’all prolly think I’m on crack, but I’m just gonna say it: needs to be Michael Lewis. Right personality and fiery AF. Same type of player as Archie but IU born and bred and more charismatic. And been there done that. Rant over. We got played again. Time to do the playing.

Bullshirt. We need a coach that will win a lot of basketball games and keep players in good standing. ANYONE who can do those two things will be beloved. F understanding our history and ‘handling the fanbase’. Bobby Knight was from West Point via Ohio, was an abusive, condescending @$$ and the fanbase was ‘handled’ by him with temper tantrums and feces on the locker room floor at halftime. But his kids generally stayed in line and he won a lot. As a result? The fan base was ‘handled’.

I’ll gladly be wrong again, but I’m pretty sure the ship has sailed away

For those wondering. I have decided to change my picture of Steve Alford. This will prevent him from being our next head coach. It worked for Brad and I'm hoping it works for Steve. Go Hoosiers!