So after mulling over this for a bit, reading other posts, and letting it all soak in....
Marquette will be fine in the end. Crean's time at MU was important in my respects, and the job he did and the efforts he made were great and more than admirable. But...
...in a way, if he was going to go, this was probably the perfect time to go (AD aside). MU has facilities, power conference, a fertile recruiting ground, and most importantly $$$$. The university has shown it's willing to pony up dough for it's men's basketball coach, and don't think for a second that this hasn't been noticed by other coaches. Not having football is a curse and a blessing. For the next coach, it will be a blessing.
I liked Crean as a coach, thought he had one of his best season's this year X's and O's wise, but part of me always wondered if the players got tired of hearing his voice for an entire year. I have no way of knowing, but if the next coach comes in with the current roster intact, and the recruits intact, he's walking into a FANTASTIC scenario. Ironically, the next coach will be (in the short term anyway) WAY better off than what Crean is walking into at IU.
Odd timing on Crean's end. I really wonder what the dollars and cents are going to be at IU. If Gordon leaves, IU will finish in the bottom half of the Big 11 next year (and outside of Purdue, Mich St., and Wisco, it'll be down again next year). If the NCAA hits IU with sanctions, it's going to be a long time before they get better. Crean isn't allowed to recruit off IU's campus until further notice.
Thanks for the memories Tom. Good luck at IU, you might need it.