Kelvin Sampson out the door at IU
Hoosiers coach had to go after several NCAA recruiting violations
Former Indiana University head coach Kelvin Sampson was relieved of his coaching duties when it was discovered he had violated numerous NCAA regulations.
Unfortunately, Kelvin Sampson brought his demons from the University of Oklahoma to Hoosier Nation.
Indiana basketball has a high pedigree, established by years of success under coach Bob Knight. The program needed (and still needs) an established coach to restore it back to prominence in the Big Ten conference. Most Hoosier fans thought Sampson would be the ideal candidate.
Sampson was named the successor to Mike Davis as head coach for Indiana University back in March 2006. Davis saw some success at the helm, taking the team to the 2002 NCAA championship game. Gradually, the bond eroded between Davis and university administration. Consequently, he bolted this season to take the coaching reins at Alabama-Birmingham (UAB), former Hoosier star Robert Vaden followed Davis to the Deep South, tranferring to UAB and serving as the Blazers' star player this season.
In came Sampson as head coach. In his almost two years with the program, Sampson had ample talent to work with: senior D.J. White, junior Kyle Taber and fantastic frosh Eric Gordon have powered the Hoosiers to a 23-4 record thus far in 2007-08. Indiana was once again clawing for top spot in the Big Ten and a high seed in the NCAA tournament.
Then came the news of Sampson's recruiting violations. Sampson was no stranger to controversy surrounding his shady, possibly unethical work on the recruiting trail. As coach of the Oklahoma Sooners from 1994-2006, Sampson's recruiting resulted in OU being placed under a three-year NCAA investigation.
The NCAA discovered that Sampson had made hundreds of illegal phone calls to 17 different recruits. In 2006, the NCAA barred Sampson from recruiting off-campus and making phone calls.
Hence, Indiana's athletic department was aware that Sampson had been reprimanded in the past, but took a risk by hiring him anyway. Sampson was responsible for fielding some very talented OU teams at the turn of the decade and had enough prestige to lure prize recruits to Bloomington.
However, the controversy was far from over. The questionable recruitment of Gordon raised alarm bells with the NCAA and consequently, adminstration and fans at IU.
Gordon had verbally committed to the University of Illinois, but reneged on the deal and signed with the Hoosiers at the eleventh hour. Sampson was criticized for failing to communicate with Illinois coach Bruce Weber about the wooing of Gordon, a can't-miss prospect that likely would have gone directly to the NBA were it not for the pro league demanding a year of collegiate ball for American players.
Evidently, punishment handed down by the NCAA during Sampson's Oklahoma tenure was not enough to deter him from breaking the rules again. Sampson and his assistant coaches participated in illegal conference calls to recruits and earlier this month, the NCAA informed Indiana that Sampson had committed five "major" rules violations.
A subsequent internal investigation at IU resulted in Sampson being relieved of his duties and paid a $750,000 settlement. IU Athletic Director Rick Greenspan, passionate IU fans and the institution's head brass were in agreement that Sampson had to go.
It was necessary to let Sampson go because Indiana has such a proud tradition of strong, clean, ethical play over the decades. In the big picture, the Hoosiers could not afford to have their image tarnished. As volatile as former coach Bob Knight was, he always conducted his dealings legally, buttressing this with strong performance to create a proud hoops tradition in southern Indiana.
Sampson was recently replaced on an interim basis by Dan Dakich. Dakich takes over a very talented squad - the Hoosiers have the talent (if not the depth) to make a deep run in the tourney - but the team must put the headlines behind it if it is to live up to lofty expectations.
The sad truth is, Sampson has had two chances at prestigious athletic programs to build a strong, clean legacy. It seems unlikely that he will get a third strike.
