NCAA Basketball: Impact of Romeo Langford’s looming decision

What a commitment would mean for the Hoosiers

Indiana fans are some of the most passionate fans in all of college basketball. They also can be some of the toughest critics out there as well. For the most part, they gave first-year head coach Archie Miller a pass this past season, dealing with a roster full of guys who aren’t his yet still making them competitive in the Big Ten.

The expectations however will start to go up, and he needs big wins (on and off the court) to stay in the good graces of Hoosier fans. What better way than to get the star player in the state to commit to them? With plenty of other great D-1 programs like Notre Dame, Butler, and Purdue just miles away, Indiana has to reaffirm their status as the heavyweight of the state. Otherwise, the recruiting battles will just get harder and harder for them in the future.

As far as on the court, this would put the Hoosiers in the logjam of Big Ten teams looking to get back in the NCAA Tournament. Teams like Northwestern, Maryland, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Nebraska all missed the Big Dance, but will return their key players. The addition of Langford puts them right in the thick of things with those teams.

Without him, it’s hard to then say that Indiana would be better than any of those teams, meaning that the team could easily finish near the bottom of the Big Ten standings.