Riley Donald | Hawkeyes Wire
It is often said that where there is smoke, there is fire. It seems the smoke around the Iowa Hawkeyes men’s basketball program and the future of coach Fran McCaffery is thickening.
The relationship, which has lasted a decade and a half, has approached a point where some wonder if it is time to go in a different direction. There are murmurs that a mutual parting of ways could occur if the season continues as it is because Iowa could buy out the contract at a reasonable number.
At 13-8 on the year with no signs of the schedule letting up in the thick of Big Ten play, others are asking if Iowa could move on following this season. Most recently, Sports Illustrated asked the question by putting Fran McCaffery on its hot seat watch.
Fran McCaffery, Iowa Hawkeyes
McCaffery is in Year 15 in Iowa City. It’s been a successful tenure overall, with seven NCAA tournament appearances and some high-level teams lately with Luka Garza and Keegan Murray. But things feel stale here, and McCaffery isn’t getting any younger at 65. His youngest son, Jack, graduates high school this summer and will play next season with the Butler Bulldogs, where one McCaffery (Patrick) is currently playing and another (Connor) is coaching. His contract at Iowa runs through 2027–28, but a change in direction might make most sense for both sides. – Kevin Sweeney, Sports Illustrated
Sweeney describes the situation as stale, which is an accurate term for how the situation feels. Yes, Iowa has had success and won a lot of games under McCaffery, yet it has never made an NCAA Tournament run or advanced to the second weekend and the Sweet 16.Should Iowa move on, the job would garner interest from some attractive potential candidates who have local and state ties to the program. As the Hawkeyes enter the homestretch of the season, the temperature and conversation around how hot Fran McCaffery’s seat is should be monitored.
