April Fools’: Knight, Knight, Dixon. Bob Knight to coach Pitt

A stunning chain of events rocked Oakland over the weekend, resulting in two coaching changes… A stunning chain of events rocked Oakland over the weekend, resulting in two coaching changes that both shocked and relieved fans of Pitt across the country.

The domino effect began when Jamie Dixon, the long-standing basketball coach who has taken the Panthers to two Sweet 16 appearances in his five years at the helm, bolted to coach the esteemed Indiana Hoosiers.

Indiana was desperate for a coach after Kelvin Sampson was removed for recruiting violations. Dan Dakich, Sampson’s replacement, struggled to connect with the players and the Hoosiers lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Indiana athletic director Rick Greenspan courted Dixon from the start and was impressed by Dixon’s impressive record and tournament resume. Dixon was 132-40 in his career at Pitt.

Desperate for a coach to make an impact in Hoosier nation, Greenspan offered Dixon a 10-year, $100 million contract that was too much for Dixon to turn down.

“I love it here in Pittsburgh, and the program and fans will always be in my heart,” Dixon said. “But come on, $10 million a year? Who would be that stupid to turn that down?”

Pitt athletic director Steve Pederson wasted little time when learning of Dixon’s departure. Although he valued Dixon’s work as Pitt’s coach, he knew immediately who to contact for the vacant position.

All it took was one phone call, and coaching legend Bobby Knight listened. Saturday evening, 12 hours after Dixon left his post, Knight was named the new coach at Pitt.

Knight was the obvious choice. He is the all-time leader in victories as a college head coach with 902. He resigned as coach at Texas Tech midway through this past season after posting a 12-8 record.

“I am honored to be given this opportunity to push toward 1,000 wins,” Knight said at the press conference. “Everybody knows how much I respect Pittsburgh, and I plan to push this team over the top and win a national championship, unless I resign first.”

Knight gained national attention in his short stay as an analyst on ESPN. Knight was always a huge critic of the media but was entertaining and informative while on the air.

Pederson knew that Knight was the right choice for Pitt, all because of his NCAA Tournament predictions. In his predictions for the Tournament, Knight picked the Panthers to defeat North Carolina in the NCAA Championship game. He thought Pitt was the most impressive team in the nation after winning the Big East Tournament with four wins in as many days.

Knight decided to sign his contract on a monthly basis, instead of the normal yearly format. He wanted the opportunity to back out at any moment if his heart wasn’t in it anymore or if the team was not at the level he first thought.

The contract gives Knight $1 million a month. It includes a stipulation that Knight can only have one media outburst per month.

The real stunner, though, came only hours later. Football coach Dave Wannstedt came out of nowhere and announced that he would resign