Dakich lobbies to remain coach at IU

RALEIGH, N.C. – For the past month, IU interim men’s basketball coach Dan Dakich has said he’s just too busy to think about the situation that has engulfed his alma mater.\nHe said he hasn’t read any newspaper articles or watched the evening news. \nBut as his post-game press conference winded down, Dakich said that given everything that has gone on with the program, he should be the permanent head coach.\n“There’s no question I should be,” Dakich said.\nAbout half an hour after IU was knocked out of the NCAA Tournament with an 86-72 loss to Arkansas on Friday, Inside Indiana editor Ken Bikoff asked Dakich to give some reasons why he believed he should remain head coach at IU, though with the interim title removed. \nDakich did just that, but his four-minute response was as much a critique of the IU program as it was a job interview. \n“What I’m telling you is fact,” Dakich said. “I mean, it’s not conjecture. It’s not something drawn up by somebody that doesn’t know. I’m just telling you ... Indiana people, Indiana fans, the Indiana nation wants it done right; where there’s no embarrassment, there’s nothing but pride in all areas.”\nDakich said the only way to do that is to hire an IU guy. \n“I don’t ‘think’ – this is something I don’t wonder about,” he said. “This is something I know, period.”\nHis reason? Just look at what happened when the University hired Kelvin Sampson, someone from outside the IU family, he said. \n“It has to be somebody that understands (IU),” Dakich said. “Or else you’re going to get yourself in a situation, just like we are.”\nLast week, IU President Michael McRobbie appointed a 10-person committee to search for Sampson’s replacement. Sampson resigned Feb. 22 as a result of five major recruiting violations alleged by the NCAA. \nWhen Greenspan announced Dakich would take over for Sampson, he said he did not believe Dakich was auditioning for the permanent position, though he did think Dakich had “an opportunity to make something special happen out of a tough situation,” he said. \nIn one month as interim coach, the Hoosiers were 3-4 under Dakich, losing their only games in the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments.\n“I’m sure people can write a thousand reasons, given our record here over the last month, why there’s someone else,” Dakich said. \nIt’s not apparent whether Dakich will be considered by the committee. \nIf he’s not picked as the permanent coach, Dakich said he won’t think any differently about his alma mater.