Indiana University Athletic Director Scott Dolson has released a statement detailing his recent conversations with Indiana Men’s Basketball Coach Mike Woodson.
“During a meeting with Coach Woodson on Wednesday, he informed me he wanted to step down as our program’s head coach at the end of the current season. He said it had been weighing on his mind for a while, and that it was an emotional and difficult decision. We have had subsequent thoughtful conversations about his decision and his desire to ensure that the program is in the best position it can be moving forward. At an appropriate time, Coach Woodson will articulate his feelings about his decision and his experiences these last four years,” Dolson said in a statement released on Friday.
Dolson goes on to say that Woodson wants the attention to be off of him and instead on focusing uniting Hoosier nation in support of the university’s student-athletes, coaches, and the program.
“We still have much to play for this season as we prepare for Saturday’s game against Michigan and the remainder of the 2024-25 season, and we want to encourage Hoosier fans to rally around the program and support it in the same positive way that Hoosier fans did during Mike’s All-America and Big Ten MVP playing career.
Coach Woodson is a class act. During the last four years, he has led the program during a transformational time in college athletics and helped us become a national leader in evolving areas including NIL and the Transfer Portal. No one loves IU Basketball more than he does. I want to thank him for coming back to Bloomington and accepting the challenge of rebuilding our program and re-connecting it with its past and its foundation. In pursuit of that goal, it was important to him that he bring back other legendary Hoosier players such as Calbert Cheaney, Randy Wittman, and Jordan Hulls, all of whom share his love and passion for this program. That’s a group of individuals that combined for 375 wins at IU, seven Big Ten championships, two Final Fours, and a national title.
With this decision made, Coach Woodson and I share the desire to see Hoosier Nation unite beginning on Saturday afternoon in support of these players, coaches, and program,” the statement concludes.
Indiana is 14-9 and has a conference record of 5-7. They missed the NCAA tournament last year in Woodson’s third year with an overall record of 19-14.
Prior to that, however, the Hoosiers reached the NCAA tournament in each of Woodson’s first two seasons, including a second-place Big Ten finish in 2023.
