IU Prof

Doyle has reported that Dolson is using back channels to contact candidates so that he maintains plausible deniability. Goodman said IU zeroed in on Holtmann, Rabjohns said Dolson didn't talk to Holtmann. So it is entirely plausible, and perhaps even likely, that IU reached out through some intermediary, but is now trying to use the Dolson didn't talk to him line to cover its tracks.

Nevermind.

No, they've had us being rejected by Matta and Holtmann. Haven't had us hiring anyone yet.

@IU Scott why are you so confident that things are under control and proceeding according to plan? That's certainly possible, but unless you just discount every single leak from the national media and the IU media, this process doesn't appear to be going as planned.

Rabby has confirmed the Goodman report re Holtmann.

I agree with that and have been saying the same. But if that's the plan, then don't reach out to your conference rival's coach in the interim and have it leak.

The only reports from objective national media sources are that we've been turned down by Matta and Holtmann, and interviewed a couple underwhelming IU guys. That's not a good sign 11 days in to a search that has been in the works for over a month.

Unless you are drinking the BradAnon kool aid, from the outside looking in it appears that the wheels are coming off this search.

Nevermind.

If we're at the grasping at straws stage, then Chris Mack might be coming up soon...

Agreed. I still think Beilein is the floor here (unless Dolson believes the thug comment would make him a big liability recruiting wise). Edit: Which, I should add, isn't a bad place to be, and I say that as someone not very enthused about Beilein.

Thanks. That's certainly the most plausible scenario I've heard. I still wonder how it's remained under wraps from the NBA press, though...

I still remain skeptical about this. But saying it's true, can anyone come up with a convincing reason of why Brad needs to wait? I get if he's going to coach it out to the end of the season, but why would this week vs. last week vs. next week possibly make any difference? I understand that getting out of his current contract could take some time, but that wouldn't really explain the extreme denial he gave last week, or the current speculation that the 27th or 5th (or whatever) has been the date for weeks. If I could hear a plausible explanation beyond just "contracts...", I'd be more inclined to reboard the Brad Train.

Stepped away for a couple hours, did I miss anything of note?

Whew!

I'm looking forward to the posts after we hire someone else (like Musselman) about how Stevens is really secretly coaching the team behind the scenes, with a series of predictions that Stevens will officially take the position over publicly at various random dates in the future.

Ehh... I'd still rather have Nate Oats.

Not if he's the fallback.

This is my working theory too.

SIAP https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/news/an-indiana-boosters-10-million-for-a-new-coach-shows-money-talks-but-when-players-walk-is-it-worth-it/?fbclid=IwAR3Ja-JsC7avHiA5jc_bYPfdOdV5s9gsHugQcxAxITkNjOWdr-NL2YZ3Ri8

Technically, the buyout is Oats' responsibility to pay, not IU's. Now obviously that will be a factor in his financial calculus of whether to take the job. But if he's making ~$3.5 million/year at Alabama, and IU offered $6 million/year, he's still coming out ahead even after paying off the buyout. Or a booster could step in and cover it. Either way, the $12 million is a relatively small price to pay if you think you have a coach who can win multiple championships over the next two decades. Personally, I think Oats is that guy.

My current hot board: Oats Oats Oats Stevens Oats Oats Musselman Oats Oats Oats Beard Oats Oats Beilein

For those that think we're going to take another run at Stevens...if we strike out on all the top tier candidates (Oats, Beard, etc.), does the prospect of a Woodson-type hire motivate a donor to step up for another $2-3 million per year to go after Stevens again? Presumably, there would be a $$ value that would be too high for Brad to turn down. The real conspiracy theory would be that Dolson is floating Woodson, etc., to scare the donor base into ponying up more for Stevens.

If you take Dolson at his word from the press conference, he wants someone innovative with his pulse on where the game is going offensively, and a modern style that appeals to recruits. To me, that means Stevens, Oats, Drew, or Beilein, and maybe Musselman. Not Beard, not Matta, not Moser. Edit: Enfield might fit too, but would generally be a bad idea for other reasons (mediocre track record, lack of Midwest connections, ties to the FBI scandal, etc.).

In fact, call me crazy, but I'm so committed to the Oats candidacy that at this point I'd actually prefer him to Stevens, in light of the events of the last week or so.