Coaching Rumors

 Last week Cam texted our group chat to let us know that IU had fired Archie Miller as the head men's basketball coach.  Although all of us were happy with the move, we were a little surprised.  The buy out to his contract was over ten million dollars.  We later found out that one private donor offered to pay the entire amount if they got rid of Archie.  With that concern out of the picture we were all glad to be done with the "Miller Time" era.  He had never found success at IU especially offensively.  His teams performed poorly in the Big Ten tourney and never made the NCAA tournament.  More importantly to Hoosier alumni, however, was his lack of enthusiasm for the school and the program.  Brett had heard through the athletic department that no one like Archie Miller as he was an a@#hole.  It sured seemed that way watching him scowl on the sidelines.

With his departure there came a lot of rumors and speculation about who the next IU basketball coach would be.  Brad Stevens was the first and most prominent name thrown out.  It took almost a week, but Hoosier fans finally came to understand that he was not leaving the Boston Celtics for Bloomington.  Another name that kept creeping up was Rick Pitino as he had lead Iona to the Big Dance this year.  Doug stated instantly that he'd rather have Archie back if that was the case.  Pitino had left college basketball amid allegations of recruiting violations including paying prostitutes for recruits.  Doug wasn't the only alumni who did not want to see him at IU and that name was quickly squashed.  Next came the talk about Steve Alford coming home to coach.  Those rumors stemmed mostly from those who were not part of the Hoosier nation.  Everyone affiliated with IU realized that he had found little success in his college coaching career and wasn't the leader that the Hoosiers needed.

This week talk has swirled around Thad Matta, a former Ohio State coach.  Supposedly, he failed his physical and IU ended talks with him.  Cam said another rumor was that IU had interviewed Calbert Cheaney for the position.  That was most interesting to both Doug and I.  Cheaney graduated the same year as Doug and was easily our favorite college player.  He lead the Hoosiers to the Final Four in 1992, won the John Wooden award and was still the all time leading scorer in Big Ten history.  It was an interesting name to throw out as he was currently the assistant for the Pacers and had found success at St. Louis University several years ago.  He would bring definitely bring enthusiasm to the program for the IU alumni.  It had worked well for Juwan Howard to return to Michigan as a coach.  If IU also hired a more seasoned veteran as his assistant as the Wolverines had with Howard, maybe it would be just what the Hoosiers needed.  

Ultimately, none of really know what will happen with the basketball program.  Although it was nice to get rid of Miller, it will take some time to rebuild after his departure.  Several current players have entered the transfer portal since he was fired.  That may or may not hurt the team.  When Tom Crean was let go, there was mixed feelings on the decision.  This time, one thing was certain. Everyone following IU basketball was ready for a change.