Sampson OUT at IU

[Matt700wlw]

Breaking news on ESPN (Andy Katz reporting)

...settlement has been reached and he is done at IU


http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=3258506

[Buckeye33]

He deserves to be let go. How in the world would you ever do the exact same thing that got you in trouble at another university at your new school? Stupid, plain and simple.

Supposedly the Indiana compliance office gave the OK when they saw the phone records, but still.

Now it will be interesting to see who ends up there as far as a full time coach. I can't see Knight going back there.

[BRM]

So it all goes away tonight if he takes the buyout. Now I'm curious to see what happens with the guys who skipped practice today. Are they quitting or was today just a grandstanding moment in support of their coach?

[Matt700wlw]

He deserves to be let go. How in the world would you ever do the exact same thing that got you in trouble at another university at your new school? Stupid, plain and simple.

Arrogant is more like it.

[Matt700wlw]

Pat Forde's list on who should replace him is already out...

• Tony Bennett, Washington State. He's been a fabulous winner at a place where it's not very easy to win. The Cougars were 11-17 in the final season under Tony's dad, Dick, and the upgrade has been emphatic and immediate. Washington State went 26-8 last season and is now 19-5, having spent the entire season in the Top 25.

There's more to recommend Bennett: He's got Midwestern roots, having grown up playing his college ball in Wisconsin; his sister, Kathi, once coached the Indiana women's basketball team; and his preferred style of play fits the Big Ten. Not only that, his dad is tight with Knight. It would undoubtedly make Indiana fans feel better to have someone who comes with The General's stamp of approval.

And this is the year for Bennett to move. His top two scorers are seniors and he has five seniors on the roster.




• Sean Miller, Xavier. The school has been a proven springboard for coaches to prime-time leagues, from Pete Gillen to Skip Prosser to Thad Matta. Miller is the next in that long line of winners. His Musketeers have won 20 games for the third straight season, and Miller has never had a losing record (overall or in league play) in four years as a head coach.

This season has been Xavier's best since David West and Romain Sato were in uniform. The Musketeers look like a legit Sweet 16 team and a dark horse Final Four candidate. If that happens, Miller's name will be red hot on the job market.




• Brad Brownell, Wright State. Under-the-radar candidate is an Indiana native who grew up admiring Knight and played high school ball with Calbert Cheaney in Evansville. He'd understand IU better than anyone else on this list.

But what really recommends him for the job is his record.

Last season, his first at Wright State, the Raiders compiled their first 20-win season since 1992-93, winning the regular-season and conference tournament titles over the more highly touted Butler Bulldogs. This season, they're on the verge of doing it again, sitting at 18-6 and second to Butler in the Horizon League. In the four years prior to Brownell's arrival, Wright State was 50-61.

Prior to Wright State, Brownell compiled a 61-22 record in Colonial Athletic Association play while at North Carolina-Wilmington, twice winning the CAA Coach of the Year.




• Mark Few, Gonzaga. His credentials are established. He's won big and won consistently in Spokane, and he has recruited incredibly well at a West Coast Conference school.

The question is whether he'd leave Gonzaga for Indiana. Most folks believe Few had a chance to leave two years ago, when the Hoosiers hired Sampson, but backed away. Would he say no a second time? Might be worth it to IU to find out.




• Thad Matta, Ohio State. Would he leave one really good job for another in the same league? Maybe not. But the main reason nobody thought Matta would leave the Buckeyes two years ago was Greg Oden, and he's not around anymore.

Matta is a phenomenal recruiter with a Final Four on his résumé and strong ties in the state of Indiana. He also has a track record of moving around, albeit for jobs that made plenty of sense (Butler to Xavier to Ohio State in short order). Maybe working at a basketball-first school would make sense to a guy toiling in the shadow of king football in Columbus.



(Backup list: Lon Kruger, UNLV; Kevin Stallings, Vanderbilt; Scott Drew, Baylor; Keno Davis, Drake; Chris Lowery, Southern Illinois.)

[hebroncougar]

So a coach cheats, gets caught, for the second time, and gets $750,000 for it?

[Matt700wlw]

So a coach cheats, gets caught, for the second time, and gets $750,000 for it?

I want his job.

[WMR]

Sampson should be banned from coaching D1 basketball for at least 3 seasons. He must be made an example of for his egregious flouting of the rules time and time again.

[Reds4Life]

Sampson should be banned from coaching D1 basketball for at least 3 seasons. He must be made an example of for his egregious flouting of the rules time and time again.

I doubt any school is going to touch him with a 10 foot pole. The said part is IU had to pay to get rid of him, it's disgusting he gets to walk out of this with a quarter million.

[WMR]

I doubt any school is going to touch him with a 10 foot pole. The said part is IU had to pay to get rid of him, it's disgusting he gets to walk out of this with a quarter million.

Yeah it is a damn shame. I think IU should have suspended him w/o pay and waited for the NCAA investigation to take its due course... they clearly just wanted to make it all go away, however. I guess three quarters of a million wasn't too much for them to stomach.

[UKFlounder]

Sampson should be banned from coaching D1 basketball for at least 3 seasons. He must be made an example of for his egregious flouting of the rules time and time again.

And the ID who hired him, while knowing of his past violations, deserves some punishment from the school as well. He hired a snake and got bit - big surprise there, huh?

[Bip Roberts]

@ IU

[BRM]

Sampson should be banned from coaching D1 basketball for at least 3 seasons. He must be made an example of for his egregious flouting of the rules time and time again.

He's already being rumored as a candidate for the South Carolina job. It's all about winning in the NCAA. It won't surprise me at all if he ends up coaching in 1A next season.

[WMR]

He's already being rumored as a candidate for the South Carolina job. It's all about winning in the NCAA. It won't surprise me at all if he ends up coaching in 1A next season.

That's why I'm hopeful the NCAA will step up and ban him from coaching D1 ball for a number of years. I have absolutely zero faith in college universities hell-bent on winning from staying away from him for any length of time.

[BRM]

I'll be completely shocked if the NCAA bans him in any way. Jay Bilas and Digger Phelps have already predicted Kelvin will be coaching in D1A next season.