3 years later, Knight's legend lives on in Bloomington

It has been more than three years since Bob Knight last roamed the Assembly Hall sidelines.\nMost Hoosier basketball fans seem to feel the program is forging its own new identity under head coach Mike Davis, Knight's replacement.\nWith Midnight Madness this week, IU embarks on its fourth season under Davis, and all of the players who played for Knight have graduated.\nBut perhaps the biggest sign IU is moving forward occurred Oct. 6 when a Monroe County judge dismissed Knight's breach-of-contract lawsuit against IU. The court ruled IU didn't violate Knight's contract when firing him, but Knight has 30 days to appeal.\nThough IU has moved on since Knight's departure, remnants of his legacy remain.\nKnight's lawsuit was dismissed, but two others involving Knight are still pending.The Indianapolis Star sued IU over the release of information regarding the firing in October 2000, and 46 IU fans filed a lawsuit in April 2001 alleging that the IU board of trustees and former IU President Myles Brand met in violation of the Indiana Open Door Law when they decided to fire Knight.\nIU previously settled a lawsuit with former assistant basketball coach Ron Felling who sued IU in April 2001 on the basis that he was wrongfully fired by Knight.\nKnight's lawsuit caused many to wonder if his focus is really on coaching Texas Tech, where he has been coach for the past two seasons.\n"I just don't understand why he doesn't move on," said English professor Murray Sperber, an outspoken critic of Knight.\nBesides the legal sector, Knight's presence also is still felt in local merchandise sales.\nJason Lietz, general manager of The Finish Line in College Mall, said his store sells six or seven different pieces of Texas Tech fan apparel.\n"The corporate office thinks Bob Knight still has an influence in Bloomington," Lietz said.\nBrad Hornberger, a sales associate with Smith's Sport'n Shoe, said sales of Texas Tech merchandise have slowed slightly compared to when Knight was first named Texas Tech coach. "At first it was pretty rapid," he said.\nAlthough Knight's firing became a huge media event and helped several IU officials obtain celebrity status, most of the men instrumental in Knight's firing are no longer with the University. IU President Myles Brand, athletic director Clarence Doninger and Christopher Simpson, vice-president of public relations and government affairs have all left IU.\nPerhaps the one individual most important to IU in the post-Knight era is someone who actually used to work for Knight, former assistant coach Davis.\nJunior Jon Deck said Davis leading IU to the Final Four in only his second year as coach was instrumental in maintaining the popularity of IU basketball on campus. \n"I think he's really done a lot just to help the team move forward in a positive direction after Bob Knight left, and I think he's done a great job," Deck said.\nMost fans say IU basketball will always be IU basketball, regardless of who the coach is.\n"I think that people for the most part maintained their interest after (Bob Knight's firing)," junior Suzanne Riddle said. "Most of my friends never really seemed mad about it. I think maybe some older people were kind of upset."\nDeck feels most students on campus are content with the current coaching situation.\n"I don't think there's really a lot of Knight fans on campus," Deck said. "I think mostly they just live in town or in the surrounding area. I think everyone on campus has kind of gotten over the whole Bobby Knight thing, except for maybe a couple of seniors who were here when he was here."\nAnd while Hoosier fans are clearly behind Davis and looking forward to his fourth year as coach, it may be impossible for IU to ever totally move past the Bob Knight era.\n"I think it is kind of like Elvis," Riddle said. "Elvis lives, and Bob Knight lives, too. He's a legend."\n-- Contact staff writer Matt Lahr at mjlahr@indiana.edu.