The Assembly Call IU Basketball Podcast

We're trying something new this week: a Monday mailbag. This gives us an opportunity to answer the questions we couldn't get to last Thursday night, as well as pick up some new ones.In this episode, Jerod opens with some thoughts on Rob Phinisee (why he's such a perfect fit for Archie Miller) and John Beilein (why it's in Indiana's best interest for Beilein to stay at Michigan). Then he answers a sack of questions submitted by listeners.Question rundown:• Will Clifton Moore get into the rotation?• Is Al Durham the forgotten man in the backcourt, and could he be starting Big Ten play?• Who is the enforcer on next year's team?• What does Jerod eat and drink while watching games?• What are reasonable statistical expectations for Romeo's freshman season?• When will the schedule will be released?• Should IU play another mid- or high-major team to improve its NCAA chances?• Who is the one recruit in 2019 that is must-get for Indiana?We hope you enjoy, and we'll plan to do another one of these sometime next week. It will probably be Monday, but could be Sunday or Tuesday depending on how things shake out.

We're trying something new this week: a Monday mailbag. This gives us an opportunity to answer the questions we couldn't get to last Thursday night, as well as pick up some new ones.In this episode, Jerod opens with some thoughts on Rob Phinisee (why he's such a perfect fit for Archie Miller) and John Beilein (why it's in Indiana's best interest for Beilein to stay at Michigan). Then he answers a sack of questions submitted by listeners.Question rundown:• Will Clifton Moore get into the rotation?• Is Al Durham the forgotten man in the backcourt, and could he be starting Big Ten play?• Who is the enforcer on next year's team?• What does Jerod eat and drink while watching games?• What are reasonable statistical expectations for Romeo's freshman season?• When will the schedule will be released?• Should IU play another mid- or high-major team to improve its NCAA chances?• Who is the one recruit in 2019 that is must-get for Indiana?We hope you enjoy, and we'll plan to do another one of these sometime next week. It will probably be Monday, but could be Sunday or Tuesday depending on how things shake out.

After a few slow weeks there was a flurry of IU basketball news over the past couple of days. And we cover it all on this week's edition of Assembly Call Radio.• Why Juwan Morgan's senior season will be one of the most anticipated in the last two decades of IU basketball• Is there any downside for Indiana in playing Duke at Cameron Indoor? And how much might Indiana miss De'Ron Davis' presence in that game?• What should we expect from Juwan as a senior? Is D.J. White's senior season a fair comparison? And might Archie have some trouble giving Juwan the freedom to showcase his outside game while also needing him to dominate inside?• Jerod has a new starting lineup hypothesis based on some of Archie's comments at Huber's• Should we read anything into Archie's comments about Devonte?Then we answer plenty of questions you submitted, including:• Who Andy might choose for his next fan club• When was the last time the optimism for IU basketball and football was so simultaneously high?• And what kind of non-marquee non-con opponents we hope to see on the schedule in the future.Whew. A jam-packed episode this week, with Jerod, Ryan, and Andy on hand as hosts.

After a few slow weeks there was a flurry of IU basketball news over the past couple of days. And we cover it all on this week's edition of Assembly Call Radio.• Why Juwan Morgan's senior season will be one of the most anticipated in the last two decades of IU basketball• Is there any downside for Indiana in playing Duke at Cameron Indoor? And how much might Indiana miss De'Ron Davis' presence in that game?• What should we expect from Juwan as a senior? Is D.J. White's senior season a fair comparison? And might Archie have some trouble giving Juwan the freedom to showcase his outside game while also needing him to dominate inside?• Jerod has a new starting lineup hypothesis based on some of Archie's comments at Huber's• Should we read anything into Archie's comments about Devonte?Then we answer plenty of questions you submitted, including:• Who Andy might choose for his next fan club• When was the last time the optimism for IU basketball and football was so simultaneously high?• And what kind of non-marquee non-con opponents we hope to see on the schedule in the future.Whew. A jam-packed episode this week, with Jerod, Ryan, and Andy on hand as hosts.

In this special edition episode of The Assembly Call, you will hear from five men whose experiences with Bill Mallory span from his early days at Colorado all the way into the 90s at Indiana. They tell their stories, and share the lessons they learned.You’ll hear from my dad first. It’s the most obvious place for me to start, but his is also one of the most unique perspectives you can find on Coach Mallory’s career -- because my dad was with Coach Mallory for roughly two decades as a player and coach. He’s got plenty of stories, and plenty of lessons, many of which he passed down to me.Then you’ll hear from Greg Farrall, who played for Coach Mallory at Indiana. He was on the team that trounced Ohio State in 1988. He also once came within inches of tackling Coach Mallory from a full-on sprint -- so worked up from how hard Coach Mallory was riding him at practice one day. It’s a great story.Next, you’ll hear from Steve Hirsch, who played for Coach Mallory at Northern Illinois. Steve tells the story of the time Coach Mallory actually passed out at halftime, having worked himself up into such a frenzy trying to motivate his team after a lackluster first half.After that, you’ll hear from two players who played for Coach Mallory at Colorado: Willie Brock and Chuck McCarter. Both men discuss how close those Colorado teams were, and still are, because of Coach Mallory’s leadership.Willie tells us the story of the time Coach Mallory unapologetically left two star players at the hotel when they didn’t make it to the bus on time. And about the time Coach Mallory went for a nice run with him ... until the final half mile, when things got competitive.Chuck tells the story of the time Coach Mallory made an example out of him at practice, during a goalline tackling drill -- and why even though he felt like he’d been hit by a car afterwards, it profoundly impacted his own belief in himself.This is just a sampling of the stories these players tell and the lessons they share. There is so much more -- enough to fill well over two worthwhile hours of airtime.The memorial service and Celebration of Life for Coach Mallory are being held this Saturday, June 2nd, in Bloomington. The service will be at 10:00 am at First United Methodist Church on 4th Street. Then there will be a Celebration of Life ceremony at Memorial Stadium beginning at 1:30 pm. The event is open to the public, with seating in the East stands. The gates will open at 12:30.I hope this episode serves as a worthy tribute to a man who made such a large and positive impact on so many people.

In this special edition episode of The Assembly Call, you will hear from five men whose experiences with Bill Mallory span from his early days at Colorado all the way into the 90s at Indiana. They tell their stories, and share the lessons they learned.You’ll hear from my dad first. It’s the most obvious place for me to start, but his is also one of the most unique perspectives you can find on Coach Mallory’s career -- because my dad was with Coach Mallory for roughly two decades as a player and coach. He’s got plenty of stories, and plenty of lessons, many of which he passed down to me.Then you’ll hear from Greg Farrall, who played for Coach Mallory at Indiana. He was on the team that trounced Ohio State in 1988. He also once came within inches of tackling Coach Mallory from a full-on sprint -- so worked up from how hard Coach Mallory was riding him at practice one day. It’s a great story.Next, you’ll hear from Steve Hirsch, who played for Coach Mallory at Northern Illinois. Steve tells the story of the time Coach Mallory actually passed out at halftime, having worked himself up into such a frenzy trying to motivate his team after a lackluster first half.After that, you’ll hear from two players who played for Coach Mallory at Colorado: Willie Brock and Chuck McCarter. Both men discuss how close those Colorado teams were, and still are, because of Coach Mallory’s leadership.Willie tells us the story of the time Coach Mallory unapologetically left two star players at the hotel when they didn’t make it to the bus on time. And about the time Coach Mallory went for a nice run with him ... until the final half mile, when things got competitive.Chuck tells the story of the time Coach Mallory made an example out of him at practice, during a goalline tackling drill -- and why even though he felt like he’d been hit by a car afterwards, it profoundly impacted his own belief in himself.This is just a sampling of the stories these players tell and the lessons they share. There is so much more -- enough to fill well over two worthwhile hours of airtime.The memorial service and Celebration of Life for Coach Mallory are being held this Saturday, June 2nd, in Bloomington. The service will be at 10:00 am at First United Methodist Church on 4th Street. Then there will be a Celebration of Life ceremony at Memorial Stadium beginning at 1:30 pm. The event is open to the public, with seating in the East stands. The gates will open at 12:30.I hope this episode serves as a worthy tribute to a man who made such a large and positive impact on so many people.

This week on Assembly Call Radio, we discuss a rather disappointing and potentially devastating story that broke this week regarding Indiana's fading APR. How did it get so bad, and what needs to happen for Indiana to avoid harsh penalties (like missing the postseason) moving forward.We also touch on Romeo Langford's number, get the perspective from a coach on what this offseason will be like for Archie, and we hijack a question from Mind Your Banners to name our Starting 5s taking one player from each of the last five decades.Most importantly, Andy offers a tribute to former IU football coach Bill Mallory right off the top in this week's Banner Moment. Coach Mallory's health has taken a turn for the worse after a fall in his home this week. Our warmest wishes go out to Coach Mallory and his family -- one of the true legends of Indiana University athletics.This week's show is hosted by Andy Bottoms, with Coach Brian Tonsoni and Michael Dugan joining him.

This week on Assembly Call Radio, we discuss a rather disappointing and potentially devastating story that broke this week regarding Indiana's fading APR. How did it get so bad, and what needs to happen for Indiana to avoid harsh penalties (like missing the postseason) moving forward.We also touch on Romeo Langford's number, get the perspective from a coach on what this offseason will be like for Archie, and we hijack a question from Mind Your Banners to name our Starting 5s taking one player from each of the last five decades.Most importantly, Andy offers a tribute to former IU football coach Bill Mallory right off the top in this week's Banner Moment. Coach Mallory's health has taken a turn for the worse after a fall in his home this week. Our warmest wishes go out to Coach Mallory and his family -- one of the true legends of Indiana University athletics.This week's show is hosted by Andy Bottoms, with Coach Brian Tonsoni and Michael Dugan joining him.

This week, we begin our offseason player-by-player breakdown series.First player up: Devonte Green.Indiana has been searching for stability at point guard ever since Yogi Ferrell graduated. Devonte has shown he has the talent to be a solid -- at times even spectacular -- Big Ten guard. But will he ever become consistent enough to be someone who Archie Miller can count on?As always with Devonte, there are reasons to be optimistic and excited ... and reasons to be skeptical. We break all of those reasons down and assess our confidence level in his potential for a breakout junior season. We also dig into his Synergy numbers from last season, give them context, and discuss what they suggest about his most important areas for improvement.Oh, and that Washington Post story about Adidas sponsoring Romeo Langford's AAU team, and some of the ridiculous attention it garnered? We discuss that too. Plus a quick recruiting update.All in this edition of Assembly Call, with Jerod, Ryan, and Andy.

This week, we begin our offseason player-by-player breakdown series.First player up: Devonte Green.Indiana has been searching for stability at point guard ever since Yogi Ferrell graduated. Devonte has shown he has the talent to be a solid -- at times even spectacular -- Big Ten guard. But will he ever become consistent enough to be someone who Archie Miller can count on?As always with Devonte, there are reasons to be optimistic and excited ... and reasons to be skeptical. We break all of those reasons down and assess our confidence level in his potential for a breakout junior season. We also dig into his Synergy numbers from last season, give them context, and discuss what they suggest about his most important areas for improvement.Oh, and that Washington Post story about Adidas sponsoring Romeo Langford's AAU team, and some of the ridiculous attention it garnered? We discuss that too. Plus a quick recruiting update.All in this edition of Assembly Call, with Jerod, Ryan, and Andy.

This week, we dedicate some time to the incoming freshmen NOT named Romeo Langford -- a group that we were all very excited about even before Romeo's commitment vaulted Indiana's incoming recruiting class into the top 10.We go player by player -- Jerome Hunter, Damezi Anderson, Robert Phinisee, Jake Forrester, and Race Thompson too -- assessing each guy's biggest strength and biggest weakness as they head into their freshmen seasons. In other words: what will be the biggest factor in that player getting early playing time; or, and conversely what might be the biggest reason that player struggles to find minutes.We then predict which of the five players is most likely to become the next addition to the esteemed list of Hoosiers who had great careers despite being undervalued as recruits, and we reflect on a few recent entrants onto said list.Then we wrap by answering your questions -- including one about golf, that forces us all to admit just how bad we are at the game.It's Jerod, Ryan, and Andy on the mics this week. We hope you enjoy.

This week, we dedicate some time to the incoming freshmen NOT named Romeo Langford -- a group that we were all very excited about even before Romeo's commitment vaulted Indiana's incoming recruiting class into the top 10.We go player by player -- Jerome Hunter, Damezi Anderson, Robert Phinisee, Jake Forrester, and Race Thompson too -- assessing each guy's biggest strength and biggest weakness as they head into their freshmen seasons. In other words: what will be the biggest factor in that player getting early playing time; or, and conversely what might be the biggest reason that player struggles to find minutes.We then predict which of the five players is most likely to become the next addition to the esteemed list of Hoosiers who had great careers despite being undervalued as recruits, and we reflect on a few recent entrants onto said list.Then we wrap by answering your questions -- including one about golf, that forces us all to admit just how bad we are at the game.It's Jerod, Ryan, and Andy on the mics this week. We hope you enjoy.

Finally, Indiana's roster for the 2018-19 season is starting to take on its final shape.We're still awaiting word from Juwan Morgan on whether he'll be back or not, but the recent commitments of Romeo Langford and grad transfer Evan Fitzner solidifies 13 of the 14 roster spots (taking into account McBob's walk-on spot) for the upcoming season.In this edition of Assembly Call Radio, we assess how the new guys fit, reflect a little more on the impact of Romeo's decision, have some fun playing with lineup combinations as we look ahead to next season, and answer a bevy of great questions submitted by listeners.This episode is hosted by Andy Bottoms, and he is flanked by Coach Brian Tonsoni and special guest Alex Bozich from Inside the Hall. (By the way -- Andy had a microphone issue, so his audio quality isn't up to its usual standard. You have our apologies, and we'll get it fixed for next time.)

Finally, Indiana's roster for the 2018-19 season is starting to take on its final shape.We're still awaiting word from Juwan Morgan on whether he'll be back or not, but the recent commitments of Romeo Langford and grad transfer Evan Fitzner solidifies 13 of the 14 roster spots (taking into account McBob's walk-on spot) for the upcoming season.In this edition of Assembly Call Radio, we assess how the new guys fit, reflect a little more on the impact of Romeo's decision, have some fun playing with lineup combinations as we look ahead to next season, and answer a bevy of great questions submitted by listeners.This episode is hosted by Andy Bottoms, and he is flanked by Coach Brian Tonsoni and special guest Alex Bozich from Inside the Hall. (By the way -- Andy had a microphone issue, so his audio quality isn't up to its usual standard. You have our apologies, and we'll get it fixed for next time.)

What a night for Romeo Langford. What a night for the city of New Albany. What a night for Archie Miller, the Indiana Hoosiers, and IU basketball fans everywhere.Romeo Langford's epic recruitment finally came to an end on Monday night, with Langford announcing that he will be playing his (presumed) one year of college basketball at Indiana University. We assembled a panel discussion of our entire team, plus a special guest, to break down the decision and what it means for the present and future of IU basketball.On hand: Jerod Morris, Ryan Phillips, Andy Bottoms, Brian "The Coach" Tonsoni, Zach McCrite (live from New Albany), and Galen Clavio from Crimson Cast.Among the topics discussed:-- Why such a big deal was made about this decision and the way it was announced -- and rightfully so-- What this recruitment tells us about Archie Miller and the future of IU basketball-- Which current Hoosier stands to benefit the most from playing with a talent like Romeo-- What are reasonable expectations for Indiana next season if Juwan decides to return (as expected)?-- Are the 2008 Indiana Hoosiers or 2003 Syracuse Orangemen fair comparisons/expectations for the 2018-19 Hoosiers?-- What the scene was like, and Zach's impression of Romeo's mood minutes after the announcementAnd so much more, all on this very special edition of The Assembly Call.