I grew up in NYC and both parents went to St. John's Law School so we rooted for SJU. I became an IU basketball fan when I became an IU Football fan. Dinardo (who was close with my dad and uncle) hired my HS football coach as the director of football operations so we were instantly IU football fans. Came out to IU for my first IUBB game in 03 against UNCG the night before the 03 Bucket Game.
I went to IU 2005-2009, so they're my team too.
What was that? Brooklyn Poly or something like that? Dino, Chris, Lance...who else did we get from there? Did Jahkeen Gilmore come from there? That dude was quite a character.I grew up in NYC and both parents went to St. John's Law School so we rooted for SJU. I became an IU basketball fan when I became an IU Football fan. Dinardo (who was close with my dad and uncle) hired my HS football coach as the director of football operations so we were instantly IU football fans. Came out to IU for my first IUBB game in 03 against UNCG the night before the 03 Bucket Game.
I went to IU 2005-2009, so they're my team too.
@gros-louis Poly Prep in Brooklyn. Jah, John Pannozzo and now we have two freshmen baseball players from there.
I guess because of RMK. I was a fan before Knight but his success hooked me for life. And I still feel we will return to our blue blood status on the court . I couldn't be anything but an IU fan if I wanted to.
Well, hopefully those baseball players have a new coach to play for next year.@gros-louis Poly Prep in Brooklyn. Jah, John Pannozzo and now we have two freshmen baseball players from there.
I would argue that the IU football natty is one of not the greatest seasons ever in any IU sport save for the 76 Hoosiers and the perfect season.
Everything revolves around football now. Every deal, realignment, every cash influx is due to football. Doesn’t mean that you can’t have a good basketball program. Plenty of schools emphasize football and do just fine in basketball (Michigan, Alabama, Tennessee). I think it’s great being a football school. Basketball shouldn’t be this hard. If we get some recruits and particularly portal guys, we can shore things up.
@big-red-cb-v-2-0 This off topic I guess but why I hope IU might pick up D-I hockey as an official sport. If the football money keeps coming in like Michigan, OSU, it would be feasible maybe with a "naming rights" sponsor. IU has loads of students from the East Coast, Chicago, etc. that love hockey. Build a new modern dual-purpose basketball/ice areana, make a nice memorial plaza to Bob Knight and Assembly Hall on the old site and get it done. The city rink blew up last month so now we probably won't even have the club teams next year unless they go to Columbus or Indy to play.
I've supported IU basketball my entire life.
Unfortunately its in my blood. Been a painful 24 years, but was much better for a long while before that.
i don’t follow hockey but would be all for it. If they can build an arena for volleyball, surely they could support a hockey team. Likely never happen.
i don’t follow hockey but would be all for it. If they can build an arena for volleyball, surely they could support a hockey team. Likely never happen.
No it won't. Wilkinson was built for two existing programs, one a key part of our Title IX obligations. I have to believe the funding from the Wilkinson family was earmarked for one of those sports. A new facility for a new program that would generate little to no revenue (at least early on) just doesn't make sense.
There have been several reasons over the decades spanning the 70's until today and it would take too long to list them all.
As for more recent history? Stockholm Syndrome I reckon...
A good friend will bail you out of jail, but your best friend will be sitting next to you in the cell saying "that was f***ing awesome"
Well let me see. My Father was going to IU to get his Masters in Education when I was 6-7 years old. We met him on campus several times for lunch. I would sit beside his chair in the living room and listen to the games on the radio, early Bob Knight years. I distinctively remember the Walton/Downing charge/blocking call in one HUGE game. Later I realized that was a Final Four game and that foul call basically meant the game IIRC. Basketball has always been "The Sport" here in Indiana. My sister went there in 1980-81, I got picked up by the police in Bloomington during Winter break in 1980, while building a loft in my sister's dorm room. Top floor, SW corner, Foster Harper. My Daughter graduated from there in 2017. How can I NOT be an IU basketball fan after all of that? BTW, I remember reading a Sports Illustrated article in either the late 70's or early 80's about high school basketball in Indiana. The Wigwam was on the cover. I think at that time, Indiana was home to 9 of the the top 10 high school gymnasiums, capacity-wise, in the entire nation.