IUProfessor

Sanderson is also the father of a 2026 IU recruit: https://www.thedailyhoosier.com/2026-guard-jonathan-sanderson-visited-iu-basketball-on-wednesday/

Of those, only Love and Timberlake could play the 2/3. We also went after Dingle from Penn. Timberlake is only putting up around 3 per game in 12 minutes for Kansas. Dingle is scoring around 12 per game on 25+ minutes. Love is at 14 PPG for AZ.

Might as well throw in Coach Prime for DBs and the ghost of Dick Butkis for LBers.

Herman as DC would be an interesting choice...

Hart is probably 3rd or 4th in line at best to replace Harbaugh. A lot would have to go right at IU -- and wrong at UofM -- for Hart to get the Wolverines job anytime this decade.

Hart does have HC experience...in the second half against UNLV this year.

Exactly. Given the current climate on campus, the backlash would be unimaginably immense.

Would be an odd way to ingratiate oneself with the Rutgers fan base...

I meant rock bottom in the B1G. I get that many here are viewing things through crimson-colored glasses, but outside of IU most would view this as one of the two worst jobs in the B1G, and probably bottom 5 or so in the P5. IU's home recruiting base isn't particularly fertile, and we're third in the in-state FB pecking order. Meanwhile, we're surrounded on two sides by the two winningest programs of all time, plus other P5 schools like Cincinnati and Michigan State that have made it to the CFP in the last ten years. This is an impossibly hard turnaround, and it's going to take someone that isn't necessarily splashy, but has the know-how and commitment to build a lasting program from the bottom up. I doubt that names like Barry Alvarez, Kirk Ferentz, or Mark Dantonio won the press conference back in the day, but that's the type of hire IU desperately needs to make this time around.

That's exacrly my point. IU needs someone who can build the foundation for a program with lasting success, not just a flash in the pan who might string together a strong season or two before jumping ship, setting the program back to square one.

The state of Washington's program was light years ahead of IU. Whoever takes this job is starting at rock bottom in what is becoming an incredibly difficult conference.

Kansas and Duke haven't proven that their success is sustainable yet. Allen had a couple big seasons early too, and we all saw how that turned out.

Some here seem to think IU needs to make a splashy hire to generate immediate interest in the program. I think it needs to find someone who can build a consistent winning program. This is a 4-5 year process, not a quick fix situation.

Respectfully disagree. With the transfer portal, you can build a serviceable line quickly while also building the long-term, homegrown depth in the lines. Michigan has relied heavily on the portal to rebuild its o-line the past two years, and is on the verge of a 3rd straight CFP. I'm not saying that the same Wisconsin scheme is the ticket today, but rather that IU should be following the same philosophy of building around what your home recruiting base is producing. In this case, it's linemen. And Michigan and Iowa have proven that power football still wins in the B1G.

The other thing I'd note is that while bringing in someone with a high powered offensive scheme may win the press conference, it may not be the best decision in the long run. ~30 years ago Wisconsin was in the same place IU is today. Barry Alvarez recognized that he needed to build around the one thing his state consistently produced: large, strong farm boys who could push people around. Indiana may not be a FB recruiting hotbed, but one thing the state does produce on a fairly consistent basis is linemen. Call me crazy, but I'd look for a coach who wants to build a power rushing attack and a team identity based on winning in the trenches. We're years away from out recruiting Ohio State, Michigan, and USC for skill players. But Michigan (and to a lesser extent, Iowa) have shown the last few years that power football still wins the day in the B1G. I don’t know what Justin Frye's offensive scheme would be, but I'm guessing it would be run heavy, while working in some of the passing concepts he's learned under Ryan Day. Seems like an ideal fit for the position.

I don't understand why Justin Frye isn't getting more attention here. Associate HC at the #2 program in the conference (and a top 4 program in the country). Offensive coach. IU grad. I get he doesn't have HC experience, but let's be honest, any ex-HC is either going to be a retread, or is effectively just as risky (leading EMU or Toledo obviously doesn't guarantee success in the B1G). Rightly or wrongly, the national perception of this job isn't good. Getting a top assistant from a top program with IU connections would seem to me to be the best chance to hit a HR.

I don't think you can bank on that by any means. The kid is basically going to miss the better part of two years with this knee injury. There's no telling how he's going to bounce back from that.

Yes and no. IMO, the spring recruiting has been overrated. Yes we've landed some highly regarded guys, but I'm not sure any of them have been championship caliber players. Our big spring gets have been (in no particular order): Bates, XJ, Kopp, Reneau, Ware, and Mbgako. There is obviously still a lot of time to go before the jury is in on Ware and Mbgako, but I'm not sure any of those guys are core players on a championship-level team. A few of them may be talented enough, but lack the requisite work ethic and/or mental toughness. Others just aren't well rounded enough. Again, just IMO.

Something that struck me during the game -- Woodson knows the game as well as anyone from an Xs and Os standpoint dating back to his NBA days, but he never really was involved on the roster construction side of things in the pros. Three years in at IU, and he has yet to show he can build a coherent roster at the college level. I would have hoped he'd have learned from the shortcomings of the first two years, but year three may be the worst yet in that regard, which isn't a promising sign for the future...

The last two years we've been able to justify the offensive system by assuming Woody was just tailoring the game plan to the hand he was dealt (i.e., TJD and Race). I realize you could make the same argument this year (it's hard not to play Reneau and Ware together when they are two of your best players), but by year three you'd like to think Woody would have constructed a roster that would have allowed him to play the offensive style he wants. So the more time goes on, the more you have to conclude that all the talk about implementing a modern, NBA-style offense was just that. Talk. So debating whether Mbgako should play some minutes at the 4 seems moot until the staff shows that it's interested in playing a modern style of basketball. The offensive system may also explain the perplexing struggle we've had to land the type of talent at the 2/3 that you need to win big (JHS aside). Maybe what we're seeing is just how the staff wants to play. And wing recruits aren't buying it.

Oh, I get that, still this is just crazy quiet compared to the lead-up to decisions by McNeeley, Flanders, etc.

This thread is surprisingly quiet just 36 hours out from the beginning of the early signing period...

Ha! Good point, and yes. I remember seeing Gunn telling someone on the baseline to cover a shooter in the corner, and was thinking that might have been a 2-3, but your take is probably more accurate.

I wasn't watching for it particularly closely, but I believe we did flash some zone yesterday, if I'm not mistaken.

Agreed. Although in this case, unless I'm mistaken, Queen actually liked the tweet by Donovan suggesting the DQ partnership.