Darian DeVries Made a Huge Mistake by Leaving WVU for Indiana

Darian DeVries had the opportunity to get West Virginia back on the map and go down as one of the best coaches in program history, and who knows, maybe even in college basketball. There's still a chance that DeVries will be successful at Indiana, and a rough year one doesn't necessarily forecast what's to come, just like the situation for his replacement at WVU, Ross Hodge.

On Wednesday, DeVries and the Indiana Hoosiers lost to then 14-18 Northwestern in the Big Ten Conference tournament, bringing the Hoosiers to 18-14 on the season — the same mark the Mountaineers have in year one under Hodge.

A year ago, DeVries left WVU for Indiana, which he called "Unquestionably one of the top jobs in America." I mean, sure, maybe a quarter century ago.

As WVU AD Wren Baker noted following DeVries' departure, “Since 2000 [0-1 season], we’ve been to one more NCAA tournament than them, and three more sweet 16’s,” Baker said. So, recent history. Our program has been just as successful, if not more.

There will always be a belief from West Virginia fans that DeVries purposefully held out his son Tucker, so that he could redshirt and play one more year at their next stop. There's only a handful of people who know the truth about that, but the bigger problem, in my opinion, is how he left.

Just hours after WVU received the label of the biggest tournament snub in NCAA Tournament history, he bolted. Even before Selection Sunday, there wasn't much of a pitch being made by DeVries to vouch for his team to get in. Even a handful of Mountaineer players publicly showed their feelings on his decision to leave, including the man who essentially helped him land the Indiana gig, Javon Small.

😂😂😂😂 https://t.co/Yj3aFq7TBJ
— Sencire Harris (@SencireH) April 5, 2025

Javon Small - not a fan of Darian DeVries pic.twitter.com/w705WN0p0o
— KangEerRoo (@KangEerRoo) March 19, 2025

Lool
— Eduardo Andre (@EastLDNAndre) March 19, 2025

😔😔😔😔
— Ofri Naveh (@OfriNaveh) March 17, 2025

West Virginia was a much safer job

Mar 11, 2026; Chicago, IL, USA; Indiana Hoosiers head coach Darian Devries directs his team against the Northwestern Wildcats during the first half at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

DeVries would have had to rebuild his roster at WVU following last season, just like he's going to have to do this year at Indiana. And much like last season, he's ending his first year on the job without much hope for the future as far as building blocks are concerned.

The problem? Indiana doesn't have patience. Since the start of the post-Bob Knight era, Tom Crean has held the longest tenure at Indiana, which is nine years. Mike Davis had the job for six years, Kelvin Sampson for two, and the two men who came before him — Archie Miller, Mike Woodson — had it for four years each.

Expectations are incredibly high at West Virginia, too, but they have patience and don't have the incredible pressure of being a blue blood. Maybe it works for DeVries at Indiana, maybe it doesn't. But he passed up a golden opportunity to build something special in Morgantown.

A blessing in disguise for WVU?

West Virginia University head coach Ross Hodge | Christopher Hall - West Virginia on SI

Leaving WVU was a mistake on DeVries' part, but it led the Mountaineers to Ross Hodge, who is clearly just a better fit for the program. He relates better to the fans, he cares deeply about the history, tradition, and the people of the state, and oh yeah, he can coach and recruit at a high level, too. He had less talent than DeVries had at WVU a year ago and fell just one win shy of his first-year mark.