Will Bob Knight Attend His Indiana Athletic Hall of Fame Induction?

Midwest Sports Fans by Analyst Written on August 28, 2009
CHICAGO - DECEMBER 21:  Head coach Bob Knight of the Texas Tech Red Raiders shouts from the sideline during the game against the Iowa Hawkeyes on December 21, 2004 at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. Iowa defeated Texas Tech 83-53. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

[Author's Note: I am happy to welcome Joe O to the writing crew here at MSF. Joe is a native of Greenwood, Indiana and a devoted Hoosier fan and grad just like me.  Not surprisingly, his first effort here at MSF deals with man that all of us from southern Indiana grew up worshipping admiring: Bob Knight.

Enjoy, and welcome aboard Joe!]

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Bob Knight. The General.

Three national championships. Eleven Big Ten Championships. Olympic Gold Medal.

Four-time National Coach-of-the-Year. Six time Big Ten Coach-of-the-Year. All-time winningest coach in college basketball history.

Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Inductee.

This is an unbelievable compilation of accomplishments, but one is still missing: an induction into Indiana’s Athletics Hall of Fame. This seems like a no-brainer for the Indiana coach of 29 years, but if you’ve been alive the last couple decades you know about the “departure” of Bob Knight from Indiana and why it’s taken so long for this day to come.

On Nov. 6 of this year, Bob Knight’s name will finally be added to the list.

Now that coach Knight will finally be inducted, the next question is whether or not he will attend. This question has loomed around the sports world for a few weeks now and one thing is for certain: no one but maybe Knight himself knows the answer to that question.

I can only imagine all the thoughts and questions that must be going through his head.

On one side, the administration that fired him is basically gone, but on the other hand it was a ridiculous timeline of events and sets of egos that got him canned.

It’s been almost a full decade and I wouldn’t blame him for still feeling uneasy and not wanting to make the trip.

It must be like that girlfriend that got away; the one that dumped you after a couple years. There were many great moments shared and memories had, but you’ve been trying to close that chapter.

Now you have that wedding or event you know she’s going to be at and you’re struggling with whether or not to go.

This is how I envision coach Knight feeling, with so many great times and memories, but with that sour note at the end. Put yourself in his shoes for a moment and envision that car ride into campus and seeing the first couple glances of Assembly Hall.

If he’s as hesitant as he seems, this would be a tough ride to make.

However, coach Knight may also be taking the opposite approach. If there is one thing we’ve learned from him, it’s to expect the unexpected.

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written on August 28, 2009 Sports

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