BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana Athletic Director Scott Dolson didn’t need to see the final score. He didn’t need a box score breakdown or a highlight reel. All it took was watching Darian DeVries' teams play—how they moved, how they executed, how they believed.
Before he ever knew DeVries would be a candidate for the Indiana job, before he even knew the position would be open, Dolson had already taken notice.
The first time was three seasons ago in Albany, as Indiana prepared for its NCAA Tournament matchup against Kent State and Drake, led by DeVries, battled Miami. Drake lost that game, but Dolson walked away impressed.
The second time was earlier this year in the Bahamas, where DeVries—then at West Virginia—coached the Mountaineers to an eye-opening win over Gonzaga at the Battle 4 Atlantis. Again, Dolson knew he saw something special.
So when the Indiana job officially opened, Dolson already knew, DeVries was someone give serious consideration.
On Wednesday, Indiana introduced DeVries as the program’s 31st head coach, a hiring that signals not just a change in leadership but a commitment to stability, vision, and belief.
Dolson, Indiana University President Pam Whitten, and DeVries himself all share the same conviction—DeVries is the right man to bring Indiana back to prominence. Not just for a season, but for the long haul.
From the moment he sat down with Indiana’s leadership, DeVries felt the fit. He had built programs before, had turned underdogs into contenders, but this was something different. This was Indiana.
“As that process played out, it was clear and evident to me that this was going to be a great fit for myself and for our family,” DeVries said Tuesday at his introductory press conference. “I can’t be more excited to be here.”
Whitten, too, saw something different in DeVries—not just a coach, but a teacher, a mentor, someone who understood that success at Indiana wasn’t just about winning games. It was about the students.
When we had a chance to visit during the interview process... [DeVries] said some things that touched me so much and were so important to us. That was the recognition that it's about the student-athletes and it's about the students," Whitten said. "You in that conversation made comments recognizing the importance of teaching students at all times, student-athletes, too."
For years, Indiana basketball has searched for the right answer. Since the early 2000s, the program has cycled through coaches, each showing glimpses of promise but failing to deliver sustained success.
DeVries’ track record suggests he can be the answer. He took a struggling Drake program and made it a Missouri Valley powerhouse, winning 20 or more games for six straight seasons.
At West Virginia, he inherited a team that had won just nine games the year before and quickly turned it into a 19-win squad with marquee victories over Kansas, Gonzaga, and Arizona. He has done it without elite recruiting classes, instead relying on development, discipline, and adaptability.
“Simplify it. Make it what it is,” DeVries said. “You’ve got to have a certain level of talent, but then the teams that can do defensive rebounding, taking care of the ball, playing together, playing unselfish—the teams that can do that the best typically are the teams that have the most success, and that’ll be our focus."
DeVries doesn’t just believe in his system. He believes in himself, in his ability to build a winner at Indiana the way he has everywhere he’s been. And Dolson? He’s already seen the proof.
“Honestly, it started really before I even knew that Darian would ever be a candidate,” Dolson said. “We sat there after that game [West Virginia’s win over Gonzaga in The Bahamas] just going, wow, so impressive how West Virginia played.”
Belief is a powerful thing. It’s what has driven DeVries his entire career, from his early days as an assistant at Creighton to building something special at Drake and West Virginia.
Now, that belief has brought him to Bloomington, to a program desperate for stability and success.
After years of searching, Indiana has found its man. And for DeVries, Dolson, and Whitten, there is no doubt—this is the right fit, the right time, the right leader. Now, it’s time to prove it.
"The wins and losses, they're going to work themselves out," DeVries said. "If you can do all those things the way you need to do them in the way I believe we can do that, then the wins are going to come."
–––––
Like this content? Join the conversation on TheHoosier.com's premium message boards and subscribe today!
– Follow TheHoosier on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook!
– Subscribe to TheHoosier on YouTube for more content
– Interact with fellow fans on TheHoosier's Premium Football Board and Premium Hoops Board
