Sooner than later

We've finally begun to come down off of the dust bowl high that came with the arrival of Kelvin Sampson as IU's new basketball coach. It's not every day a storied program like IU's acquires a new coach -- he is only our third one in more than three decades -- and the news of his arrival blew into Bloomington with all the excitement and tension of a last-second free throw in double overtime.\nAfter a speculation-filled search, we've got our $10.5 million man, and a program besieged by a fanbase coup d'état can finally begin to move forward with the dignity and tradition it deserves. \nSort of, anyway. Now all we have left to do is unpack some of the baggage Sampson brought with him. Right now, the prevailing fear is the potential rule violations he and his Oklahoma staff committed in recruiting. During Wednesday's press conference, he acknowledged too many phone calls went out to recruits per week. Such a violation allowed him to see the proverbial light and he says he whipped the Oklahoma program into compliance with NCAA standards. \nBut our chief concern has to do with the graduation rates of Sampson's players; his track record hasn't been so impressive. There are many factors that can affect a school's success in graduating athletes, but even with those considered, Sampson's record still isn't impressive when compared to IU's glory days of athletic and academic success.\nHis hire is obviously a signal that we're putting a strong emphasis on winning games, and we hope that doesn't mean at the expense of making the grade. We want to win games as much as anyone, but if our players are fouling in the classroom, that will a problem not as easily resolved as putting someone on the bench. We have a nervous feeling that the athletics program could begin drifting away from its obligation to academic success.\nSampson announced at his press conference that now he's a Hoosier, and graduation will be an important goal of his. That's nice, but anyone can say anything they want. (Weren't we told this season would be "the season" for IU?) It'll be important for other prominent figures in the University to keep pushing the importance of graduation.\nWith the announcement of Sampson as the new coach and as Mike Davis exits stage left, the IU Athletics Department has finished the last stage of its makeover. In three years, we have a new athletics director, a new football coach, new basketball coaches for the men's and women's teams, a new baseball coach and a new soccer coach. The face of IU sports has changed, but the essence of our program should stand firm. We have a sports program that excels on the court and in the classroom, and we're hoping the new folks in charge keep that in mind -- particularly Sampson, whom we'll be watching closely to prove himself in the face of that uneasiness.