I’ve got two words for you, Kelvin Sampson: Beat Purdue.

Give us one last night to root for you, even if it makes us all a bit hypocritical. Give us another night like Saturday, a night where one long standing media member told me it was the loudest he’s ever heard Assembly Hall. And most importantly, leave us with a chance to control our own destiny in the race for the Big Ten title.

When PostmanE, PostmanR and myself started Inside the Hall back in June, we did so not only out of our love of the Indiana basketball program and its tradition, but also because of our excitement of where the program was heading.

IU was finally past the debacle known as Mike Davis and despite your problems at Oklahoma, last season gave us hope that you were the man for the job. You took an average team and got them to play inspired, hard-nosed basketball. They pushed UCLA to the limit in the NCAA Tournament and by most accounts, it was the first in line of many successful seasons.

The excitement for this season started minutes after the last one ended with thoughts of Eric Gordon arriving in Bloomington. For me, that excitement intensified in August at New Albany High School when I got a look at the recruiting haul you were bringing to town. All was well in Hoosierland and thoughts of a trip to San Antonio danced in my head.

Continue reading this post »

Just as he did four months ago when IU’s self-reported violations came to light, Kelvin Sampson dodged questions about his latest violations this evening in the post-game press conference. Doug Wilson of the Hoosier Scoop has the details:

Sampson has read a short statement saying he’s aware of the NCAA statement of allegations and will make no further comment after tonight about them until after the NCAA’s process is complete.

Sampson said he never intentionally misled the NCAA investigators and he looks forward to working through the NCAA process.

He then refused to answer several questions about the allegation, saying he’ll only answer questions about tonight’s game.

Here’s one related question he did answer. He was asked what he thought about the reaction of fans tonight and said he didn’t notice it.

First thing is first: I love — well actually, love isn’t the right word, more like “am mildly annoyed” — that Sampson NEVER NOTICES THE CROWD. He’s never noticed the crowd at Illinois. And apparently, he’s never noticed the crowd at home either. (Except for at Midnight Madness when they chant “Kel-vin Samp-son;” he notices the crowd then. I believe this is called selective hearing.)

Second thing is second: I recommend you read E’s post I linked up top from October because it lays out why Sampson is obligated to answer this questions far better than I can. A small sampling: “Sorry Kelvin, but your responsibility is to run a program whose fans, whether rightfully or wrongfully, have very high-minded moral standards for their competitive athletes, and your responsibility is to run a program that complies with standard and enforced NCAA sanctions. When you fail to do that, your new responsibilities include being open and candid with the public whose trust you essentially betrayed — you are publicly paid, after all — about your massive screw up.”

Continue reading this post »

Let’s be honest with each other: Kelvin Sampson needs to go. There’s really no reason to justify keeping him. Sampson was handed a golden ticket and he pretty much threw it away in all of our faces. He had plenty of chances. He said he was starting with a clean slate when he accepted the job. The reality is, the blatant disregard for the rules never subsided. Perhaps he felt he wouldn’t get caught or maybe he felt he was above the rules. But it really doesn’t matter. I don’t see any scenarios that result in him coaching Indiana for much longer.

The reality is, this situation is about to get very ugly in a hurry. There’s a game tonight at Assembly Hall and to my knowledge, there’s no press conference scheduled for this afternoon. And my guess is that in usual Sampson fashion, he won’t field questions regarding the NCAA allegations. Talk about a PR nightmare.

And Saturday, the bright lights will only intensify when ESPN rolls into town for Game Day. Down the road, can you imagine the circus heading towards the NCAA Tournament if Sampson is still at the helm?

So my question to you, my fellow Hoosier fans: What’s the best way to move forward? Do you force a resignation immediately? Do you fire him immediately? Do you wait a couple of weeks? Or do you ride it out until the end of the season and take all of the heat? Or is there another option out there you feel is better?