Tom Crean's Big Red Challenge

And for Crean, the hits kept coming. Two top recruits landed by Sampson, Devin Ebanks and Terrell Holloway, opted out of their letters of intent. In anticipation of a dreadful Academic Progress Rate (APR) score--a semester-to-semester metric that, unlike the GSR, penalizes programs when players leave school early--the basketball program punished itself preemptively again in July, giving up two more scholarships for the 2008-09 season. After a May hearing in Seattle, the NCAA downgraded one of the five major charges to a secondary violation but alleged another major infraction against Indiana, the dreaded "failure to monitor" charge. Then on June 26, Greenspan, the embattled AD, announced his resignation effective Dec. 31.

The NCAA verdict on all charges is expected in mid-November. But for Crean, the more pressing concern is fielding a competitive team. The leading returning scorer for the Hoosiers, a national-title contender last season? Former walk-on Kyle Taber, a senior forward who averaged 1.3 points in 2007-08, and he is coming off knee surgery and won't be available until mid-November. The other starters? A mix of more walk-ons, freshmen and junior college transfers such as Tijan Jobe, a 7-footer who averaged 4.0 points and 4.0 rebounds for Olney (Ill.) Central College last season.

When Illinois coach Bruce Weber, perhaps still smarting from Sampson's ethically questionable recruitment of Eric Gordon, predicted in June that "Indiana will suck" this season, surely he could have chosen more delicate words. But few would disagree with the sentiment. As Crean warned his players, "The perception: You're probably going to be picked to finish dead last in the Big Ten. The reality: [At least] you're going to make it big on television."

Crean balances Midwest pragmatism with heaps of optimism. Here's a man who doesn't see the glass as half full. He sees it as overflowing. With Dom Pérignon. From 1975. The challenges, he says, have only hardened his resolve "to see this through." He is "pumped up" by the reception he's received from fans. The hard times that await? "I didn't take this job for the immediate--and I've had to remind myself of that at least eight dozen times--for where it's at now. I took this for where it's been and where it can possibly go."

Like a man on a crusade--which, in a sense he is--Crean has threaded his way across the state of Indiana, bringing his message of hope (and patience) to Hoosiers fans in Fort Wayne and Indianapolis and Evansville. He has appeared in ads for the Bloomington Animal Shelter, raised money for the Bloomington Children's Museum, risked carpel tunnel syndrome from signing so many autographs. In an effort to repair charred bridges, he has made overtures to Bob Knight, making it clear Knight would be welcomed back into the program. (Knight has not yet responded directly.) "Coach Crean's already done a lot to make Indiana basketball feel like something special again," says Kitchel, the IU All-America. "The past now seems further past than it was."

The message is clearly spreading. As dreadful as the Hoosiers are likely to be this season, Crean has lined up one of the nation's top five recruiting classes for 2009. Among the six committed high school players are Jordan Hulls, a point guard from Bloomington, and Christian Watford, a highly touted small forward from Birmingham. The Hoosiers will also gain guard Jeremiah Rivers, son of Celtics coach Doc Rivers, a transfer from Georgetown.

Crean appears willing to split the difference between the outdated rectitude of Knight and the recklessness of Sampson. In a sign-of-the-times personnel move, Crean hired Roshown McLeod as an assistant coach in August. A former standout at Duke and an NBA player, McLeod had been an influential and well-connected figure in AAU circles. McLeod played high school basketball at St. Anthony's, the New Jersey powerhouse and current school of guard Dominic Cheek, one of the country's top high school seniors. As recently as June, Cheek hadn't considered Indiana at all; now it's suddenly on his short list of schools. "[McLeod] came highly recommended by coaches I respect like Mike Krzyzewski and Lenny Wilkens," says Crean. "He played at a high level and can work with our wings and big men."

While Crean has yet to coach his first game at Indiana, in August he was rewarded with a two-year contract extension, a tacit acknowledgement that a) the job had mutated into something other than the one he'd agreed to; and b) his brave face has been noticed and appreciated by his superiors. He will earn a total of $23.6 million over the next 10 years (compared with $18 million over eight in the original deal). Burned the last time around, Indiana included in the contract a provision permitting the school to fire Crean if he or his staff commits an NCAA infraction.

That, Crean says, is fine by him. Sitting in his office in Assembly Hall, in front of a placard reading climbing is easier than hanging on, the new coach points to a wall covered with glossy photos of various Indiana All-Americas. The challenge might be daunting, he says, but the goal is simple: build the program back to where it was, then sustain it in a way that doesn't discredit the tradition. Put another way, while it might be in slightly used condition, the soul of Indiana basketball is not for sale.