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(07/08/08 3:35pm)
When former Hoosier Aarik Wilson left IU in 2005 he had earned ten All-American honors. Just one year earlier, Wilson competed in the Olympic Trials, but did not go to Athens after he finished 14th with a jump of 52-9.5 feet.\nFour year later it’s a much different story as Wilson won the triple jump at the trials with a jump of 57-2.25 feet on Sunday night to book his spot on the 2008 Olympic team. \nKiwan Lawson, who earned All-American honors this year for the Hoosiers in the long jump was a teammate of Wilson’s and expressed his pride in what Wilson accomplished. \n“I’m so glad he won it,” Lawson said. “He’s always been a great person and a phenomenal athlete.”\nThis season has not been easy for Wilson as he has battled injuries throughout, something his coach Wayne Pate said makes this extra special. \n“We are excited,” Pate said. “Especially after the season he has had.”\nWilson competed in the finals of the triple jump in Eugene, Ore., with four stress fractures in his jumping foot. His jump also set a new Hayward Field record, which is one of the most historic tracks in the world. \nDepending on how Wilson feels he might compete in a couple more meets before the Olympics. His coach said they will assess how he feels and make a decision.
(07/08/08 1:24pm)
Junior quarterback Kellen Lewis has been reinstated to the IU football team, head coach Bill Lynch announced today.\n"Kellen has worked very hard and reached all the benchmarks we set for him," Lynch said in a press release. "He is committed to this football program and is excited to rejoin his teammates. We are happy to welcome him back."\nThe Hoosier football team begin camp for the fall season Aug. 4 and will play their first game Aug. 30 against Western Kentucky, according to the press release.
(07/06/08 11:48pm)
IU will always be a basketball school, but it’s time people start paying attention to coach Bill Lynch and the football team.\nThe basketball team and IU Director of Athletics Rick Greenspan have captured the headlines the past few months because of NCAA rules violations committed by former coach Kelvin Sampson and his staff. The fallout from these violations will be felt for years to come as the basketball team seems poised to miss the post-season and additional punishments from the NCAA may be on the horizon.\nFlying under the radar is Lynch, who is making all the right moves to position the football team to build off last season’s success. Hoosier football fans will never forget the highs and lows of the 2007 season. From Coach Hep’s death to Austin Starr’s game-winning field goal against Purdue, 2007 can be remembered as the season that put IU football back on the map. This can only be achieved if Lynch and the Hoosiers continue to be a competitive squad who make bowl appearances a regular happening in Bloomington.\nIf the past 12 months are any indication, Lynch is up to the task.\nIU has traditionally not been a destination school for blue-chip high school football players, but Lynch has shown skill on the recruiting trail. Last season as the interim coach, Lynch was able to keep many of the recruits who committed to Coach Hep and added highly sought recruits running back Darius Willis and defensive back Cortez Smith.\nThe Hoosiers had an additional coup this off-season as former Warren Central High School standout Jeremy Finch decided to transfer from the University of Florida to Bloomington. The former four-star recruit, according to recruiting service www.rivals.com, originally committed to the Hoosiers in 2007 before choosing the Gators on National Signing Day. Finch will have to sit out the season because of NCAA transfer rules, but he should give the Hoosiers a boost in the secondary when he returns to the field in 2009.\nLynch has carried this recruiting momentum into the class of 2009, his first full recruiting class as the head coach for the Hoosiers. \n“Defending the Rock” should be easier in the coming years as Lynch and his staff have put together an impressive start to the 2009 recruiting class. Eight prep players have committed to the Hoosiers, including five three-star recruits, according to Rivals. The 2009 recruiting class is stacking up to be the most talented in many years for the Hoosiers.\nRecruiting will become easier for the Hoosiers as the facilities improve and the North Endzone Project is complete. Lynch should be applauded for this increase in talent, but classes like the 2009 recruiting class need to become commonplace before the Hoosiers can find themselves consistently in the top half of the Big Ten.\nRecruiting obviously is not the only measure of success in a program, and the Hoosiers certainly have questions to answer coming into the season. What is the status of star QB Kellen Lewis? Can Lynch turn these recruits into a successful team? Will fans show up to the games?\nIn time the answers to these questions will reveal themselves. However, Hoosier fans should be confident that Lynch is the man to lead the team to future success.
(07/06/08 11:47pm)
BETHESDA, Md. – Anthony Kim saved his diamond-studded “AK” belt buckle for the final round, then turned in a gem Sunday in the AT&T National to affirm his status as a rising star.\nThree shots behind going into the final round, the 23-year-old Kim emerged from the pack with consecutive birdies around the turn at Congressional and closed with a 5-under 65 for a two-shot victory over Fredrik Jacobson.\nKim became the first American under 25 years old to win twice in one year on the PGA Tour since Tiger Woods.\nWoods, the tournament host who is recovering from season-ending knee surgery, wasn’t around to see a game that he might have recognized. Kim is an explosive talent who wasn’t getting much out of his game until he dedicated himself more to practice than partying.\nHe eliminated the mistakes on a soft, cloudy morning at Congressional and fired at flags when it made sense. Kim stretched his lead to four shots on the back nine before Jacobson made a charge that came too late.\nKim, who won earlier this year at the Wachovia Championship, finished at 12-under 268 and earned $1.08 million, moving him to No. 6 in the Ryder Cup standings and closer to the top 10 in the world rankings.\nThat his second victory came at Woods’ event held special meaning for Kim, who idolized the world’s No. 1 player as a junior golfer.\n“I would watch everything he did, every move he made, when I was growing up,” Kim said. “So to win his tournament is a true honor. I’m very excited.”\nJacobson, taken out of the mix early with a double bogey, ran off four straight birdies until he ran into trouble off the tee and in the bunker on the 18th hole, scrambling for a par and a 65.\nThe consolation prize was a trip to the British Open as the highest finisher among the top five at the AT&T National who was not already eligible. U.S. Open runner-up Rocco Mediate also secured a spot at Royal Birkdale from a special money list.\nTommy Armour III closed with a 69 and was among six players who tied for third at 271. Armour finished with six straight pars, when one birdie would have earned him a spot in the British Open over Mediate.\nKim has a certain swagger about him and still loves to style, promising all week to break out another of his garish belt buckles, suggesting that he might wait until he got into the final group. But there was no time to wait.\n“Obviously, it’s my new lucky belt buckle,” Kim said.\nHis game is more than just bling.\nWoods first took notice of Kim last year during a practice round at the PGA Championship. During a delay on the sixth tee, he walked over and asked, “What do you think of Anthony Kim?” He clearly was aware the 23-year-old had some ability.\nDean Wilson, whose 67 put him in the group tied for third, played with Kim in the final round and saw a bright future.\n“Awesome,” Wilson said. “He has all the tools. Very confident, very aggressive the way he plays. He’s always shooting at the pins, and it’s pretty good.”
(07/06/08 11:42pm)
IU Director of Athletics Rick Greenspan announced June 26 that he would resign at the end of the calendar year. Though Greenspan accomplished several goals as athletic director, which include improving athletic facilities and eliminating much of IU Athletics’ debt, his tenure has been overshadowed by the hiring of and subsequent NCAA violations committed by former men’s basketball coach Kelvin Sampson. With the immediate future of the basketball program in doubt, who will take over for Greenspan? Here are four possible candidates.
(07/06/08 11:41pm)
As if a second place finish at the NCAA Championships and a final round appearance at the British Amateur Championships weren’t enough, senior Jorge Campillo added another trophy to his mantel June 27 when he helped lead Team Europe to a Palmer Cup victory over the United States in Glasgow, Scotland.\nA native of Caceres, Spain, Campillo teamed with Tim Sluiter to win a four-ball match against Oklahoma State freshman Rickie Fowler and Florida senior Billy Horschel 4 and 2. Later that afternoon, Campillo faced off against UCLA Bruin senior and 2008 NCAA Champion Kevin Chappell, where he was defeated 4 and 3.\nThe United States led after the first day of competition 6.5-5.5. As day two began, the morning foursomes proved to be a good indication of the Palmer Cup’s final outcome.\nCampillo and Sluiter once again teamed up to play a best-ball format and defeat a team of Chappell and Fowler 3 and 2. The rest of Team Europe followed suit, sweeping the Team USA in the rest of the day two foursomes and in doing so took a commanding 9.5-6.5 lead going into the afternoon singles matches.\nCampillo was later matched up in a singles match against Fowler. Each player won five holes and halved the other eight in an up and down match that ended in a tie. Eventually, Team Europe took care of business, finishing up the afternoon singles 4.5-3.5 and, in turn, won the competition 14-10.\nThe Palmer Cup is like a college Ryder Cup, where team golf is emphasized to win the tournament. One point is awarded to the winner of each matchup. If a match ends in a tie, each player is awarded half of a point. At the end of the tournament, points are tallied up and the team with the most points is awarded the title.
(07/06/08 8:26pm)
WIMBLEDON, England -
(07/04/08 3:08pm)
FALLON, Nev. — Aarik Wilson, a 10-time all-American in track at Indiana, is on the verge of achieving his lifelong dream.\nWilson will attempt to qualify for the Summer Olympics in Beijing when he competes this weekend in the U.S. Olympic trials at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.\nWilson, who graduated from Nevada's Churchill County High School in 2001 and Indiana in 2005, has spent the last four years trying to improve on his failed attempt to make the Olympics in 2004.\nHe finished 14th at the Olympic Trials with a jump of 16.09 meters (52 feet, 9.5 inches) but has been unstoppable since.\n"Back in 2004 I didn't realize how nervous I was until I actually got a chance to sit back and look at film," Wilson told the Lahontan Valley News in a recent interview.\n"The mental part was missing. It's 80 percent mental, 20 percent physical, if not more."\nWilson's mother, Kirsten, said he's in a better position to qualify this time around.\n"He has had so much experience internationally now and has been able to learn and compete under pressure," she said. "His experience is going to make all the difference from the last trials. It was heartbreaking. I don't see that happening this time. He knows what to do."\nWilson credits his longtime High School track and football coach Paul Orong for getting him started in the sport.\n"He got my whole love for the sport, really," Wilson said. "I've been really devoting myself to track ever since I got into it. The connection I've had with my coaches is more comfortable than anything else."\nOrong, who himself participated in the 1984 Olympic Trials at the Los Angeles Coliseum where he placed 13th in the long jump, first saw Wilson during football and persuaded him to do track instead of baseball.\n"When I first met him, and he wanted to play baseball, I told him don't play baseball, you're coming out for track," Orong said. "You never know when you first get somebody and the special talent they have. With him I knew early. I call it scary talent where the sky's the limit. He's the biggest competitor you'll ever get."\nAfter a couple years of training, Wilson reached the highest plateau in high school track and field. He went to state as a freshman and then won the triple jump title as a sophomore in Las Vegas.\nHe reached a personal best in the triple jump last year when he leaped 17.58 meters (57-8.25) as he won both national championships at the AT&T USA Indoor and Outdoor meets. He had two other marks that gave him the best three in the triple jump by an American in 2007 and he finished the season with a No. 4 world ranking.\n"The United States, by far, is the toughest to make it to the world championships or an Olympic team," he said. "I feel great and real confident. I honestly believe I'm the best jumper in the country and I'm ready to prove it."\nWilson said Orong's advice for the trials is "go and relax."\n"The Olympics are the equivalent of the Super Bowl times a thousand," the Fallon track and field co-head coach told Wilson. "You take the trials and the top three makes it, anything can happen. You have to relax and be you. In track venues, it doesn't get bigger than this. This is the equivalent to a World Cup when you have that many spectators and that many countries. I told him to relax and be him."\nMost of Wilson's family will attend this weekend's trials, and some already have purchased their tickets to Beijing.\n"We're all planning on that. I told them actually last year to plan on going," Wilson said. "I don't take anything for granted but at the same time, I put in the training and the work and that's what I believe will happen."\nOrong said the whole community is excited about Wilson's chance to be the first person from Fallon to compete in the Olympics.\n"You take a kid from here who's going to be on the biggest stage. We made shirts that say 'Why not here? Why not Fallon?' He has a chance of performing on the biggest stage in the world. He's representing everybody"
(07/03/08 1:35am)
Ah, the sweet smell of victory. \nI’d like to be humble here, but well, I don’t feel like it. Yes, for the record, I picked Spain – perennial international underachievers – to win the European Championships this year. \nAnd my boy Fernando Torres scored the deciding goal. Wonderful, to say the least. \nThis caps off a rather excellent year for Torres, who scored 24 Premiership goals – the most by a foreign player in their first season in England – and 33 overall in his first campaign for (my beloved) Liverpool. But back to Spain. \nLong considered an underwhelming powerhouse of international soccer, Spain has often been a victim of its own skill – a team with so much logjam in their depth chart that they could never put the right pieces in the right places to keep from tripping over their own proverbial feet. Until 2008. \n69-year-old Luis Aragones finally punched just the right buttons, giving Andres Iniesta and Xavi the allowance to move and create in midfield. He let David Silva do his thing on the wings, while the ageless – and requisite ex-Brazilian – Marcos Senna shut down anything trying to break through. \nCesc Fabregas and Xabi Alonso were brilliant substitutes in midfield, and really the player of the tournament award might as well have gone to all six of the men listed above. \nStill, the ever-struggling Spanish strikeforce did a wonderful job themselves, netting six goals between them for the tournament. Torres and David Villa finally broke through on the international stage because they finally had each other instead of operating one-for-the-other, alone up top. No, this tournament marked a strategic change for Aragones, putting the two prolific club strikers at the top together to provide each other a link to a much more creative and successful midfield. \nSay what you will about an overrated defense, but Sergio Ramos and Carlos Puyol looked nothing but brilliant for much of the tournament. Puyol, the tough and seasoned international captain, anchored a defense that many times lived at the edge of the sword but still looked nearly impregnable. \nRamos was still a better sight, bombing down the wings. He was a far better offensive player than some of his compatriots at times during the tournament. \nAnd goalkeeper Iker Casillas, long considered perhaps second- or third-best in the world, finally assumed the mantle of tops at his position with a flourish, helping to best Gigi Buffon of Italy with a fine performance that resulted in a penalty-shootout win against the world champion Azzuri. \nBasically, Spain were the best team of the tournament, start to finish. Unlike the 2008 New England Patriots, there would be no failure, no stumbling at the final obstacle to a lesser foe. The Spanish had taken themselves to the top of the footballing world, and they would not come back down – just named No. 1 in the world Wednesday. \nJust as when Greece – boring but sharply effective – won the Euros in 2004, the best, most deserving squad took away the hardware. So, when the whistle blew and Spain defeated lucky-just-to-be-there Germany, the right team had won Euro 2008.\nViva la Espana.
(07/03/08 1:34am)
Just before stepping on the treadmill a few days ago, I opened my DVD holder to select a movie appropriate for a hard run. As I flipped through my selection of chick flicks and ‘80s movies, I came across an old favorite, one that my friends and I watched countless times during our senior year of high school: “Remember the Titans.”\nI love everything about “Remember the Titans.” I love the actors, the perfect ‘60s soundtrack, the dialogue, and of course the Cinderella ending. I love it when Julius and Gerry become best friends, I love it when Cheryl and Coach Boone – played by the ever-versatile Denzel Washington – talk football, and I especially love it when a crowd of football players start singing “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough.”\nCritics have often lambasted the film as too sentimental, so sugary as to make your teeth rot after one showing. But just as often as people have criticized the film, I have stood up for the movie, for its morals and for its message. What better way to call attention to human-rights issues than to watch a cinematic work of art detailing the struggle for integration? What better way to remind sports critics that athletics are sometimes the only way to foster change? Sports are one of the few things that can bring strangers and enemies together through a common bond. Once you start sharing your love of the game with someone, all racial, religious, and ethnic differences vanish. It’s player to player, athlete to athlete, competitor to competitor. \nOften today’s sports headlines read of various transgressions, instead of astounding achievements. Some of the top stories from the past year include Michael Vick’s dog-fighting ring, Roger Clemens’ steroids, and Tim Donaghy’s betting on the NBA. These stories not only infiltrated the sports pages and blogs, but the minds of those who say sports aren’t worth watching anymore, that they’re just another way for kids to look up to spoiled, lazy, criminal athletes. \n“Remember the Titans” – based on a true story – doesn’t make the viewer forget the present, but it honors the past. It commemorates a moment when sports changed a group of people and a community for the better. Recently sports have become a scandal-ridden section of the newspaper, instead of a pastime used to convey life lessons to children. \nWatching coaches Yoast and Boone create a championship-winning and fully integrated team only gives me hope that baseball will survive the steroid scandals, the NFL will find new heroes to follow, and the NBA will prove past champions won deservingly. That’s the real message of “Remember the Titans” and most sports movies: hope. \nHope in a goal or belief – no matter how lofty or unrealistic – can be the only thing to power you through adversity. It’s the love of the game, the hope that things will turn out ok, that most players are good, that can power the average fan through the hard times.
(07/02/08 2:01pm)
Former IU head football coach John Pont died Tuesday at his home in Oxford, Ohio.\nPont coached the Hoosiers from 1965-72 and is most known for leading IU to it's only Rose Bowl appearnace in 1968.\nPont received NCAA coach of the year honors in 1967, when he led the Hoosiers to a 9-1 record before losing in Pasadena to a USC Trojan team with star running back O.J. Simpson.\nPont was 80 years old.
(06/30/08 4:34pm)
With the men’s basketball program officially hitting rock bottom Thursday, Rick Greenspan begrudgingly did the only thing he could do: resign.\nGreenspan had no more outs when the NCAA stabbed IU with its “failure to monitor” allegation last week. Under his watch, IU’s prized possession, its basketball team, had now become its biggest black eye.\nGreenspan signed his resignation the day he made his signature hire of Kelvin Sampson. All of the positive things he has done for IU athletics come off as minute details when you look at the condition of the basketball program. Although Greenspan had plenty of help in leading the basketball team to purgatory – the coaching staff and 90 percent of last year’s team to name a few – there was no one more responsible than IU’s soon-to-be former director of athletics. \nBut in Greenspan’s defense, no athletic director in recent memory tried to give Hoosier fans what they wanted as much as he did: winning teams with an IU tradition.\nHis decision-making leaves something to be desired, but the effort was there.\nThe dude cared. And he realizes that IU can’t turn things around with him sitting on the throne. Not with this many people calling for his job. Not with the basketball program about to become Myles Brand and the NCAA’s new chew toy.\nGreenspan turned the football program around with the brilliant hiring of Terry Hoeppner. Hoeppner then did something akin to landing on the Sun: He made basketball fans care about their football team. And when Coach Hep passed, Greenspan made the right decision in backing Bill Lynch, which led to the Hoosiers miraculously making it to their first bowl game in 14 years. \nHe tried as hard as he could to restore the basketball team to its glory days. He took a chance in hiring a coach with a checkered past but a reputation as a winner. When it turned out to be the worst hire in the program’s history, Greenspan tried again to respond with Hoosier fans in mind.\nSince the day Mike Davis’s Hoosiers lost their first game, IU fans have campaigned and voiced their desire to see an “Indiana guy” coaching the team.\nWhich is why Greenspan promoted Dan Dakich, a former Hoosier player but an assistant who had only been on the team’s bench for a few months, to the interim position instead of Ray McCallum, the coaching staff’s No. 2 man.\nThe players ultimately revolted against Dakich, and the team tanked. And then it became apparent that if you thought IU’s play on the floor was bad, you hadn’t heard about what they had been doing off of it.\nSo Greenspan tried his hardest to put Humpty Dumpty back together again one more time. He let Dakich kick Armon Bassett and Jamarcus Ellis off the team, even though they were IU’s top two returning players and Dakich was on occupational death row. He made a great hire in Tom Crean, and then allowed his new head coach to clean house.\nGreenspan tried. He tried to save IU basketball from the mistake that was Sampson, but it just wasn’t enough. His fate was sealed the day he hired Kelvin – a known cheater who (surprise!) cheated again and led the Hoosiers to program-threatening allegations. \nWhen it came to men’s basketball, Greenspan had all of the wrong moves and all of the right intentions. Many of IU’s athletic programs have thrived with Greenspan in office, but with the men’s basketball program on life support, Greenspan needed to pull the plug on his own tenure.\nGreenspan has announced that he’ll stick around until 2009, eliminating the possibility of an interim candidate. As for IU, they’ll do the only thing they can do: try again.
(06/30/08 12:28am)
For anyone uninformed, unprepared or generally living in a hole the last few days, Rick Greenspan is gone. That news ought to elicit plenty of “finallys” and “it’s about times” and even a “serves him right” or two. \nAside from Kelvin Sampson, Greenspan was the most controversial figure in IU athletics this side of Bob Knight, and his departure comes as no surprise since it is coupled with a sixth NCAA violation for “failure to monitor” the basketball program.\nWhile we won’t get into a debate about the fairness of that last bit of news from the NCAA, the fact that Greenspan is gone will shed no tears here. It’s hard to feel sorry for a man who just got paid $400,000 to resign from a job that I’m sure he coveted as one of the best in the nation.\nI never met Greenspan personally; I only spoke to him a couple of times on the phone. As a member of the press, I seemed at odds with him more times than not, but such is the case between the media and any sports team. \nTo be fair, do not simply swear off the man for the mess he leaves behind. Greenspan’s track record of hiring coaches was superb. Many of the coaches he brought into the fold in Bloomington have found continued success and improvement in their respective sports. \nMore kudos should go to the man for the once and future facilities upgrades he’s brought in his four years at IU (don’t underestimate the new baseball field, it’s my pick to click). \nBut to this reporter, Greenspan will often be remembered more for what he was than for what he wasn’t. \nHe wasn’t accessible, he wasn’t outgoing with his most consistent and passionate fanbase – students – and there was always a feeling that he cared more for the pocketbook of his department than anything else. \nGreenspan certainly was a man who did things his way. He never faltered in the face of criticism of his hiring and firing practices, and he plowed through the Kelvin Sampson landfill as strongly as anyone ever could have.\nBut in the end, Greenspan will be remembered simply as the man who presided over Kelvin Sampson, the Enron-like CEO at the downfall of IU athletics.\nIs that a fair designation? Probably not. But that’s an inevitability Greenspan must deal with.\nThere is an oft-used phrase that suggests history will remember us not for who we are, but for what we do.\nNot quite.\nHistory will remember us for what those of us writing history will remember us doing. And those who write the history of Greenspan’s tenure at the helm of the athletics department will remember him for a few phone bills and a late-night press conference, simple as that.\nPerhaps it is unfair to judge four arguably solid years of work on a few tense and stressful months, but that’s the way it will be. Greenspan departs at the end of the year, but his legacy was written in stone four months ago.\nThe best thing he can do now is clean up as much mess as possible before cleaning out his own office. There’s plenty of work to go around.
(06/30/08 12:20am)
With the men’s basketball program officially hitting rock bottom Thursday, Rick Greenspan begrudgingly did the only thing he could do: resign.\nGreenspan had no more outs when the NCAA stabbed IU with its “failure to monitor” allegation last week. Under his watch, IU’s prized possession, its basketball team, had now become its biggest black eye.\nGreenspan signed his resignation the day he made his signature hire of Kelvin Sampson. All of the positive things he has done for IU athletics come off as minute details when you look at the condition of the basketball program. Although Greenspan had plenty of help in leading the basketball team to purgatory – the coaching staff and 90 percent of last year’s team to name a few – there was no one more responsible than IU’s soon-to-be former director of athletics. \nBut in Greenspan’s defense, no athletic director in recent memory tried to give Hoosier fans what they wanted as much as he did: winning teams with an IU tradition.\nHis decision-making leaves something to be desired, but the effort was there.\nThe dude cared. And he realizes that IU can’t turn things around with him sitting on the throne. Not with this many people calling for his job. Not with the basketball program about to become Myles Brand and the NCAA’s new chew toy.\nGreenspan turned the football program around with the brilliant hiring of Terry Hoeppner. Hoeppner then did something akin to landing on the Sun: He made basketball fans care about their football team. And when Coach Hep passed, Greenspan made the right decision in backing Bill Lynch, which led to the Hoosiers miraculously making it to their first bowl game in 14 years. \nHe tried as hard as he could to restore the basketball team to its glory days. He took a chance in hiring a coach with a checkered past but a reputation as a winner. When it turned out to be the worst hire in the program’s history, Greenspan tried again to respond with Hoosier fans in mind.\nSince the day Mike Davis’s Hoosiers lost their first game, IU fans have campaigned and voiced their desire to see an “Indiana guy” coaching the team.\nWhich is why Greenspan promoted Dan Dakich, a former Hoosier player but an assistant who had only been on the team’s bench for a few months, to the interim position instead of Ray McCallum, the coaching staff’s No. 2 man.\nThe players ultimately revolted against Dakich, and the team tanked. And then it became apparent that if you thought IU’s play on the floor was bad, you hadn’t heard about what they had been doing off of it.\nSo Greenspan tried his hardest to put Humpty Dumpty back together again one more time. He let Dakich kick Armon Bassett and Jamarcus Ellis off the team, even though they were IU’s top two returning players and Dakich was on occupational death row. He made a great hire in Tom Crean, and then allowed his new head coach to clean house.\nGreenspan tried. He tried to save IU basketball from the mistake that was Sampson, but it just wasn’t enough. His fate was sealed the day he hired Kelvin – a known cheater who (surprise!) cheated again and led the Hoosiers to program-threatening allegations. \nWhen it came to men’s basketball, Greenspan had all of the wrong moves and all of the right intentions. Many of IU’s athletic programs have thrived with Greenspan in office, but with the men’s basketball program on life support, Greenspan needed to pull the plug on his own tenure.\nGreenspan has announced that he’ll stick around until 2009, eliminating the possibility of an interim candidate. As for IU, they’ll do the only thing they can do: try again.
(06/27/08 2:54pm)
We’d been hearing rumors - quick-developing ones at that - that said Rick Greenspan was resigning. They are rumors no more.
(06/26/08 1:42am)
It has arrived. Draft day. Possibly one of the biggest days in the NBA calendar, even more so if your team is the Clippers, Grizzlies or (God forbid) the Knicks.\nThis year’s draft will be deep, mostly fattened with players who if not for a certain NBA commissioner, would have already collected NBA paychecks.\nEver since David Stern announced that the NBA would no longer draft straight-out-of-high-school players, colleges have been flooded with talented recruits, the NCAA showered with buckets of money and TV stations bombarded with ratings boosts.\nBut despite millions of individuals profiting from the ban, the players themselves are not necessarily better off. Take this year’s draft, for example. Stars like Derrick Rose, Michael Beasley, Kevin Love and O.J. Mayo are projected to go in the top 10 of the draft, but the question of whether or not their one-year stint did them or the university any good is still unanswered.\nThese players, for the most part, are only biding their time waiting until the year is up before they can fulfill their real dream – playing in the NBA.\nWhat purpose does it serve the college for the player to spend one year with them? What good is it for the unfortunate professors who have to worry about a player potentially being ineligible when they cut class? And can society blame these athletes for ditching when their only goal in life is being momentarily hindered by a guy old enough to be their grandfather?\nI’m sure David Stern had good intentions when he and the rest of the NBA enacted that rule. Many high-schoolers entered the NBA and faltered, floating away to the sea of the CBA or Europe. And while Stern most likely wanted to prevent that outcome, he instead forced colleges to accept so-called student-athletes that have no interest in anything except improving their mock-draft rating.\nA recent New York Times article described a groundbreaking possible solution to the problem of high-school seniors committing to a college and leaving after one year. Brandon Jennings – a senior at Oak Hill Academy in Virginia – originally signed a letter of intent with Arizona, but after the NCAA forced him to retake the SAT for the third time, he searched for another way to spend his year.\nInstead of wasting a scholarship to a basketball powerhouse, Jennings could spend his year in Europe, playing with seasoned professionals, living alone and maturing light years ahead of his college-bound peers.\nJennings’ possible decision offers the perfect solution to other high school seniors debating the merits of college. If Stern truly does want to help future NBA players, then he should only support Jennings. Going to college for a year helps everyone involved except the player and his family. Going away helps the player.\nAs Jennings told the Times, if the idea becomes popular, “It’ll be a good thing for the kids and a bad thing for the college coaches.” \nOnly time will tell if his logic proves correct, but one thing’s for certain. NCAA’s stronghold on freshmen may be coming to an end.
(06/26/08 1:41am)
Let me begin by asking that you not ridicule me for not knowing Eric Gordon’s wingspan (6-feet-9) or exact height and weight (6-foot-3, 215 pounds). Please give me leeway to continue without offering an opinion on who will take the young man (Milwaukee).\nNo, I am here because I have been tasked with picking out a current NBA player who bears the most similarity to Indianapolis’ latest favored son, and giving you all reasons why I’m right, basically.\nWell, I’ll be honest with you – I’m copping out. I’ve given this thought off and on at my leisure a few times since the North Central product began gracing soft, white nets with basketballs bearing an NCAA logo on their face, and I honestly just don’t know.\nI see Gordon’s ability to light up opposing defenses from a long way past the 3-point line and my eyes detect shades of Baron Davis. They only get stronger when I see Gordon hit the droughts that Davis has struggled with in times past.\nYet I can’t imagine Gordon as a true combo guard, and that’s where I buy into the popular rhetoric that suggests Gordon is much like a gentleman by the same surname. Bulls fans know him as Ben.\nAs much as I’d like to think Eric Gordon can learn to pass the ball, I can’t imagine him being able to break himself of the urge to use his immense offensive talents to score rather than facilitate scoring. I’d also like to go on record as being the first to call any coach who might force E.J. to do otherwise incredibly stupid.\nBut alas, Indiana Gordon is a far more forceful – and far less selfish – offensive player than his Chicago counterpart. Gordon’s ability to force his way to the basket off the dribble either way sets him apart. \nIn that aspect of his game, I see Gordon comparing most favorably to a poor man’s Lebron James – the obvious difference being James has a much higher rate of conversion once he reaches the hoop. Gordon shoots free throws just fine though, so that will cover him. \nQuick note: STOP READING, and whatever you do, resist the urge to criticize me for the above passage. Please do not take these last words to mean that I think Eric Gordon is the next Lebron James, I said no such thing. I simply said Gordon’s ability to beat a man off the dribble and force his way into the lane reminded me of King James. The comparisons stop there. \nThere are obviously severe weaknesses in Gordon’s game, not the least of which is his propensity for turning the ball over. I’m not so worried about his ability to travel with a high rate of footsteps. A good friend of mine long ago pointed out that NBA officials are as interested in calling a travel as first-graders are in the Biography Channel.\nHowever, that Kobe Bryant-esque ability to turn a foxtrot into the L.A. two-step must be earned through respect for one’s ability, which comes through success. Translation: Gordon will need to play by the rules before he gets good enough to earn those kinds of calls.\nThere are also several other weaknesses to Gordon’s ball-handling ability that will plague him until he tweaks his mechanics enough to where he can confidently move both ways with the ball without letting it become too exposed to defenders. It won’t take Bruce Bowen to eat him alive in a league that – despite players’ preference for taking a play or two off – will still hit Gordon with better defense than the Big Ten ever could. \nI don’t count Eric Gordon out, oh no. I think he’ll be a fine player, if not an undersized guard. To make one more comparison, he’ll be Jason Terry with more size and less spunk.\nYes, I think our former No. 23 will find plenty of success at the NBA level. I think it will just take him a little while to grow – he’s only 19, as someone named Kelvin reminded us – and he has plenty of time to polish the edges down.\nUntil then, consider him the next King Benron James-Terry. Hey, Benjarvis Green-Ellis did it; I can too.
(06/26/08 1:40am)
In an IU season marked by forgettable personalities, D.J. White stood out as a man.\nHe made the calculated decision to return for his senior season, hoping a promising recruiting class led by Eric Gordon would make the Hoosiers contenders. With questions surrounding his health and ability, White hoped to restore the old image from his McDonald’s All-American days and re-establish himself as an NBA Lottery pick. \nDefenses came after him every night, but the man amongst boys (his teammates) dominated the boards and the opposition nightly. Despite the distractions surrounding the program, IU’s “main attraction” never let up.\nThere were no three-game suspensions for No. 3. No nights taken off for Tuscaloosa’s finest. During the last three games of the season, when the entire basketball team essentially quit on interim coach Dan Dakich, White busted his you-know-what, averaging 21.7 points and 11.3 rebounds per game.\nBut odds are the Big Ten Player of the Year will not be selected in the first round of this Thursday’s NBA Draft. Unfortunately for White, he is a known commodity, which is as sexy to NBA general managers as Illinois coach Bruce Weber is to the opposite sex.\nWhite is a good scorer (17.4 ppg) and a tenacious rebounder (10.3 rpg) in an undersized body. Although 6-foot-9, 251 pounds equates to Hulk-status in the Big Ten, it is rarely viewed as ideal by NBA scouts and other powers-that-be.\nNo, White doesn’t have the high ceiling of LSU’s Anthony Randolph or the athleticism of Texas A & M’s DeAndre Jordan. He doesn’t have the lure of the Lopez twins or the bag of tricks that UCLA’s Kevin Love owns.\nWhat White has is production. His wingspan and ability to get up quickly make up for the literal inch or two too short he is of making Jay Bilas salivate. He’s a better shooter than most big men his size and, most importantly, he cares. He’s loyal. He’s the type of player you can root for. And given the right opportunity, he could be a solid rotation player in the NBA.\nHe’s not going to be a star, but he’s someone who can contribute. \nIn 2006, a player in the mold of White made a similar transition into the NBA. Despite leading the NCAA in rebounding three straight seasons, Louisiana Tech’s Paul Millsap didn’t receive much consideration on draft day. At 6-foot-8 258 pounds, Millsap was seen as too short to translate to the next level. Despite averaging 19.6 points and 13.3 rebounds per game his junior season, Millsap wasn’t selected until the second round when the Utah Jazz stole him with the 47th overall pick.\nYou see, Millsap didn’t have the high ceiling of Bradley’s Patrick O’Bryant (ninth overall) or the athleticism of Senegal’s Saer Sene (10th). Heck, he didn’t have the lure of Connecticut’s Josh Boone (23rd), let alone the low-post moves of the United Kingdom’s Joel Freeland (30th) ... wait, why did they take Joel Freeland?\nDo you see where I’m going with this?\nWhile most of the above-mentioned players are busts, awful or still overseas (most likely forever), Millsap has emerged as one of the top bench players in the league. In his first two seasons with the Jazz, Millsap appeared in every single game while averaging 7.4 points and 5.4 rebounds in under 20 minutes a night. Looking back on the 2006 Draft, Millsap would easily be a top-10 pick.\nWhite and Millsap aren’t exactly tomato and tomato (doesn’t really work in print, does it?), Millsap is a slightly better rebounder and is more athletic, while White has more shooting range and is able to play with his face to the basket. But the two have similarities that shouldn’t be overlooked.\nEspecially if you happen to have a first-round pick Thursday.
(06/23/08 2:35pm)
Three Hoosiers have earned All-American honors for a season that came to a stop after a Cinderella run in the Big Ten Tournament.\nCatcher Josh Phegley led IU and the Big Ten this past season in nearly every offensive category. He also leads the Hoosiers in number of All-American nods at three.\nThe former Mr. Indiana Baseball was given Second Team All-American status by College Baseball News, the American Baseball Coaches Association and the National College Baseball Writers \nof America.\nPhegley finished his sophomore season leading the conference in average (.438), hits (98), total bases (167), sacrifice flies (9), OBP (.507) and RBI (80), and finished second in runs (69) and slugging percentage (.746).\nThe Terre Haute native is currently trying out for the USA Baseball National Team. The team is comprised of the nation’s top collegiate players. It is not the team which will be sent to Beijing for the Olympics as that is a professional team.\nRather, the USA national team plays in an international collegiate tournament, the IV FISU World Collegiate Baseball Championship. \nFirst baseman Jerrud Sabourin was one spot behind Phegley on IU in most offensive categories, and the transfer from Arizona was named Second Team Freshman All-American by the NCBA.\nThe former Wildcat started 59 games as a Hoosier and tallied a .383 batting average with 88 hits and 53 RBIs.\nStaff ace Matt Bashore joined Phegley in earning an All-Region nod from the ABCA. Phegley was First Team catcher as his battery mate was Second Team.
(06/23/08 2:02am)
It’s almost all gone. \nWith exception to the red IU logo at mid-field, every inch of AstroPlay turf on which the Cream and Crimson were last seen hoisting the Old Oaken Bucket has been removed from the field at Memorial Stadium in the wake of flood damage two weeks ago.\nAlthough no report has surfaced about when new turf will be installed, IU began the process early Thursday to remove the turf.\nIU Director of Athletics Rick Greenspan had estimated that the total cost to replace the field might be up to $1 million after a two-foot deep, 15-foot wide sink hole developed in the south endzone after the flash flooding. Specific information regarding to the reconstruction of the field will be available early this week, Director of Media Relations J.D. Campbell said.\nDumpsters, BackHoe-loaders and large pieces of rolled turf littered Memorial Stadium at the time of the turf removal mid-day Thursday.\nThe AstroPlay turf field at Memorial Stadium is made of polyethylene and was installed in 2003 by SRI Sports of Austin, Texas. The installation cost IU around $450,000.\n“We’re anticipating the best in terms of having the field ready for everything in the future,” Director of Media Relations J.D. Campbell said last week, “Our expectation is we’ll be able to move forward the best we can.”