TheWatShot

It might seem like "bad pub" to you, but it's really just the way of the coaching world. Ben Howland took UCLA to 3 Final Fours and got fired two weeks after winning the Pac-12. Crean hasn't done anything close to that. He missed the tourney and got a 10 seed (lowest we've ever been seeded, btw) following his first Big Ten title, and could miss the tourney again this year after winning the second. He's shown multiple times that he cannot sustain success, even with all the resources he needs. Not to mention, he's been 9 years. We gave him more than enough time. The only people who would take issue with us moving on are the people who don't want to see us become a powerhouse again.

The next coach may have ups and downs. Or, he may be consistently great. We know Crean isn't constantly great and never will be. Why keep trying something that obviously won't work?

I can already see the meltdowns when posters with no avatars and single digit post counts show up to share what their "sources" told them.

Butler is down 25-5 against Depaul.

He was recruiting for the class of 2017. They would be seniors in 2021. His contract expires in 2020. Glass is hearing it almost daily from big-time boosters who are fed up, and he's got two more months of it to look forward to. I don't think he wants two more years. He's made good decisions with our other sports (which I know some people pay no attention to and base him solely on what he does for men's basketball). People need to have a little more confidence that our fanbase will be heard. We could go into next season with no McDonald's All-Americans on our roster. The last time that happened was the year before Cody Zeller came aboard. I'd love to hear Glass try to explain an extension under those circumstances. He couldn't, which is why I don't think he will. The writing is on the wall. The Crean era is ending.

He was recruiting players last summer without being under contract for their senior year. I guess I don't see why it'd be necessary now but it wasn't then.

Where is James going? Europe?

Just a thought…but have the infamous 4 hour practices made a comeback?

Why this year? Why not last?

For the people who are so certain an extension is coming this spring: why didn't it happen last year? The timing would have been perfect: a second Big Ten title in four years, a triumphant turnaround after a disastrous start, winning without one of the top scorers…yet no extension, and Glass was perfectly fine with sending Crean into the offseason to recruit players who were told by other coaches that Crean was not under contract for their senior season. Now, with our tournament fate very much in limbo, almost certain regression from a year ago, and very little recruiting momentum, Glass is going to be ok with that? Let it play out.

At Minnesota At Iowa vs. Northwestern At Purdue At Ohio State Then the BTT, where we'll probably lose on a buzzer beater again. Perfect set-up for the typical late-season swoon.

Our last 5 games in conference play will take care of Crean. Tonight changes nothing.

I'm not even going to pretend to be an expert at this kind of thing, but isn't it possible the value could increase over time, especially if the Manning name is associated with the Colts brand? I'd rather have 90% of 1.50 than 100% of 1.00.

Considering we only led for about 2 possessions when we played them at home, I'm curious why you guys are even entertaining the thought of winning up there.

That's because they'll be too busy hitting wide open 3's.

Yep, looks like it was all a hoax. I saw a screenshot of a message they had for their followers. It said they still believe something will happen, but they made a bet that if it didn't happen by midnight Wednesday, they would delete their account. They said there was a delay and they weren't told why. Sounds like they're just trying to cover their butts. I'm now in the camp that believes Pagano is here to stay. Needless to say I'll be finding other things to do on Sunday afternoons next fall.

They were also the first to report Kevin Wilson to OSU. I really hope they're right, but everyone else seems to think the show's over.

That kind of outburst makes me wonder if the "buzz" has been getting to Crean lately.

I'm glad we didn't waste a 4 point game from McRoberts. Those don't happen very often. Why are Rojo, OG and Blackmon still in the game?

I'm going to add onto this: something I've been seeing here and on other boards is the statement "you can't fire him a year after winning the Big Ten. Who would want to come here under those circumstances?" Answer: lots of coaches. Lots. This mindset is what nearly two decades of irrelevancy/mediocrity does to a fanbase, and it pisses me off. Successful coaches don't back down from a challenge. They don't care how demanding the fans are. They don't care who they're following. They just do two things: Recruit and win games. Kentucky fired Billy Gillespie for missing the tournament and being average the year before that. It didn't stop Calipari from going there. UCLA fired Ben Howland two weeks (two weeks!) after winning the Pac-12. Someone must have forgotten to tell Steve Alford. When our season ends, Glass is going to evaluate where we are, and knowing he's had to deal with this in 2014, 2015 and probably again this spring, he'll ask himself if he feels there's a good chance he'll be going through it again in 2018. A quick glance at our incoming class, possible NBA departures and returning squad will give him his answer, and he'll pull the trigger. He doesn't need to see any more.

Brad Wells. What version have you seen? I'd much rather believe anything else.

Irsay strikes again…we're rapidly approaching Cleveland Browns territory. Manning was interested in part-ownership of the team…Irsay and his daughters couldn't agree to an equity stake, so no deal. With the Manning deal dead, Gruden wanted full control of the roster and team. Irsay had a long meeting with Grigson Friday, and ended up staying loyal to his friend. So no Gruden. Oh, and if Manning had gained part-ownership, he supposedly would have fired Grigson. So now it not only looks like Pagano is staying in spite of all this, but Grigson will be our GM for as long as he wants because Irsay will never want to fire him. I'm thinking about putting all my Colts related items in the nearest yard sale this spring. Unreal how far this organization has fallen.

I'm getting a kick out of it because after Minnesota beat Purdue, I had Purdue fans telling me Minnesota was a top 4 team in the league and a lock for the tournament. They gave up 92 points at home to a team that's scored 47 and 50 in its last two games.

Wow, I'd be livid if I were a Purdue fan. But since it's Purdue, LOL.

Iowa celebrated too hard after that last stop. I think Purdue will win it after the officials reverse this call.