MEMPHIS, TN – MARCH 27: Head coach Archie Miller of the Dayton Flyers looks on during a regional semifinal of the 2014 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament against the Stanford Cardinal at the FedExForum on March 27, 2014 in Memphis, Tennessee. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)

When Indiana fired men’s basketball coach Tom Crean earlier this month, some observers wondered whether the Hoosiers would be able to find someone as qualified to replace him.

Well, it turns out they have.

Indiana announced Saturday that it has lured Archie Miller, one of the top young coaches in the country, away from Dayton. According to reports from ESPN and The Vertical, Miller’s contract is for seven years.

Here’s Miller’s statement on taking the Indiana job:

“I am honored to be the head coach at Indiana University,” Miller said Saturday in a statement. “IU is one of the greatest basketball programs and academic institutions in the country and I cannot wait to get started. With peerless fan support, outstanding facilities and tradition, a beautiful campus, and located in one of the most fertile recruiting areas in the country, IU is a dream destination for me and my family.”

Only 38 years old, Miller’s resume is truly sparkling. In his six seasons at Dayton, the Flyers went 139-63 and made the NCAA Tournament four straight years, reaching the Elite 8 in 2014. Miller took a school that made the Big Dance only seven times since 1970 and turned it into a perennial tournament team.

Given that NBA coaches Brad Stevens and Billy Donovan had no interest in returning to college to coach the Hoosiers, Miller is about as qualified a coach as Indiana was going to find. While he’s not as big a name or as much a local hero as Steve Alford, he has a better reputation and a more impressive track record.

Miller also has experience in the Big Ten, having served as an Ohio State assistant from 2007-09. Given his recruiting success at Dayton, he should have no trouble drawing kids to Indiana—another mid-sized city in a midwestern state but one with a deep basketball history and some of the most devoted fans in college basketball.

Firing Crean, a polarizing coach who had seen some pretty significant success, was only a good idea if the Hoosiers could find a suitable replacement for him. On Saturday, they certainly did.

About Alex Putterman

Alex is a writer and editor for The Comeback and Awful Announcing. He has written for The Atlantic, VICE Sports, MLB.com, SI.com and more. He is a proud alum of Northwestern University and The Daily Northwestern. You can find him on Twitter @AlexPutterman.