Since his shockingly quick depart from WVU to take the head coaching job at Indiana just a few weeks ago, Darian DeVries had been quiet about his time with the Mountaineers. Many fans have grown frustrated with the coach’s lack of departing message to WVU on his way to a better opportunity.
DeVries has done multiple interviews and media appearances since, but has only ever briefly talked about his time at what he has called his “last stop.”
Now, however, on The Jim Rome Show earlier this week, DeVries was asked about going from the disappointment of West Virginia missing out on the tournament to being hired at “one of the most prominent basketball positions in the country.”
“We had an awesome group of guys and certainly felt like we were in and the disappointment that came with that was real,” DeVries said. “That’s something I felt terrible for our team and staff and administration and fans, and everyone that was behind that group. So that part was tough for sure. We had a tremendous year and unbelievable support there.”
Right after that response, the former Mountaineer head coach was then asked why he decided to leave WVU with Jim Rome pointing out, “coaches do not generally take a job with the intention of staying one season, especially if it means you have to uproot your family.” Rome would go on to ask what the decision came down to for DeVries when leaving WVU.
“We loved our time there. We had tremendous support. The people and the area treated us unbelievably well. The administration was fully behind it.” DeVries added, “It was just one of those things from a timing standpoint, when’s it’s Indiana… that brand and that opportunity and the resources and things here that give you every chance to be successful, it was just something that I couldn’t pass up.”
The coach did things the wrong way. It was on public display. First and foremost, he did a disservice to his players. Second, failed to fully honor his contract at West Virginia University. Finally, did the fans that pay for the tickets and a portion of his salary wrong. The way he handled the situation will likely provide a glimpse into what might be character flaws that will likely be a detriment to future success.
About the time he became interested in Indiana his son developed a medical reason to acquire a medical redshirt to allow him to follow his Dad to Indiana! 🥲
I agree with these comments on how he mishandled it. At the end of the day – Indiana is a bigger job than WVU and so it is what it is. But it sure seems like it was in the works for quite a while and it does call into question how things were handled from November on. His son’s injury situation seems contrived. To find out he may not have been injured when that was the main (lame) excuse the NCAA selection group used for passing on WVU is really bad. Not to mention barely playing and taking a million in NIL. Those things seem like significant character flaws.