BleedGopher
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per Katz:
No coach was put in a tougher situation.
None.
I’ve covered the sport since the mid-1980s and I can’t think of any other that rivals what Mike Davis had to do in September, 2000.
He took over for the fired Bob Knight at Indiana. Knight didn’t want him to take the job. Davis wasn’t part of the Indiana family. He had come on board three seasons earlier to be an assistant. He was from Alabama. He played at Alabama and had no reason to turn down the opportunity to be a head coach.
Davis had incredible headwind. There were the Knight loyalists on one side. On the other side, Indiana fans who just wanted to cheer on the Hoosiers, but also had every reason to question if Davis was ready for the job.
He admits now that he wasn’t.
And yet he found a way to lead the Hoosiers to the 2002 national title game. During his tenure, Davis was constantly under stress and it showed. He had one significant meltdown, sprinting around the court with 2.6 seconds left in a six-point loss to Kentucky at Freedom Hall in Louisville. He was ejected from the game and after was apologetic saying “I shouldn’t have acted like that. I can’t explain it. I’ve done something to embarrass my team.’’
https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketbal...ball-mike-davis-admits-he-wasnt-ready-indiana
Go Gophers!!
No coach was put in a tougher situation.
None.
I’ve covered the sport since the mid-1980s and I can’t think of any other that rivals what Mike Davis had to do in September, 2000.
He took over for the fired Bob Knight at Indiana. Knight didn’t want him to take the job. Davis wasn’t part of the Indiana family. He had come on board three seasons earlier to be an assistant. He was from Alabama. He played at Alabama and had no reason to turn down the opportunity to be a head coach.
Davis had incredible headwind. There were the Knight loyalists on one side. On the other side, Indiana fans who just wanted to cheer on the Hoosiers, but also had every reason to question if Davis was ready for the job.
He admits now that he wasn’t.
And yet he found a way to lead the Hoosiers to the 2002 national title game. During his tenure, Davis was constantly under stress and it showed. He had one significant meltdown, sprinting around the court with 2.6 seconds left in a six-point loss to Kentucky at Freedom Hall in Louisville. He was ejected from the game and after was apologetic saying “I shouldn’t have acted like that. I can’t explain it. I’ve done something to embarrass my team.’’
https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketbal...ball-mike-davis-admits-he-wasnt-ready-indiana
Go Gophers!!