OKHOOSIER

Team Mercenary better win a boatload of games. Next year is going to set us back for four if this is true.

When you say screwed, what do you mean? I’ll be honest I don’t remember Woody being even whispered last time, and he wouldn’t have been anywhere on my radar. When the “hire an IU guy” crowd got loud before Archie I assumed the only logical option was Alford if that was what people wanted. In the resident under 40 crowd really my only thoughts about Woody before he was head coach were he took the Hawks to the playoffs and coached Carmelo. Genuinely curious, because as someone who didn’t see when Woody played his hiring felt sooooo far out of left field I didn’t really know what to think, and I am a huge NBA fan as well. Apologies for the stream of consciousness.

While that would suck, it doesn’t move the needle for me the way a B1G team does. And WVU is not a school that scares me if he’s good and we want him. Dusty pummeling us at say Ohio Statr or Michigan is my nightmare.

For me, all that aside, it’s future outlook and recruiting. So I suppose you could file me under roster construction. If we hand landed Boogie, Queen and McNeeley, this entire thread would not exist regardless of the product on the court this year. CMW would 1000% be coming back if we had a top 5 recruiting class with all top-25 recruits. We could overlook the other warts. Instead, we didn’t, and that magnifies them.

I completely agree, I am just saying it doesn’t sound like the pitchforks are out internally in the same way they are externally. And if that’s the case I would imagine it would also be qualified with some extremely stringent regulations. I.E. lower buyout, make tournament at minimum etc to even consider year five. Because for the absolute life of me, I can’t understand why you give home 4 with zero intention of 5. That’s simply not how college recruiting works anymore.

My completely uninformed opinion of whatever meeting they have next week and its theme is going to be the administration encouraging Woody to bow out gracefully and to make him understand how incredibly toxic the job will be for him if they are not immediately improved and winning games. Reading all the tea leaves my guess is they try to talk him out of it, but aren’t willing to fire before a 4th year. Hope I’m wrong but who knows.

We are in agreement on this. I was all in on Pearl last time, but figured our squeaky clean administration would not consider it. I understand Archie had his warts we should have vetted, but on paper it was lauded. No one thought he would fail. I thought Woodson would probably fail from the jump.

Archie was 139-63 with four straight NCAA tournaments and four straight seasons of 24+ wins to include the EE run when we hired him. He was hardly “flavor of the month.” I didn’t like Archie as coach either but this is revisionist history. He was at least talked about in connection to almost every major opening from about 2014 on.

It’s definitely a crazy take. However I think it’s also crazy to believe a random internet stranger has intimate knowledge of the relationship between the Indiana University athletic director and chairman of the board. And is willing to post at all no matter who they are. A BOT member is as good a guess as any lol

“Of course I said no.” I needed that lol, bravo. I nearly choked on my coffee laughing.

It’s so sad I find myself concerned that beating 9-9 Minnesota might have real consequences on whether someone continues coaching basketball at IU. It is Indiana and I am internally struggling with actually rooting for losses to mediocre teams. I want to believe we are not crazy and still a blue blood. I want to believe the banners aren’t too dusty. And yet, we are what we are. And we have to root for losses. I hate it.

I am not going to respond to all your points, but thanks for the reply. That said, my opinion still stands despite the arguments you made. All of the folks you mentioned have treated potential firings at arms length and never this quickly. That was my main point. And some were against the firings right up to the end.

This has always been a weird narrative to me. My thought was always as simple as Woody was a non starter because why would a guy who had no college experience and couldn’t get another HC job in the NBA even be considered for a program like IU.

I don’t disagree, but at the time, I don’t think Archie’s personality was considered a downside. I remember it being “this guy is all basketball and doesn’t suffer the media”. If anything it was painted as a positive trait. Also, and don’t forget, at the time Bennet had UVA absolutely dominating the ACC running pack line defense. It was en vogue. But I agree with you overall.

Archie was almost universally (IU media and nationally) considered a slam dunk hire, he could have gone to a major P5 before the year we hired him. It’s too bad it didn’t work out, but that was not some off the wall swing in the dark. His record at Dayton was elite.

As far as Liam goes I don’t worry about committed recruits as much in the NIL era. Kansas I am sure could make a good offer but this late in the cycle my guess is it wouldn’t be in the ballpark of what the LONE IU recruit is getting. I am sure he would wait to see how the hire went before making a decision. A recruit of his ilk will still have his choice of programs even late. Just my opinion.

If you are close enough to the situation to know the interpersonal relationship between Buckner and Dolson (and I will take you at your word despite this being anonymous internet land), what is your general opinion or knowledge on the narrative that Buckner is protecting Woody, his friend, from getting fired regardless of how bleak next season looks? This has always been a hard one for me being that seemingly Buckner cares/should care about the program first and his friend second. Does he really believe Woody can and should get to rebuild the roster through the portal in year 4? Thanks and welcome!

Yea simply not organic for us (IU media/national). People were calling the fan base insane for wanting to move on from Crean, I remember it vividly. Archie had defenders. To have the entire narrative shift in 48 hours was not a bunch of folks just changing a position they held a week before. We hadn’t won back to back games since cupcakes in December. It wasn’t just some bad late season losses— we’ve had them every season under woody.

Interesting post that will certainly wind the board up. While Dolson and QB having a good relationship isn’t earth shattering to me at all, the IU media flip is hard to not see as orchestrated. By who? I have no idea. Only have my own anecdotal evidence. I’ve been consuming IU media online since before AC, ITH existed and Peegs was monetized, and one thing that has always been consistent, is they stay on the ship until it is clearly going down. A shift like this, in year three is totally unprecedented from what I have read first hand. Especially with the VERY REAL possibility he’s back, and their access could be neutered. Thats the only part I can’t seem to grasp.

Bruce Pearl stalking the sideline like he does and barking at the refs would have AH electric. Hard not to picture him him in red. That is the kind of intensity that "bridges the gap" from modern IU to RMK, not nepotism. AH would be the most difficult place to play in the B1G again as it should be. Hard not to get too excited.

My only real memory of DD was being on spring break after the program got cratered and watching IU get spanked by Arkansas while at a bar in Florida. The next season was my super senior victory lap and not enjoyable as a student lol.

Another one of my concerns and I am not sure how closely folks follow the winds of change in CFB is that it is VERY possible Dolson was given carte blanche to swing for the fences on Allen's replacement (obviously at least whatever fence IUFB can swing for). Reason being the writing is on the wall with major conference football. The B1G/SEC will combine at some point and the top 60ish programs are going to form their own conference. IUFB cannot be left behind due to our historical futility and lack of pull. In short, IUFB has to be respectable to keep us at the big money table. CFB is driving college athletics now. I say that because it could impact the amount of financial power and leeway Dolson has over CBB. His ability to "swing for the fences" could have been predicated on it being now or never for the IU athletic department to maintain our Power 2 status in FB. There simply may not be the will within the administration to make another huge financial commitment to basketball. As much as it pains me to say that. Just my thoughts, sorry for the ramble.

I’ve seen it floated in a couple other corners of the interwebs, but the thought of what Bruce Pearl could do recruiting with our resources is what probably excites me most. Woody has proven our brand and money can get us in the door with Top-50 level players. Pearl would overhaul the roster and culture around IU overnight. Which makes potentially losing out on the chance that more gut-wrenching.

I agree, my assumption and would guess is most everyone else’s as well was when BS fell through Dolson panicked and we ended up with QBs friend. The tea leaves really look like Dolson was forced and now I am guessing he had a backup but got overruled.

I should have clarified, I meant it more in terms of him having the majority vote in his pocket. Runaway jury style, not specifically the power to veto a duly voted motion. Sorry for the lack of clarity.