Has Romeo Langford Been a Disappointment for the Hoosiers?

Following Saturday’s Indiana Hoosiers’ defeat by the Purdue Boilermakers – their fourth straight loss – there are a lot of questions surrounding the IU basketball program. One question I found myself and many others on Twitter asking is if Romeo Langford has been a disappointment for the Hoosiers.

The simple answer is yes.

Romeo Langford was recruited as a 5-star prodigy out of New Albany High School in Indiana. He was named Mr. Basketball – an award given to the most outstanding high school basketball player in the state of Indiana. He turned down high-profile programs such as Kansas and Louisville to stay home and play his college ball with Indiana University. CBS even called Langford “the chosen prince” of IU.

But here we are – mid January, after the Hoosiers’ fourth straight conference loss. How did the “chosen prince” fare against inter-state, inter-conference rival Purdue? Langford shot 2-10, scoring only 4 points.

The day started off shaky for Langford when he was charged with his second foul in the early minutes of the game. While he was confined to the bench for most of the first half, the Hoosiers struggled. After a scoreless first half, Langford converted two and-one’s on some generous fouls – although he missed the free throw on both. Langford was shaken. He was in West Lafayette with the entire stadium chanting “OVERRATED” at him. Did he realize they were correct? Is Romeo Langford overrated? Carsen Edwards sure outplayed him.

Now I am not saying he is not good – he is very good. So good in fact, he will likely be picked in the top 15 of the 2019 NBA Draft. So why would I call him a disappointment?

Langford is a disappointment because of the lofty standards we give college basketball players. No 5-star recruit will ever be the savior of a college basketball program. None of them are the “chosen prince”. Unless you recruit the three best players in the country (cough, cough DUKE) then there will likely not be that big of an effect. Romeo Langford is not leading the Hoosiers to a national championship. IU will be lucky to make it to the sweet sixteen. Then the NBA draft will come around and Romeo Langford will never be an Indiana Hoosier again.

Sure, he will have averaged 20 points per game and led the Hoosiers to a tournament bid, but is that really what everyone expected when IU landed him… one decent year? The truth is players like Romeo only go to college for one year in order to make the league; it’s never a long term thing. For anyone to think otherwise would just be silly.

When it is all said and done, Romeo Langford likely won’t be remembered as an Indiana Hoosier. He has bigger plans in mind. Is that disappointing? To a Hoosier fan, certainly. But to a Langford fan, it is only just the beginning.