Column: The IU days of old

Right now, the IU Athletics Department needs more change as much as John Daly needs a fifth of Jack Daniel’s and a trip to Hooters.

You name it, and it’s likely to have changed during the last 10 years.

Whether it’s the head coach of the football and basketball programs, official logo of the University, even the official colors of the University, say hello to IU 2K you-fill in-the-year.

That’s not to say all change is bad. When you’ve witnessed the amount of change IU athletics has had during recent years, there has got to be a period of consistency and uniformity. Granted, the mess that Kelvin Sampson left the athletic department en route to his final trip up State Road 37 and the hostility left from the Bob Knight firing in 2000 have made that one of the last things on administrators’ minds, and rightfully so.

And, now, it seems IU may be on that path to consistency, especially as it relates to the various faces inside athletic department. The two coaches of the two biggest money-making sports in the athletic department, football’s Kevin Wilson and IU’s Tom Crean, each have seven years remaining on their contracts. Those two sports also underwent a major facelift with the building of Cook Hall and the North End Zone Facility.

And while I know it’s not a fan-favorite to write, I’ll take the optimist side of things and remind you that, yes, a baseball stadium is in discussion.

Late in the second half of the Illinois-IU game two weeks ago, my attention was redirected back to the older days of IU sports that I witnessed as a kid when Assembly Hall came alive like it used to.

Not long after, I read an article on IU’s 2002 Final Four team and got to thinking about where just a few of the notable faces of yesteryear have gone. Here’s a glimpse back to the early 2000s and red sweater days:

Jorge Campillo, Golf

Campillo came out on fire for his European Tour qualifying campaign posting four sub-70 rounds in his home country of Spain. Campillo shot 81 in his final round to slightly miss out on his first international tour card. Campillo finished tied for second at the NCAA Championships and won the Big Ten Championship as a junior in 2008.
Campillo competed in one PGA Tournament last year but failed to make the cut.
 
Bracey Wright, Basketball
Wright, one of the most highly touted recruits for IU basketball during the 2000s, spent a year (2005-2006) with the Minnesota Timberwolves and their Developmental League team. Wright averaged 16.2 points as a freshman at IU and increased that number to just above 18 over his final two years. Although his play often suffered on the road, Wright was named First Team All-Big Ten as a junior and finished as IU’s 15th all-time leading scorer in his three seasons.

Wright currently plays European basketball in Croatia.

Kris Dielman, Football

Dielman was “Mr. Versatile” since stepping foot onto the Bloomington campus in 1999. After starting out as a tight end, Dielman switched to defensive tackle prior to his sophomore year. The current San Diego Charger was a two-time honorable mention All-Big Ten defensive lineman and has been voted to four Pro Bowls as an alternate or starter at offensive guard.

Dielman, an IU benefactor, has a meeting room named in his honor inside The North End Zone Facility.

Kirk Haston, Basketball

Haston solidified his name in IU basketball history with his buzzer-beating 3-pointer to give defending national champion and then-No. 1 Michigan State it’s first loss of the 2000-01 season. The Charoltte Hornets selected Haston with the 16th overall pick in the 2001 NBA Draft.

Nagged by a lower back injury throughout his pro tenure, Haston averaged just 1.2 points per game in 27 contests and finished his professional career in America with the Florida Flame of the Developmental League.

After a brief stint overseas, Haston retired and currently coaches high school hoops at
his alma mater in Tennessee.

ftherber@indiana.edu