Hoosierinbham

He could, although I feel making that statement the day after we lose our final game would be more impactful. If he and several other players announce they will be entering the portal without a change of leadership, Dolson's leverage skyrockets.

Good quote. Someone needs to tell QB that applies to him as well. He'll never win us another game. Bruce Pearl would.

If Samford makes a run in the tourney, that would help. There are a few mega donors to Bama that might be ready to turn the keys over to Samford coach Bucky McMillan if Oats bolts. Not sure he's quite ready yet, but he's one of the brightest young minds in cbb, and has serious connections in the state. He coached Trendon Watford and Colby Jones of Xavier/NBA in high school, where he won numerous state titles.

Trust me, I feel like it some days!

48. Attended camp in the 80s. His son David was older at that point, but still VERY energetic. Wokes us up loudly singing, "Roll out the barrels...

Outstanding comparison! I attended the McCracken basketball camp on Lake James multiple years. His son was great. Bring back the "Hurryin Hoosiers"!

I was told last night by someone very connected to the Bama program there is a decent chance Oates moves north after this season. They were thinking more Michigan or Ohio State, but sounds like he's open to a change of scenery. I'd take him in a heartbeat. Guess we'll see.

Great post, and that's similar to where I'm at right now. I do think if they make a bowl game, he's back for the final year of his contract with a chance to show we're headed in the right direction. That being said he'll need a HUGE off-season in recruiting, the portal, and retaining our best players. The fact the players haven't quit shows they still believe in CTA. He has struggled with hiring solid assistants, but with Carey/Fuente and Bostad, has solidified the offense to be respectable. We have a good core of young qb's, receivers, tight ends, and offensive linemen. We need better running backs depth, but the portal can help. Special teams needs to change, but our defense is always solid under Allen. Gotta finish these last three strong, or it probably won't matter.

I was a freshman that same year and was at the game. PSU dominated until we scored a couple touchdowns in garbage time. Nebraska rolled someone like 77-0 and jumped PSU in the polls. We cost them the national title that season.

Don't know much about his offensive style, but he would definitely be worth looking at. Didn't realize he is at Georgia Southern.

Great point. A coach can't be one dimensional. CTA probably falls into that category. Mullen is an offensive guru that had some solid defenses at Miss St. and Florida. Your point is spot on that you want a guy that asks himself what type of offense/defense gives his specialty (offense/defense) fits. We definitely need someone that has a vision for the entire program.

I love the passion you guys have for IU football on this board. Just throwing out random names to discuss is fun. I might be Charlie Brown, but I feel like this time COULD be different. Power 5 has really turned into the Big 2 (B1G & SEC). Some coaches may just want a place at the table in one of the 2 mega conferences. NIL and the transfer portal also give a new coach a better opportunity to reimagine the program faster without waiting years to build relationships and for their recruits to develop. A name like Dan Mullen (I personally want an offense guru) might consider us that would've laughed before. Who knows, might just be wishful thinking.

I saw Kane Wommack's name mentioned by Rick Neuheisel. That would be an easy transition defensively, just needs to bring a high-powered offense with him.

Same boat here with an UK fan wife. With the roster we have in place, I really hope they restart the IU/UK series. It seems with our prior two coaches, Cal has had the upper hand. But with CMW, I don't believe that is the case. Crean had an inferiority complex, and Archie was more of the underdog. CMW is a big dog Cal may not want to tangle with based on their current status and roster make-up.

I like Aggressive Rob. Aggressive Rob can shoot and drive. Coach Fife likes Aggressive Rob. He's going to push him to see more Aggressive Rob. I like that coach Fife likes Aggressive Rob.

Excellent observation on the offensive rebounding. And this is where Jordan, Race, Hunter, and Galloway crashing from the wings comes into play. Having length for longer misses is huge. It also creates putbacks or quick passes to open shooters while the defense is scrambling. This is also why we need some bulldogs that get pissed when they miss and want to get their own rebound, as opposed to hanging their head and moping.

Agree. Think people are sleeping on Leal and Galloway. Leal because of shooting, and Galloway is a Swiss army knife player. Trey's shot was always ugly, but got worse after he was injured. Those guys are both gym rats, so improvement will happen. Exact type of players we need that love IU, and want to contribute any way possible.

Remember seeing video and he looked confident. That disappeared over his time here. His shot doesn't look bad, so hopefully he can regain his former form.

Yep. He's Delray Brooks, Marty Simmons, or Mike Giomi. For the younger generation that says, who? Exactly.

"Hey Armaan, Xavier Johnson is REALLY looking forward to meeting you!" Good luck in the lane.

If Fife was part of our resurgence, and showed years of loyalty, I'm sure he would get strong consideration. You would have to think CMW would have strong sway and would want to reward Fife at that point. I hope we enjoy the level of success that this becomes an option.

Absolutely. This is that gray area you have to operate in to win. You have to always put feelers out to see what options are available. If you know the hot girl's best friend, you'd be wise to ask her to gauge interest and put in a good word for you.

Good points on system familiarity. He knows packline well, although he got beat off the dribble frequently. His length helps with closeouts and deflections. Offensively he will still be in a slow, methodical, albeit much more efficient, offense. Not sure how much higher his numbers would be due to pace. The ACC isn't nearly as physical as the B1G, so maybe that is appealing. I still get back to the life after basketball factor. Wings his size are pretty common. The odds of him having a lengthy NBA career are still low. One significant injury derails everything. If he stays committed to IU and is part of our resurgence, he and his family are set up well for life due to relationships. Not to mention, mama's social media standing does MUCH better in the state if he stays, assuming she values that.

Loving the coach was a general reason kids might factor in, not necessarily attributable to Archie. Agree on the body language of kids. They seemed finished mentally. Sometimes the well is just too poisoned in a person's mind to allow a change in thought or feeling about the situation. All of those reasons are why a fresh start is sometimes easier for the player, and also the coach recruiting. If certain players still need to be sold at this point, they may fall into the fresh start category.

It depends on the situation. Keeping a content kid from the state that loves the school, yes. Keeping a kid that loved the former coach, had negative experiences with fans booing and social media, or just wants a fresh start? Probably not as easy as a new recruit with a blank slate.