Old Friend

They always go ape $hit until something goes right. Good Lord...why is Tim Priller here? Because of that stupid "fulfilling the promise." God, how I hate that. Indiana prioritizes the feel good crap; and it's starting to wear very thin.

Indiana should be up 20. The wrong guys taking the wrong shots late in the half, and baffling turnovers. We cannot have McSwain and McRoberts on the floor at the same time. That's two kids who are not scoring threats; and nobody has to guard. Smith plays a great few minutes and sits most of the half. Durham gives Indiana nothing. Sorry...he doesn't. This should already be a blowout if we had any basketball IQ at all.

Taking only the point in bold above.... I'm not sure Alford's the guy. I'll start with that. But part of the reason Jordan has been successful at Butler is there is a culture established there and a way of doing things which comes with expectations, accountability, etc. Indiana has lost the culture Knight built here; and this job, this program are not just any job/program. This place is a fishbowl. It's unique. It's one of a kind. "The best guy available" may have been Archie Miller. But the program is devoid of IU guys. People who played here and know what it's like to wear INDIANA on your chest. It's different. It's a different sell to recruits. More is expected. I wish I had a dime for every time I've heard "Purdue/Butler plays the way I'd like to see Indiana play" or some variation thereof. Why? Because Indiana used to play like that; and when we had pieces that fit and great talent, we won 30 games a year. When we didn't, we won 20. That was the culture. The culture now? Crean built a roster with a shotgun. There was no rhyme or reason to what he did. Why do we have Tim Priller? What on Earth does DeVonte Green do that Indiana fans can appreciate based on culture? How about McSwain? He offers nothing. Clifton Moore? Robert Johnson has gotten no better and doesn't lead. Newkirk; same thing. We have a roster full of warm bodies who said yes. Not a team. It's not all on Archie; but some is, and Dakich is right. We look poorly coached. Why does anyone think McRoberts (save his awful performance the other night) is so appreciated? Culture. A way of doing things. Indiana guys know it and can sell it. I loved having Cheaney on the bench when he was. And frankly, I think Dakich is absolutely right when he talks about Indiana. We DID look horribly coached the other night. We did at Michigan too. And against ISU and FW. We aren't improving. If you can watch our offense and tell me what we're trying to do, you're better than I am; and I do know what I'm watching. Defensively, you cannot think. You have to react and play instinctually, We look like we're thinking. We are a step slow. Our closeouts are awful. We don't jump to the ball, help far enough, recover well, or rotate effectively. We obviously don't communicate because I have seen 2 guys guarding 1 more times in a couple of games than we should see in a season. Some of this is on players. Some on coaches. Is Archie Miller the right guy for Indiana? Dayton is NOT Indiana. And because he was right for Dayton has nothing to do with whether or not he is right for Indiana. That's a little like saying someone who can run a corner grocery store can run Wal Mart. Time will tell....but I love Dakich because he DOES know, and he tells it exactly like it is. He has ratings. He does not need to say things for that reason. His show is the highest rated in Indianapolis for a reason. He is on ESPN for a reason. He is interviewed nationally for a reason. It's easy to call him a blowhard ratings hound when he says things people don't like. I completely get it. But he's not. He's honest.....and we don't want to hear it.

Any kid who plays college basketball should not need wholesale changes, despite Stanford Robinson. There are little things which can be taught like sticking landings, footwork, hand position on the catch; etc. Elevation and leg strength need to be there; and shooting becomes muscle memory with repetition. I certainly didn't mean I think a poor shooter can be prolific; but using Oladipo as an example and Yogi Ferrell as another one; you can get measurably better if you put in the time and do it correctly.

Guy just landed Indiana's best recruiting class in a long time if not ever. Cancers in the locker room weed themselves out. Let them. If some kid in a class is talking like that, he'll be exposed and out of here. Tom Allen came in and built a top 25 defense from a bottom feeder in 2 years. And some of you question his hold on the locker room. The offensive line was a young mess. We didn't have a QB. We didn't have much at RB. We had one reliable pass catcher. Give the man time.

He is absolutely my type of player. I think he is limited, but fundamentally sound as hell. He did not beat Indiana with talent. He beat them with footwork, hustle, and strength. Those things are different than talent. He is a FAR better basketball player than Davis, but I think Davis is more talented. Does that make sense?

I guess where I'd differ with you is I don't think he's (Happ) all that talented. Hell, he can barely jump and he's not a good shooter. What he IS though....is incredibly smart and fundamentally sound. I don't think he's as talented as Davis or Morgan. I think he is far better. Does that make sense? I talked to a former player tonight, and he said he thinks this team is not fully invested. One foot in, one foot out. So for now; I'll go with that and stay off Archie; but I would love to see some progression or getting away from kids like Newkirk who just don't seem to be able to find consistency or worthwhile production. We have proven we can lose with this back court. I am ready for a new one.

Disagree with this, too. Watch Johnson. He floats. He doesn't stick his landings. One example; but that's a thing you can coach a kid away from

You know how much I respect what you say, but I disagree with you here. At no point in that game did Wisconsin have an advantage in talent. Especially if you also factor in experience. Indiana's in big trouble. I don't like it, but I can't defend Archie right now. He announced he was going to come in here and play the pack line defense; and I see nothing from him that tells me he can adjust to the game, to an opponent, design an effective offense, or coach kids to do anything but be robots. We look terrible right now; and unless we get great individual performances, we have no chance to win. Ohio State beat that team by 25 on Wisconsin's floor. Indiana is in deep trouble unless some things change.

Wisconsin had a hell of a lot less talent than we did.

I am afraid this program is in trouble. I see zero leadership...from the top down. I didn't expect it from Bruiser Flint who I felt was a horrible hire; but I expected far better from Miller and Schilling. The red flags are up.

McRoberts played 28 minutes tonight. He took one shot, which he missed. Had 2 rebounds. And nothing else. You want to watch that??? He's a walk on for a reason.

This team is unwatchable right now. There is no heart, no passion, everything is either late or deliberate; they have no idea what toughness means; we look tentative far more often than aggressive; we frequently seem unprepared; we frequently seem lost; the ball stagnates, we don't do well getting to the FT line, we have become a more selfish team, and we have no leadership. This group of seniors may be the worst I have seen come through Indiana in a long time; and McSwain just had another shot blocked. For as big and strong as he is, I have never seen a player get his shot blocked as much as he does. He is a bad basketball player. I am becoming more and more frustrated the more I watch. I am not seeing improvement and getting better; and I see huge red flags as it relates to the coaching staff. Wisconsin had one kid we couldn't let beat us....and he beat us. Kid had 28 points, 9 rebounds (6 offensive), 4 steals, 4 assists, 2 blocks, and shot more FT's than our team did. We look like we have no idea what to do on offense. We look like we're thinking. Defensively, we get out of position way too frequently, and we don't really take anything away. We have the worst overall record of any team in the Big Ten. I wonder if our seniors have any pride at all. If so, we should see a completely different effort this weekend. If not; this season's over. This game looked very much like a group of players who have been worn out and had no interest in being there. Oh....and if McRoberts is going to start? And play 28 minutes? Zach...feel free to score even a single point. Feel free to get more than 2 rebounds. His biggest number on the stat sheet? 3. He had 3 fouls. A pathetic effort by him. Indiana cannot win with a starter putting up a bagel with 1 shot, 2 rebounds, no assists, no steals, and zero productivity. Flat assed awful. Same with Green. Awful. Sloppy. Selfish. Undisciplined. This is not the playground. Rant complete. (Steps off soap box)

The above is where I think you need to step back and assess. Indiana is basically 0-3 to start every season. We're not going to consistently beat Ohio State, Penn State, or Michigan. That's not a defeatist comment; it's just reality. I hate it. I really do. I think it's patently unfair to Indiana and Rutgers to play in this division; but we do. Going 8-1 in the other 9 games is an awfully tough ask. Your bottom point? Couldn't agree more; but reality is what reality is. Jim Delaney will write you back if you send him a letter.

Dad George was a coach at IU in the 80's. This guy is an Indiana Hoosier. Great hire.

Sorry this is so late... You make good points, but you also have to remember Indiana is the worst football program in the history of the Big Ten...including the University of Chicago. This goes back WAY before 3-4 decades. In Indiana's best days, we went 8-3; 7-3-1 in back to back seasons with perhaps the best running back in the history of college football and a team with 20+ NFL guys on it. Indiana has been able to play with everyone on their schedule with their 1's. We have played generally well against Ohio State, Michigan, and Penn State with only a few exceptions. Our problem....is depth. Not skill. Football players change. Schemes are so different, talent (rankings) only matter if players are in the right system. I can tell you first hand having coached for 20 years, when I was an assistant coach (basketball), I worked for 2 coaches who made basketball seem like a completely different game relative to the other. Same is true in football. I am excited because this may be the highest rated class of all time at Indiana. It IS good enough for me because I know where Indiana football is and has been. I hate that we play in the division we do. We are never going to beat the top 3 teams consistently any more than Nebraska will ever beat Indiana consistently in basketball. At least not in the immediately foreseeable future. Indiana should expect to be .500 or a game or two above 7 years out of 10. That's the level Indiana can reasonably achieve. That's just truth. I don't like it but I accept it. Once in a while, we may find an anomaly; but not often. We're NOT in a different division, and we're not going to successfully compete against schools with budgets 10x what ours is and stadiums that consistently draw 105,000 people. I hate it. But it's our reality.

I'm not sure I buy that. Clifton Moore is taller and bigger and can't get a sniff. When he does, he looks very awkward and unready for D1 basketball. Forrester isn't as good as Moore was; and I just don't see it. The "yang" to this is I really think Miller believes in building teams that have experience and size; so with a few 4 year players; I expect solid teams.

Phinisee will come in here and either start right away or be very prominent off the bench Anderson is the shooter we need and will play Hunter will contribute significantly if not start.

Let's take a step back from this and really look at it. First of all....so what? Do you really believe football recruit rankings are accurate on any level beyond the top few kids at each position? How does one rate the #32 offensive guard in the country compared to the #35 offensive guard? (rankings this close can make a HUGE difference in where a class is rated) And this is where they are as 17 year old kids. Football rankings mean Z E R O, in large part because freshmen don't come in and play right away much of the time and things change drastically. Indiana has plenty of talent, lots of speed, and several playmakers in this class. Let's let them develop before we complain, okay? They'll be different at 20 than they are at 17. Breathe. Second of all, football classes vary because different teams have different needs; and rankings can get skewed. We didn't stock up on LB's this year; and you know as well as I do LB's rankings get inflated because they make so many big plays. We also didn't add many O-linemen, and many tackles are ranked highly as well. Indiana's class is ranked #34 (ahead of 8 Big Ten schools) in the country by Rivals and #44 by 247. Think of that by itself. Just for a second; and be realistic with it if you're into rankings. This "level" of recruiting is the highest in Indiana's history, yet it's STILL not good enough. Tom Allen has barely had his recruits playing yet. He brings in Indiana's highest rated recruiting class; and you find the negative in it. I wonder which is more of a problem? A large part of our fan base seems unrealistic as it relates to this program and its true ceiling. (consistently, I mean...there will always be an anomaly here and there) We play in - bar none - the toughest division in college football. If you think we're beating Ohio State, Michigan, or Penn State on a regular basis, you're fooling yourself. Don't mean to be a downer...just telling it like it is. Indiana needs a QB. We have at least 2 in this class who look to be better than anything we had last season. We needed DE's and pass rushers, and we got three 6'5" kids all in the top 40 nationally at that position (if we DO care about rankings). We needed RB's, and we have two very good ones. We needed size at WR and we added a 6'2" kid and a 6'3" kid, both of whom had outstanding seasons. We needed to get more athletic; and this class is loaded with speed. This class is loaded with kids from the south (5 kids from Florida alone). We kept Indiana's Mr. Foiotball home. We got the state's #1 defensive end. We got return game help. Finally, so many high school kids are ranked on statistics earned against inferior competition, I'm not convinced high school rankings amount to much more than fodder for fans to get all worked up over.

That just about covers it. Perfect post.

Don't remember if he had a guy like LeVron Williams with him or not....

If people are a little patient, I think both Allen and Miller will get the job done. The prospect of Penix on the field with Taylor is....enticing. We haven't had that kind of athletic tandem since Randle El was here.

It's not as simple as making in game adjustments. The kids he has on the floor save Durham have all been used to a certain way of doing things for 3 years; and playing at a tempo completely different than Miller wants. This is a completely new system; and much of it is mentally 180* from what they're used to. And I promise this style is harder and not as much fun as Crean's was. 48 hours after a big win, a lazy effort has nothing to do with coaching.

Every coach will say that rather than throw his kids under the bus. He had 48 hours. It's not on him. It's on the kids. You know that as well as I do. All you had to do was watch the game, It had nothing to do with game plan or scheme. No college coach should coach effort.

This one's 100% on the players. Not Archie. You think he's teaching them to leave the 3 point line uncontested? You think he wants them to lose all 50/50 balls, miss FT's, etc? What about that game said "unprepared because of coaching" to you? I saw a team that looked like they didn't want to be there. That's on the players and in particular the seniors esp. Newkirk, McSwain (who is Godawful), and Johnson. Not the coach.