Old Friend

Ramsey is a fine game manager. He does well with short, low risk throws and isn't prone to big mistakes. He is limited though; and when teams take away his ability to run, as we saw a year ago, Indiana really struggles. He does not do well throwing the ball down the field. (even when he had completions down the field last week, he under threw receivers who had to make plays to complete throws) For his career, he averages between 5.7 and 6.0 yards per attempt, pretty consistently. That is a low number. A very conservative number. He's doing just fine from a game management standpoint, however I think it's pretty obvious he has a ceiling; and rather than heap praise on one guy who's kinda vanilla; I'd rather heap praise on the entire team -players and coaches - who are ALL doing a hell of a job; Ramsey among them.

Close one IU 24 BSU 20

Would you be willing to PM me so I can compare notes? What did YOU hear?

Stevie Scott is patient and a terrific running back. His durability as a freshman is all that will hamper him. He's got vision as good as anybody I've seen at IU since Anthony Thompson.

Your eyes work? His completion % might be the most misleading stat in sports.

I think we can be better than that, but I was referring to some who said it was a loser's mentality to believe we will never be on par with Ohio State, etc.

She's bad. She's been bad. I didn't care for the whole broadcast teem, but she was bad.

For all of those people who have said there is no reason Indiana can't consistently play with the big boys on the football field, I offer you....that. Everything from clock management to penalties to a QB who simply cannot throw the ball down the field with consistency to unlucky injuries season after season... Indiana will always be able to play in the middle. This is who we are. A really good win. A necessary win. But it showed our ceiling.

"I know the same holds true for kids from Indiana. They do have to fit. No doubt." Reading comprehension, my man. The movement was my example in the other direction. I just didn't say so. Look at the rosters I said to look at. Not the ones I used as a counter example., Who judged a kid based on his zip code? What did I say that is even remotely untrue? You think teams from all over the place recruit Indiana as hard as they do for no reason? Why don't they recruit, say Tennessee that hard? Or West Virginia? Or Maine? Or Florida for basketball players? You think Izzo, Thad Matta, Steve Alford, etc all spend/spent tons of time in Indiana for any other reason than the players here are pretty damned good?

Indiana - like Florida for baseball and football, Texas for football - and the surrounding area has players who understand the game sometimes just a little better than kids from other places. They have generally been very well coached, Indiana teams in particular do consistently well at national AAU tournaments; and they also understand more than kids from elsewhere what Indiana Basketball means. That may not be important to you, which is fine, but it is to me and others. Take a look at the rosters for Indiana's best teams over the years. Where are those kids from? Indiana and the donut states, primarily. I have no problem going to get high level kids from other states. But I also think Indiana should be a priority, and it clearly is. Why did we need Stanford Robinson? Why did we need Peter Jurkin? Just as examples, and I know the same holds true for kids from Indiana. They do have to fit. No doubt. I like the inside out approach in basketball. Football is a different animal. Does that make sense?

IU 34 UVA 27

Crap. I had been looking around because I saw the hit and it looked benign until slow motion. I was afraid of that. Damn. That kid would really have helped this team

IU 23 FIU 14

Good. Let them under-sell us. We have the best back-to-the-basket, most versatile big man in the conference if not the country; we have the most highly touted freshman in the Big Ten; we have athletic guards; we can guard, and we can rebound. 20-11 is a joke. The guy has us going 12-2 in the first 14 games; with one of those losses being to Penn State. Sorry...not this year. So basically...this clown has Indiana starting out that hot, which will make us a top 10 team in the country, then peeing down our leg in a conference where we finished 6th a year ago without two forwards (Davis and Hartman) at full strength or even on the floor at all. Either this guy really values Freddie McSwain and doesn't think Phinisee and Langford can replace Johnson and Newkirk, or he's a complete moron. Race Thompson isn't even on his list of contributors. Again...joke. And yeah....I'll say it again. Phinisee is WAY better than this guy gives him credit for. This guy also totals our avg. PPG (without Thompson, Moore, Anderson, or Forrester contributing anything) at 78.6. Has he seen Archie's teams guard? Does he think we're going to score 110 against some bad teams and 53 against others? We were far better defensively a year ago, and we'll be even better this season because Newkirk couldn't guard Brass Cannon in a phone booth. Not only are we bringing back a ton of experience and size; we got deeper and better at all 5 spots. He has us as a dog against Penn State, Northwestern, Maryland, and Michigan; all of whom lost a hell of a lot more than we did OR are simply not as good. I feel the same way about Iowa, Illinois, and Purdue. Indiana has 31 regular season games scheduled. I truly believe 26-5 is not only doable but should be an expectation. We don't play at Wisconsin or Michigan this year... 20-11? Let me guess....this guy is an "expert?"

I haven't been resident curmudgeon in years!!!!

I got out a bunch of positive a few years ago; and here and there 2-3 seasons ago. But you know as well as I do the coach and philosophy, along with recruiting focus and success has an awful lot to do with it.

I see a lot of talk about tough games and difficult stretches.... Fellas, we ARE the tough game now. With this group (as talented and deep as it is), there's not a game on our schedule I don't believe we can win. I'm officially raising expectations. Who's with me?

I know. They look awful. And I don't care what Duke, Kentucky, or North Carolina do. You can shake it up without screwing it up.

No thank you. We've tried this. Never looked like Indiana.

Davis was hired as a co coach w Treloar in September, 2000 because there was no time to go find anyone. (And Brand fired Knight, not Doninger) Practice started 3-4 weeks later. Michael McNeeley was hired in March, 2001 and fired in November, 2002. Davis' permanent hire well after Doninger left. Bill Lynch was hired in 2007. Doninger had been gone 6 years. Come on, man. You have to know history in order to know the details of the events that transpired; and if you don't, you don't. 

Help me with this. Knight was fired by Myles Brand. Doninger was against that. The board of trustees recommended the dismissal of Bill Mallory. Doninger defended Mallory and did for years following his termination. I know many have a problem with what happened under Doninger's term, but I don't understand why he is frowned upon as much as he is. The major decisions which took place while he was there were not of his doing. Over his head.

The hiring of Mike Davis was the catalyst. Timeline (abridged version) : Kinght fired. Davis hired after John Treloar agrees to take a secondary role instead of co-coach (which, had he taken that position would have almost certainly spawned a full fledged search a year later, knowing we didn't truly have a coach, but co-coaches). Davis has never before been a head coach at any level in the US. His first job, in the fish bowl at Indiana. IU makes BTT final Davis' first year. NCAA 1st round loss. Davis hired as permanent replacement without national search and based on nothing but a small run in the BTT and the fact he was "here." An easy hire. IU makes Final Four because we shot well for 3 weeks, ended up with a lucky draw (playing UNC Wilmington and Kent State instead of USC and Pitt or Alabama) and Duke blew a lead. Davis demands and is granted an extension despite no real experience, horrid in state recruiting, and saying more dumb things than any one man should be allowed in a lifetime. He complains that he is the lowest paid coach in the Big Ten, despite having by far the least experience. Jesse Jackson and the NAACP among others become involved, pressuring the IU administration about his contract and his very employment Predictably, Indiana goes downhill fast, has 14-15 and 15-14 records the next 2 seasons; and he resigns a year later. Depending on who you believe, Indiana agrees to terms with either Kevin Stallings or John Belien. Adam Herbert intervenes, insisting Indiana hire a minority coach to replace Davis, and Sampson was recommended to him. IU hires Kelvin Sampson. We know the rest, but THAT is why Indiana is where it is. We have not yet recovered from hiring Mike Davis. This is the year, almost 20 years later.

The guy who is now the OC at Ohio State cannot be considered a bad hire. I get and agree with the personal stuff, but he took IU to back to back bowl games for the first time since 1993 and had a 3-1 record vs. Purdue. Best since Bo McMillan. Hindsight is helpful in judging him, and I get that. I also saw the warning signs w Crean and was open about them. Hindsight also helps here, saying we should have hired Brad Stevens. I completely see and understand that perspective too. I thought it myself. But logic says that wasn't going to happen. I was openly critical of Tom Crean in year 2 or 3 of his tenure. I saw what you saw. Results trumped the eyeball test and Crean's downfall was his inability to win consistently and build teams consistently. He was ultimately let go for it, Just not on your preferred time frame. I get what you're saying and to a point agree with you. But I think you're using hindsight to a higher level than reality dictated at the time.

Anyone who watched the team last season and knew what they were watching saw a different team in February than in November/December. Even losing Davis and Hartman, the team was better, more efficient, and more difficult to play against. Using the whole season as a barometer for measuring last season's team is foolish. Clearly, Indiana had players new to their roles AND learning a new system (a 180* change from Crean's system and tolerance of turnovers and poor defense), and it took time. Yes. That is an excuse. And I hate excuses. It's also true. Indiana finished 6th in the Big Ten with talent that would have done well to finish 8th or 9th when healthy. They were not healthy, and still over achieved. Anyone who knows recruiting knows what's happening. Anyone who understands the game of basketball as most here obviously do can see what's happening. Fred Glass should be excited, but I don't need to see the AD talking about turnovers and minutiae like that. Big Picture, Fred. We are doing very well recruiting locally and balancing talented kids from elsewhere. Relationships with coaches have been rebuilt. No chance Langford comes to Indiana to play for Tom Crean. Zero. I am as excited for Indiana Basketball as I have been since 1993. Since Knight left, for the first time I feel like we have the right guy telling the right story to the right kids and building the program in a way any IU fan can be very proud of. Regardless of what Tom Davis or anyone else uses as a measuring stick; I do use the eyeball test, and I love what I see on and off the floor. Glass didn't screw up the IU Men's basketball team. You can thank Myles Brand for that, with help from Michael McRobbie, Adam Herbert, that moron Mike McNeeley, and Rick Greenspan. The story is long and has been told; but all in all, Glass has done far more good than harm to IU Athletics. We all want football to be better; and I think we are despite being completely screwed by the division we play in. Basketball is on the rise, and despite my distaste for Tom Crean, he and Glass DID preside over 2 Big Ten champs. Baseball at IU is at a level unprecedented in my lifetime, as are facilities. Swimming and soccer are still nationally relevant; and Indiana is a consistent top 10-20 in the President's cup (now the Capital One cup), finishing 9th this past season on the men's side. I don't agree with anyone who says Fred Glass hasn't done at least a credible job; and I would be willing to bet 8 months from now, IU fans will all be pretty happy.

Somebody who knows more about football recruiting than I do please let me know if we're getting guys we truly target or "just guys." I see rankings in the 700's and 800's. 3 star kids with decent if not impressive offers. I like that we're getting linemen on both sides. What's the 4-1-1?