Stay tuned.

I have absolutely no inside information, but the rumors are flying, so in the next 24 hours it might be a good idea to pay attention to people who tend to know things: most notably Peegs and Hoosier Scoop.

In my post yesterday, I said this:

It's not clear to me how Sampson can survive this, or that he should. It's probably just a matter of how it shakes out. I would be fine with keeping Sampson through the end of the season. These IU players did nothing wrong, and should be allowed to finish the season. But I find it hard to believe that IU will go before the NCAA in June with Sampson still employed.

Ah, the wonders of blogging, with off-the-cuff impressions there for the world to see. I still agree with all of that except the part about Sampson finishing the season. I don't think that's advisable and I don't think it will happen. There's not a good solution at this point, but it probably makes the most sense to make the move now and hire an interim coach. Whether Sampson is guilty of what the NCAA alleges really is beside the point at this point. Even if we interpret the facts most charitably to Sampson, we know the following:

1. While at Oklahoma, Sampson personally and intentionally violated NCAA rules regarding phone calls to recruits;

2. While at IU and on probation for such calls, at the very least, Sampson's assistants intentionally and systematically violated NCAA rules and the conditions of Sampson's probation/self-imposed sanctions;

3. The NCAA enforcement staff will tell take the position before the Infractions Committee that Sampson intentionally violated the conditions of his probation and lied about it.

It's now beside the point whether what the NCAA says about Sampson is true. That the NCAA staff has alleged it is enough. The NCAA is looking to hammer IU, and Sampson made his bed with #1 and #2. It seems obvious, based on the tone of IU's comments yesterday, Sampson's non-participation in IU's press conference, and the rumor mill today, that IU is exploring its options, most likely determining whether IU can fire Sampson for cause (i.e., without paying a seven figure buyout) based on what IU know right now. It's going to be interesting, but it's now obvious that Sampson is done at IU and will be removed sometime between now and the end of the season.