This isn’t a shock given just about anybody who’s anybody
has picked the Hoosiers for next season. That’s what happens when you return
all your starters from a Sweet 16 team, then add one of the nation’s best
recruiting classes. That includes Yogi Ferrell, who will provide the kind of
point guard play they’ve lacked in recent years.
The key question -– can Ferrel do it next season as a
true freshman? Not many can?
DeCourcy also questions IU’s defense. The Hoosiers ranked
64th in defensive efficiency this past season based on the formula
devised by really smart guy Ken Pomeroy and showcased on his website,
KenPom.com.
DeCourcy said most national basketball champs have been
in the top 10 in defensive efficiency, and none of the last 10 champs were
worse than 19th (take a bow, Syracuse).
In other words, the Hoosiers have to get really good
defensively, really fast.
Yes, coach Tom Crean has mentioned that, among other
things.
It will get addressed. The defense will get better. Will
that be good enough to win a national championship?
We’ll see.
******
By now you’ve probably seen the statement put out by
something called the Coalition on Intercollegiate Athletics. It says that John
Calipari’s Kentucky basketball scheduling strategy is endangering the civilized
world and could lead to Howard Stern becoming the next president of the United
States.
Wait!
Our mistake. It didn’t exactly say that.
This group of 59 faculty senate members from Football
Bowl Subdivision schools actually said that Calipari’s desire not to play
non-conference games on campus facilities could lead to “a full professional
model.” That it was, in fact, a “move to further professionalize college
sports.”
And you thought Jim Delany making $1.8 million more than
we do was bad.
The statement was sparked by the recent announcement that Indiana and Kentucky would not play basketball games against each other anymore. IU wanted to play the games on campus facilities (Assembly Hall, Rupp Arena). Kentucky wanted neutral sites (Indianapolis’ Lucas Oil Stadium, perhaps Louisville’s Freedom Hall)
Let’s make one thing clear: Kentucky and Calipari DID NOT
end the IU-UK series. IU AND Kentucky did it together. Both sides refused to
compromise. Both deserve equal blame. This is not an all-or-nothing issue in
the manner of, say, should Justin Bieber take over Indiana’s point guard job
next season.
JUST A THOUGHT: How much would you pay to see Justin
Bieber go one on one with Yogi Ferrell?
Anyway, people who want to agree, who realize and
appreciate the value of this series, would make it work. People who don’t,
well, it reminds us of something we heard on a walk the other day. Three kids
were playing some kind of basketball game. They got into a disagreement. One
kid said, “you either play by my rules, or you don’t play at all.”
Does that sound familiar?
Anyway, we have joined the forces of truth, justice and
the American way to come up with the PERFECT solution to this Indiana-Kentucky
road block.
IU already plays in a neutral site event called the
Crossroads Classic. It’s held in Indianapolis’ Bankers Life Fieldhouse. IU is
joined by Purdue, Notre Dame and Butler. It’s great for the universities, the
fans and basketball in the state of Indiana, and beyond.
Here’s our PERFECT solution: Add Kentucky and Louisville
to the mix. Instead of a doubleheader, make it a triple header. Opponents are
rotated every year. So once every three years, IU and Kentucky would play. It’s
not as good as playing every year, but it’s better than not playing at all. If
there’s enough interest, and there probably would be, move it to Lucas Oil
Stadium.
Don’t take our word for it that it’s perfect. We hired a
medium to contact the spirit of James Naismith, the inventor of basketball, to
get his thoughts. Here is the absolutely true and accurate transcript of our
séance session:
MEDIUM: Are you James Naismith?
VOICE FROM BEYOND: Yes.
MEDIUM: What do you think of Hoosier Hoopla’s solution to
resolve the IU-Kentucky dispute?
VOICE FROM BEYOND: Brilliant!
So there you have it -– except Calipari
messed it up by apparently signing a two-year deal with Baylor. This year’s Baylor
game is set for Rupp Arena. The 2013 game will be played at Cowboy Stadium in
Dallas.
Oh, for the record, Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany makes
$1.8 million a year according to a story in USA Today. That makes him the
second highest paid commissioner after the Pac-12’s Larry Scott, who makes $1.9
million.
Neither come close to our salary. That’s as close to the
truth as we dare get.
******
Nebraska football is in big trouble.
Why?
Because the Cornhuskers have to face the Indiana Hoosiers
starting in 2015.
IU OWNS Nebraska. The Hoosiers lead the series 9-7-3 and
if most of the games were played before Nebraska became a state and had enough
people to field a team, and if the last time these teams met Nebraska won 69-17
(in 1978), stop being negative.
IU will play at Nebraska in 2015. The Cornhuskers will come
to Memorial Stadium in 2016.
During those two years, Minnesota, Michigan and Iowa will
rotate off Indiana’s schedule.
John Calipari, by the way, had nothing to do with this.
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