Iowa City, IA- The madness of March is not just confined to the hardcourt, but the coaching carousel as well with numerous coaches having announced their decision to accept vacant positions at other programs. You can add Ben McCollum to that list as Iowa has reached an agreement to have the 43-year-old lead the men’s basketball team next year.
It did not take McCollum long to make a name for himself at the Division I level as his first season at the helm of Drake yield a 30-3 record during the regular season that included the Missouri Valley Conference regular season and tournament championships, which brought upon an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
The #11-seeded Bulldogs pulled off one of the few upsets in the first round, handing the #6-seeded Missouri a 67-57 loss. Despite just entering the upper echelon of coaching, McCollum has exuded confidence in himself and his players,
“I’d be lying if I said I didn’t expect this,” McCollum said late Thursday night after Drake secured its first NCAA tournament win since 2021. “… I expected exactly this. I expected [my players] to compete. I brought winners with me. That’s what I brought. I guess my superpower is finding winners, finding tough kids and believing in them. So, I kind of expected this. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t. I know I try to be humble in other words. But man, I believe in these kids.”
His 31 wins this season were a program record for the Bulldogs as they finished a win away from their first Sweet 16 appearance since 1971.
Before coaching at Drake, McCollum dominated at the Division II level with Northwest Missouri State, totaling 394 wins in 15 seasons as he won four Division II titles. After returning to his home state, his overall record now sits at 425-95—a winning clip of 82%.
Now, coaching in the city he was born in; McCollum will now have to deal with the expectations of improving a Hawkeye team that has missed back-to-back NCAA tournament bids. Additionally, he will have to replace Fran McCaffery, the all-time winningest coach in Iowa history.
This will be McCollum’s first power conference job when the Hawkeyes tip-off in the upcoming winter. Iowa Athletics will be hosting an introductory press conference tomorrow, March 25th, at 3:30 pm.