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The Iowa Hawkeyes finished this season with a measly 17-16 record. They will not be participating in the NCAA Tournament after suffering a 106-94 loss to the Illinois Fighting Illini on Thursday night.
As a result, Iowa has decided to enter a new era after reports indicate that head coach Fran McCaffery is being dismissed, according to Pete Thamel of ESPN. McCaffery spent 15 years coaching the Hawkeyes. He led the team to seven NCAA Tournament appearances and is the all-time wins leader (297) in school history.
“Sources: Iowa is set to dismiss basketball coach Fran McCaffery after 15 seasons. He reached seven NCAA tournaments in his 15 years and is the school’s all-time leader in wins with 297. Iowa finished 17-16 this year.”
Iowa has failed to win 20 or more games in the past three seasons. During that span, the Hawkeyes own a 55-45 record. They've now missed out on the NCCA Tournament for two consecutive seasons in a row.
The last time McCaffery led the Hawkeyes to the big dance was in the 2022-23 season. Throughout the 15 seasons the 65-year-old head coach spent in Iowa, the team never made it past the second round.
In the 2020-21 season, Fran McCaffery managed to earn a No. 2 seed in the tournament. Unfortunately, they suffered a 95-80 loss to the Oregon Ducks in a brutal upset. McCaffery ends his run in Iowa with a career 297-207 record.
McCaffery's coaching career began in 1982 when he was hired on as an assistant for the Penn Quakers. He earned his first head coaching gig with the Lehigh Mountain Hawks in 1985 and held that position for three years. He also served as a head coach for the UNC Greensboro Spartans and the Siena Saints before accepting the Iowa job in 2010.
It's currently unclear who the Hawkeyes plan to hire to replace McCaffery. But the Iowa basketball program made it clear that it's ready for a change. They'll begin their search as soon as possible and hopefully have a new head coach sooner rather than later.
