For the first time since 2010, the Iowa Hawkeyes are looking for a new men’s basketball coach.
Iowa announced on Friday that they have decided to fire head coach Fran McCaffery after 15 seasons in charge. The move comes after Iowa lost to Illinois in the Big Ten Tournament on Thursday, ending their season.
“Fran McCaffery has been an integral part of our Hawkeye family for the past 15 years,” said director of athletics Beth Goetz in a statement. “He is a tremendous coach and teacher, and we are grateful for the positive impact he has made on the institution and the community. We have a deep appreciation for his dedication to our student-athletes and his passion for the game that will have a lasting impact on our program.”
McCaffery, 65, took over the job in 2010 and produced a program-record 297 total wins. He led the Hawkeyes to seven total appearances in the NCAA Tournament and also oversaw a Big Ten Tournament championship in the 2021-22 season. McCaffery was also known for his fiery demeanor towards referees and was (fittingly) ejected from his final game in charge on Thursday for arguing with the officials.
But ever since that Big Ten Tournament title, McCaffery’s record at Iowa had been steadily getting worse. Iowa went 19-14 in 2022-23 and 19-15 in 2023-24 before finishing up this year at 17-16 (including 7-13 in conference play). McCaffery also never led the team past the Round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament and had now produced a second consecutive season of failing to make the tournament altogether.
Iowa’s release notes that a national search for a new head coach will begin immediately. As for McCaffery, perhaps his legacy will be carried on by his son Connor, who played for his father at Iowa and is now an assistant coach at Butler University (on top of being in a relationship with Caitlin Clark).
