Why Crean Went Full-Drama Queen
College basketball recruiting is a contact sport. There is an Indiana native on Michigan's roster (freshman Mitch McGary of Chesterton in the northwest part of the state) that Indiana pursued and there is another one on the way – Zak Irvin of Hamilton Southeastern High School, the leading choice for 2013 Mr. Basketball.
But protect-your-turf recruiting scrums like those two wouldn't be enough to inspire that kind of emotion from Crean.
This might be: One of the visitors at the Crisler Center Sunday was James Blackmon Jr. from Fort Wayne. He's one of the top juniors in the state as well a Top 50 player nationally in the 2014 class. He tweeted a few thoughts and pictures from his seat near the baseline where first Trey Burke and then Jordan Morgan missed their potential game-winning shots at the end of Indiana's 72-71 victory.
Blackmon has been committed to Indiana for nearly three years without ever giving an indication of wavering.
Seeing Blackmon at the game sitting with Irvin and Austin Hatch, a Michigan 2014 commit from the Fort Wayne area, might have been enough to inspire Crean to greet Meyer with a little different response than "nice effort," in the post-game handshake line.
Crean has scrapped through five seasons to elevate Indiana from 1-17 to 14-4 and undisputed Big Ten champions. There have been a string of bruises and no shortcuts. The Big Ten teams that had the means to bury Indiana buried the Hoosiers.
Negative recruiting was a constant companion. Big Ten head coaches telling recruits not to sign with Indiana because they'd never play in the NCAA Tournament. Other coaches in the league warning guys not to go to IU because Crean was stockpiling too much talent.
It doesn't make Crean's behavior any less indefensible, but it does illuminate just how deep these rivalries go.
Fortunately for Hoosier fans, they're long accustomed to defending their basketball coach's demeanor as long as he keeps on winning.
Comments
wow, you can add that photo to his looking-like-a-pedo scrapbook page
Love the hair. Almost enough to make this guy jealous.
“Any time you give a man something he doesn't earn, you cheapen him. Our kids earn what they get, and that includes respect.” - Woody
He still looks like Baldo to me.
Do not argue with an idiot. He will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.
Still a classless move on Crean's part, but more understandable. At least he apologized, and I agree that this should have been handled away from the court.
What was there to handle? One coach is doing his job and the other is a whiny little bitch about it. Sounds like Dantonio and Bielema about Meyer. He could have talked to the kid about it during their next call, but no reason to go confront a coach at all. That guy's job is to recruit the best guys, not stroke Crean's ego.
There is no reason for the coach of a top B1G team to behave in this way, no matter what the cause.
If that's not a vampire ready to strike, I don't know what is.
Did IU and scUM have a gentlemen's agreement nobody knew about?
Thank you Tom Crean for replacing Bert Bielema's spot in the B1G, all the dislike has been refocused.
Nothing like dancing on the field in 02...
I'd say the expression of the security person at Crean's side pretty much sums it up.
"Success - it's what you do with what you got" - Woody Hayes
Yeah, the funny thing is that security person is there to protect the public from Crean, not the other way around.
"if irony were made of strawberries, we' d all be drinking a lot of smoothies right now."
Why would anyone want to play for huge D bags like him when there are so many coaches who are good guys? Wouldn't his douchebaggery lose a recruiting battle rather than win it?
Most punchable face in all of sports?
How many people want to punch his lights out?
"Get him a body bag, Yeah!"
Yes - most hateable face ever IMO...
The world is full of kings & queens who'll blind your eyes & steal your dreams - it's heaven & hell - Ronnie James Dio.
Ever? I beg to differ...
Nothing like dancing on the field in 02...
Suffice to say, having them both in the same room together would be like having a 20 year supply of Summers Eve at your fingertips.
The world is full of kings & queens who'll blind your eyes & steal your dreams - it's heaven & hell - Ronnie James Dio.
Which begs the question......
Crean's hair or Bert's gut?
I'm saying hair now that Bert's hogging it out.
"Success - it's what you do with what you got" - Woody Hayes
By the looks of his nose I'd say somebody or a few somebodies already beat us to the ...are you ready for this?...........the PUNCH!
Battles are sometimes won by generals; wars are nearly always won by sergeants and privates. Football is no different, the guys down in the trenches win the games, not the coach.
I know I am in the minority here, but I like Crean. He might be annoying/irritating at times, but the dude is doing a great job for IU. A strong IU helps the B1G, which helps OSU.
Liking him as a person & liking the job he's doing are 2 completely different things. I cannot stand him at all but I can readily admit he's doing something right in terms of coaching or running a program, but man, he is a dill bag for sure...
The world is full of kings & queens who'll blind your eyes & steal your dreams - it's heaven & hell - Ronnie James Dio.
can agree he's doing a great job, disagree that it's "helping" OSU per say. maybe I'm splitting hairs, but Oden and Sullinger and co.'s were doin just fine without IU being good.
I like football
He may be helping around IU and Bloomington and that community, but he's doing no favors to his profession with his antics. There's passion and then there's stepping over the line, and taunting players while they're shooting is clearly over that line, in my opinion. I will have to respectfully disagree with you.
Somebody needs to create a website for this guy. He supplies pure gold on a regular basis.
I'd bet 100 bucks that if we looked at his yearbook pictures from elementary through high school that he had the same exact haircut. Like someone said here before, there is no way he gets a fresh cut and looks in the mirror and says "Wow i look goood". My guess is he's too afraid to change his hairstyle that he's had his whole life.
If Crean is pissed about this recruit visiting UM, maybe someone should ask Crean about his pursuit of Deshaun Thomas after Thomas had long been committed to OSU.
Are we sure that the above article - from the WDRB (Louisville) website - wasn't written by Tom Crean's therapist?
I know that the author of the article is listed as Rick Bozich, who is probably a Louisville-based sports journalist, but deadlines get tight sometimes. If Crean's therapist was nice enough to send WDRB a well-written piece rationalizing Crean's behavior - hey, that's one less deadline Bozich has to deal with.
I know it's tongue and cheek, but Louisville is kind of like Cincinnati that a big part of their metro area is comprised of a fan base from another state. Once you cross the river into J-Ville and New Albany, you have hit IU territory. I imagine a Louisville based sports writer has a finger on the pulse of IU sports.
That is soooo creepy true.
"Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read." - Groucho Marx
Ok, guys. Take a look at the OP picture, then the 2 posted by Cinserious, and tell me if I'm the only one who sees & HEARS Woody Woodpecker every time I see Crean now?
"Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read." - Groucho Marx
Say what you want but if the B1G football coaches showed half of Tom Crean's passion we wouldn't suck nearly as bad. Maybe he's abrasive but I really think that Crean's passion is refreshing when you compare him to the emotionless sleep-walking coaches that populate most of the B1G. I've seen more emotion out of him in one season than Kirk and Dantonio have ever shown in both of their careers combined. Emotionless losers barley beat MAC schools much less recruit well and contend for championships. Like I said, you can say what you want about Crean (because he is a douche), but my God we could use a few more like him.
EDIT: After thinking for a minute I really notice passion all the way across the B1G basketball spectrum which is a stark contrast from the FB coaches. Compare the results.
Our honor Defend!
I will respectfully disagree. There's passion and then there's stepping over the line.
I actually agree. If the B1G had half the talent coaching football that they do coaching basketball we'd have a nice conference. Crean is a D-bag, but he's a hell of a coach. It's not his job for the rest of the conference to like him. IU coaches have often shown it's not their job to conduct themselves with professionalism on and off the court, that's been going on for over 30 years. Bobby Knight seemed to have an incident or comments after the game to the media that proved how much of a douche he was. I once saw Mike Davis run onto the court during play beating himself screaming foul foul foul. This resulted in a T that led to his team losing to UK. He also in an interview after another game went on and on about how he HATED UK. Those are just two incidents I know of but I'm sure there are many many more. When I look at what the other 2 did, so far Crean looks like an amateur in douchebaggery. Bobby had a PhD, Mike Davis was working on his Masters, and Crean is still working on his undergrad. He has a ways to go yet.
Crean is just weird. That is the best descriptor I can give him. Well maybe really f-ing weird is more accurate.
vacuuming sucks
crean is a scumbag.cant stand the way he coaches.he's a drama queen pouts when he loses prances around court look at me when he wins.someone needs to take him out when hes on the court during play.refs should not allow that
vincennes buckeye
Serious douche. 'Nough said.
As much of a weirdo, douchy-asshole as Crean is, he is one of the better coaches in the country (demeanor and personality aside). I never though of it before but as good as the B1G is this year with all the talented teams, there isn't a conference in the country that comes close to the coaching talent level. Think Final Fours, National Championships, Elite eights, etc. Thad Matta, Tom Izzo, Tubby Smith, the aforementioned Crean, Beilein, Bo, etc. It really is the SEC of basketball coaches.
Gotta give credit to the Big East though before they fell apart: Boeheim, Calhoun, Huggins, Pitino, etc.
"Get him a body bag, Yeah!"
I heard Tom Crean's favorite singer is Christopher Cross. He gets pumped up for games by listening to 'Sailing' and 'Ride Like the Wind' on repeat.
Oh yeah, and he's also addicted to QVC. Handbags. He is a real sucker for handbags.