TERRE HAUTE —
Trent Miles’ impact on the Indiana State football program — and the athletic program overall — is hard to overstate.
Football was a sickly program when Miles arrived prior to the 2008 season. ISU would twice be saddled with the nation’s longest losing streak in the mid-to-late 2000s. The program itself was in serious jeopardy of being eliminated.
Miles made ISU football a winner again. And with Miles moving on to take the job at Georgia State, the man who hired Miles — ISU Director of Athletics Ron Prettyman — is charged with an equally large task … finding a coach who has the same gravitas Miles brought to the Sycamores’ program.
Prettyman was told Friday morning by Miles that the Terre Haute native would take the Georgia State job. After Miles announced the move to the ISU team at 6 p.m. Friday night, Prettyman went to work on finding ISU’s next coach.
Prettyman had a meeting with the ISU athletic staff shortly after Miles went public with his move to plan their next move.
“I already have a terrific short list of candidates I keep as a professional development process. I’m very confident we’ll get several more quality candidates as this develops in the next few days,” said Prettyman from his office on Friday night.
ISU did not name an interim coach to replace Miles. Georgia State will have its press conference to officially announce Miles on Monday and Prettyman feels he’ll know more at that point as to who is departing with Miles to join him on Georgia State’s staff.
“He’s unsure about which of the current staff members he’s going to ask to go with him or which are going to be willing to leave. We haven’t gotten to that road yet and probably won’t for several days until that plays out,” Prettyman said.
Prettyman would not commit to a timeline to replace Miles. Several college football programs are still active, especially at the FBS level, and several jobs could open or close that will change the pool of candidates by the day.
“I’m not going to put a timeline on this. If I feel really outstanding about someone, I may make a hire in three days. But I’m not going to rush this thing and I’m not going to put a deadline on it either. It will be my top priority effective at 6:30 p.m. tonight. We’re full-speed ahead,” Prettyman said.
Prettyman will be in a better position to make a football hire than he was in 2007 when Miles replaced Lou West as head coach. ISU is no longer saddled with the reputation of being the worst program in Division I. Facilities have been updated and upgraded.
The head coaches’ salary — Miles’ base salary was $166,830 — is significantly higher than it was in 2007. West was hired at a salary under $100,000.
“This was not a very attractive job five years ago. I think this is a very attractive job now,” said Prettyman, who also credited current ISU President Dr. Daniel Bradley for putting better financial resources behind football.
“For FCS football, our salaries are competitive. Our facility is outstanding. The field is good, the locker room is as good as any Division I in the nation. We’ve given opportunities to recruit nationwide,” Prettyman added. “It’s a full-on commitment to this program. I think this time around we’ll have people really interested in our job — whether its a current head coach who’s looking to make a change or a quality assistant.”
Prettyman paid tribute to the legacy Miles left behind. Miles finished his ISU career with a 20-36 record, but considering that Miles started 1-22 after he brought in an influx of new players, and finished with three straight winning seasons, the leap forward was one that not even Prettyman could have anticipated.
“I think things changed faster than I anticipated they would. I gave it a five-year process, we saw terrific growth in year one academically. We saw it in the caliber of person Trent was recruiting. In year two, it got better and in year three it exploded. We began to see what we were capable of accomplishing. Trent was a real catalyst for change here,” Prettyman said.
Indiana State University
Related Photos
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Watching: Indiana State University football coach Trent Miles watches over practice as the Sycamores prepare for Western Illinois. (Tribune-Star/Jim Avelis)
Discussion
Prettyman confident he can find Miles' replacement
- Indiana State University
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Sycamores bow out of MVC Tournament
Indiana State’s baseball was out of pitching, and after a loss to Wichita State on Thursday, the Sycamores were out of second-chances too at the Missouri Valley Conference baseball tournament. What the Sycamores weren’t out of was heart, guts and clutch performances from some unlikely sources. But in the end, Friday’s elimination game rematch against the Shockers was a sampling of ISU’s season overall — the Sycamores were out of luck.
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Four Indiana State athletes advance to NCAA outdoor track and field championships
Three Indiana State seniors and a freshman have punched their tickets to the NCAA outdoor track and field championships in two weeks at Eugene, Ore., with their Friday efforts in the 2013 NCAA East Preliminary at Aggie Stadium on the campus of North Carolina A&T.
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ISU baseball hoping Manaea can get its MVC Tournament moving in right direction
Indiana State’s baseball team has been waiting all season for its stars to align.
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ISU sending largest group yet to postseason
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ISU's athletic treasure trove
Think of every championship that Indiana State has won in each of its sports, past and present. Think of every tournament — postseason or regular season — which the Sycamores have claimed as their own.
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Ort sets ISU RBI record in 16-7 win
Robby Ort celebrated his Indiana State baseball Senior Day on Saturday by becoming the Sycamores’ all-time leader in RBIs as ISU ended its regular season with a 16-7 win over Bradley at Bob Warn Field.
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Bradley ends 16-game MVC losing streak against ISU
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Indiana State to host 2014 MVC baseball tourney
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Behind 16 hits and Manaea's pitching, ISU beats Bradley
Indiana State’s baseball team rode a wild ride of emotion on Thursday.
First came the public announcement that Bob Warn Field would host the 2014 Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. Later, Sean Manaea’s availability to pitch ISU’s series opener against Bradley was in doubt. -
TODD GOLDEN: Don't give up on ISU baseball just yet
If you had to pick one word that would describe the 2013 Indiana State baseball season, it would have to be frustration.
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ISU baseball team builds on success with 14-2 rout
Indiana State’s baseball victory over Alcorn State on Friday would take on more meaning Saturday if the Sycamores could build momentum and pick up on the good work they did in Friday’s ninth-inning rally.
Mission accomplished.
The Sycamores were aggressive from the opening inning at the plate and starting pitcher Devin Moore gave them eight valuable and effective innings on the mound as ISU defeated Alcorn State 14-2 at Bob Warn Field.
“It was a really good experience for everybody. It felt great to finally come out here and put some things together. It’s also really nice when your offense puts a lot of runs on the board,” Moore said.
Moore’s eight innings of work were as valuable as gold to an ISU team that is short on quality arms due to injury and ineffectiveness. He didn’t allow a hit until the fourth inning and one of the two runs he conceded was unearned. -
ISU earns badly-needed win
Alcorn State’s baseball team might be ranked in the bottom 10 in RPI and Indiana State might have never lost to a Southwestern Athletic Conference team. So it wouldn’t appear that a quality win was in the offing when Alcorn State visited Bob Warn Field on Friday.
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ISU’s Mascari and Hope win MVC track & field titles
Indiana State produced two champions during the opening day of action in the Missouri Valley Conference track and field championships Friday at Drake. Freshman John Mascari, a Terre Haute native, won the men’s 10,000-meter race and Nicole Hope won the women’s pole vault for the second time in three seasons.
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ISU pole vault tradition continues with help from its author
Pole vault is track and field for the adrenaline junkie, Indiana State senior Nicole Hope proclaimed during a recent practice at Marks Field.
To catapult oneself about 14 feet into the air with a large $500 fiberglass pole on a daily basis is a risky endeavor.
“We have to be fearless. You can’t be afraid at all,” said Hope, who has also catapulted herself into the NCAA’s elite in the event, ranking 15th in the NCAA with her leap of 13-feet, 9 1/4. -
Lansing looking for more home games for next fall
Indiana State’s men’s basketball team is looking for a few good games.
Home games that is.
The Sycamores have filled in most of the blanks in their nonconference schedule, but as ever, ISU coach Greg Lansing would like to visit the friendly confines of Hulman Center a bit more often. -
ISU baseball gets back into rhythm with victory
Baseball is a rhythm game. With contests every day or five times a week in the case of many college programs, you have the chance to build on success or wallow in a slump.
Mother Nature took that rhythm away from Indiana State’s team last week. After a 7-1 loss to Indiana on April 24, ISU was supposed to play a three-game series at Tennessee-Martin, but it was wiped out by rain.
So the rhythm was disturbed, but perhaps that wasn’t a bad thing.
ISU was in a five-game losing streak before its unintended vacation and the Sycamores made a move in the right direction Wednesday with a 7-0 win over DePauw at Bob Warn Field.
“It was a disappointing weekend. We went all the way down to Tennessee and didn’t get to play. We sat around in the hotel room. We came here and it was still raining. It was nice to get out and see some live pitching,” ISU center fielder Landon Curry said. -
Metro roundup: ISU hands out spring awards
The Indiana State University athletic community, along with family, friends and fans, paused Tuesday night to honor the spring sports teams at the Terre Haute Savings Bank Spring Sports Banquet.
Most of the ISU teams are still in competition with the baseball team having 13 games left of its regular-season schedule before beginning the Missouri Valley Conference tournament May 21, the softball team with just three games left of the docket this coming weekend against Southern Illinois and the track and field program with just one more meet before beginning its postseason events.
The ISU women’s golf team is the team that has ended at this time, with the group recording a sixth-place finish at the MVC championships one week ago. -
Indiana State loses 2 in MVC softball
Indiana State aspired to upset Illinois State to get at least a doubleheader split in Missouri Valley Conference softball Thursday at Price Field as the Sycamores opened an eight-game season-ending homestand.
Paige Schreiner hit a two-run blast over the left-field fence in the fifth inning and junior Shelby Wilson delivered a sizzling RBI triple down the right-field line in the sixth as ISU ended the day playing well against the league’s highest-scoring offense.
The result was still a 5-3 loss to the Redbirds (26-18, 11-6 Missouri Valley Conference) as freshman Halle Humphrey gave up four runs in the first two innings. Humphrey, called upon to pitch the opener as well — she’s the only full-time pitcher remaining on the team — gave up six runs and eight hits as the Sycamores dropped a 6-1 game to start the day. -
ISU, MVFC brace for change at FCS football level
It seemed so far-fetched.
Internet rumors circulated that Indiana State had been approached by the Sun Belt Conference to bring the Sycamores’ football team into the Sun Belt’s fold.
The Sun Belt is part of the Football Bowl Subdivision. Bowl football. Big boy football … and all it entails.
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ISU football in good spirits after healthy Spring Game
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Loyola ready to take big step
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Sanford wraps up first spring with ISU
The final day of Indiana State football’s first Mike Sanford experience is upon the Sycamores.
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Lansing excited about Etherington's signing with Sycamores
The spring signing period for men’s basketball is usually a time to use available scholarships to load up on junior college additions and transfers.
To find a diamond-in-the-rough at the high school level who can give you four years? That’s harder to come by. -
Creighton sweep puts ISU in thick of things
In a difficult early-season Missouri Valley Conference schedule, Indiana State took its lumps. Unenviable back-to-back trips to contenders Missouri State and Wichita State had ISU reeling with five straight MVC losses eight days ago.
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Second City in the Valley: Loyola joins the MVC
For the first time in its history, the Missouri Valley Conference will have a home in the Second City.
The Chicago Tribune confirmed Saturday via a Loyola University source that the Ramblers will replace Creighton as the MVC’s 10th team. Loyola — a member of the Horizon League — will join the MVC effective July 1.
Indiana State Director of Athletics Ron Prettyman — who was part of the MVC search committee that scouted potential replacements for Creighton — confirmed Sunday that the Ramblers were in the MVC loop. -
Sycamore baseball holds off Creighton rally
By his own estimation, Indiana State baseball coach Rick Heller has been involved in close to 2,000 baseball games. If anyone has seen it all on the field, he’d be as good a candidate as any.
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Devin Moore pitches gem in 6-1 victory over Creighton
A hip injury suffered by Indiana State ace starting pitcher Sean Manaea shuffled the Sycamores’ starting rotation for the second weekend running as it opened a Missouri Valley Conference home series against Creighton on Friday.
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Sanford gets 2nd look at Sycamores
In the immediate aftermath of a practice, game, or in Friday’s case for Indiana State, a scrimmage, most football coaches defer to the film to paint a true picture of what was and wasn’t done. ISU coach Mike Sanford is no different. With the flurry of activity on both sides of the ball, it’s hard to get a true evaluation of anything watching it live.
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ISU center FN Lutz glad to be back in the middle of things
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METRO ROUNDUP: ISU's Brandon Pounds the top collegian in Sea Ray relays
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