IU fans introduced to brand new Hoosier squad

Tom Crean won’t make any guarantees about the upcoming season, but he will make a promise.

He can’t tell you how many games the Hoosiers will win or how many years it will take them to make it to the NCAA Tournament. But with his team, fans, former players, recruits and a national television audience watching, he promised a return to IU tradition.

Speaking deliberately, pausing to let every word sink in, Crean said, “I will never allow anyone to represent these gentlemen or to represent you without giving their very all on this court and their very best to Indiana.”

Crean’s players did their best at Hoosier Hysteria to fulfill that promise.

On Friday, with the exceptions of Kyle Taber and Brett Finkelmeier, the Hoosiers put on their IU jerseys for the first time inside Assembly Hall.

“It was great, but I was so nervous when I put this jersey on,” said freshman guard Nick Williams. “But when I came out here in front of all these people rooting for us, it calmed me down a little bit.”

Williams wasn’t the only one who felt butterflies in his stomach when he took the floor in front of more than 8,000 fans.

Junior center Tijan Jobe said he was nervous. Freshman sharpshooter Matt Roth said the experience was “unbelievable.” Junior guard Devan Dumes said he “never would have imagined something like this.”

The players started with layup lines, which soon turned into an informal dunk contest. They were basic drills, but it was also the first time most people had seen the 12 new Hoosiers in action. Showing some nerves, a few of the IU players slammed a couple of dunks off the back of the rim.

“I was anxious, nervous and all of that together,” said freshman forward Malik Story.

Before the Hoosiers took off their warm-ups and began their first official practice of the season, Crean showed a video to those in attendance in an attempt to display how hard the Hoosiers have worked this off-season. 

“We don’t have a highlight tape to show you, obviously,” Crean lamented.

The tape showed what Crean and IU strength and conditioning coach Jeff Watkinson have been putting the Hoosiers through. 

It began with the Hoosiers, including Crean, working through karate drills trying to split a piece of wood with their hands. Seconds later, the team was running around Memorial Stadium, with the players running in a single-file line connected by a rope. The video showed the Hoosiers doing pull-ups and lifting weights, squat jumping, working with medicine balls, flipping tires and, of course, more karate.

The video showed that while Crean values IU’s tradition, he’s also willing to try anything to make the Hoosiers better.

To help his players appreciate IU’s history better, Crean has made a habit of bringing in former players to speak to the team this off-season. On Friday night, he gathered about two dozen former IU players to be in attendance for Hoosier Hysteria. Many of the former players wore shirts that read on the back, “Passion for the past, excitement for the future.”

“That’s coach Crean’s motto,” said freshman guard Verdell Jones. “Tie the past with the future and build for the future.”

Friday night was a glimpse of the future Crean has promised.

Crean watched from the baseline as the Hoosiers scrimmaged in front of fans for the first time.

One of the highlights from the scrimmage was Jobe, all seven feet of him, diving to the floor twice to grab a loose ball and pass it to a teammate.
 
“I had to do it because that’s not up to me,” Jobe said after the scrimmage. “We have to do everything because we’ve got to win. We have a young team, so we have to do everything it takes to help our team.”