USA TODAY International Edition
Miller bides time, lands perfect job at Indiana
Archie Miller will no longer be forced to spend each March shooting down speculation and rumors of jobs he’d never take.
That annual headache won’t happen anymore — because he’s off to Indiana. He had waited for the right job, of the highest caliber. He waited, patiently, for one of college basketball’s blue bloods.
Miller was never going to stay at Dayton forever, though he loved the program and community dearly. He was never going to leave for just any job or just any money grab, either — because if that’s all he was interested in, this hot, rising star in the profession would have left years ago.
But, no, Miller spent these last six years at Dayton, pouring all his energy into the giant binder he keeps filled with notes and tips and practice schedules, taking the Flyers to four NCAA tournaments, including a magical Elite Eight run in 2014.
He stayed put that offseason, and the two that followed, as dozens of Power Five jobs opened and his name appeared on nearly everyone’s wish lists.
He stayed for this — the opportunity to go to a place like Indiana.
“IU is one of the greatest basketball programs and academic institutions in the country and I cannot wait to get started,” he said in a statement. “With peerless fan support, outstanding facilities and tradition, a beautiful campus and located in one of the most fertile recruiting areas in the country, IU is a dream destination for me and my family. I cannot wait to connect with for- mer players, current players and future players and all of Hoosier Nation.”
He’s walking into a situation that’s ripe for success; Tom Crean, fired after nine years, did not leave a bare cupboard.
Miller, a native of western Pennsylvania who played at North Carolina State, is a sharp recruiter with strong Midwest ties ( he was an assistant coach at Ohio State).
From Indiana’s perspective, the hire makes total sense.
“While there was great interest in this position, Archie Miller was on my short list from the very beginning,” Indiana athletics director Fred Glass said in a news release. “The more I learned about him, the more convinced I became that he is the coach we need to meet our high expecta- tions for many years to come...
“Archie is a proven leader, proven winner, proven recruiter, and a proven player developer with a defense- first mentality that will help us win championships. Perhaps most importantly, he understands and embraces the special stature of Indiana University basketball and the critical relationship it must have with its former players, Indiana high school players and programs, and the entire state of Indiana.”
It makes total sense from Miller’s side, too, assuming he had larger aspirations someday, which he obviously did.
Much like his brother, Sean, at Arizona, Miller can now compete for national championships on an annual basis — something he couldn’t have done at Dayton, no matter how much talent he could recruit there in the Atlantic 10, or how experienced a group of veteran players could be in the postseason.
Dayton’s brass understands that, too.
“I want to extend our deepest gratitude and sincere thanks to Archie for an incredible run,” Dayton athletics director Neil Sullivan said in a statement. “He is a first- class person and coach and has made incredible contributions to our men’s basketball program, the university and the community. He has made a lasting impact on the student- athletes he has served.”
Said university President Eric F. Spina: “We appreciate Archie’s contributions in strengthening our program and returning it to national visibility, and we wish Archie and ( wife) Morgan well.”
And so Miller goes, into a program with sky- high expectations and into a city in Bloomington that will at times feel like a fishbowl.
But Miller knows both his personal and team’s ceiling is higher now — and that’s what was worth waiting for.