What you said, Tory. Totally agree. Look, I don't have a dog in this fight as a Cyclone fan and alum. I think Fran is a hothead, even a bit of a clown sometimes, and Gary Barta confirmed publicly it was "no secret" he didn't get along with play-by-play announcer Gary Dolphin. But Fran damn sure has been more successful than either of his two immediate predecessors, definitely a better individual than the latter one you mentioned. And if he is done, he sure as hell deserves a better sendoff than Dr. Tom got. That was downright disgraceful. Just remember Dr. Tom took Iowa to the Sweet 16 for a swan song and the Hawks haven't been back since. So don't let the boo birds foul the Hawk nest. Fran's the longest tenured and winningest coach in school history and has the best winning percentage since Dr. Tom. So give him his due. You dont take a guy who's given 15 years of his life to a progam and say don't let the door hit you in the rear on the way out.
I know Lute Olson is still a god in Iowa City and every coach since has had to live up to his luminescent image. But Lute left for another school. Fran hung in there all these years, he's 65 years old and this might be his last stop on the train. Give the man a break and back him and his guys. His emotions after the Rutgers game say a lot. You wouldn't have gotten that out of Alford. I much prefer a temper tantrum out of a guy who still has some passion for his team. Fran still cares and this is still a big deal to him. And good for him.
I think Fran’s caustic East Coast personality was always a challenge for many Iowa fans to embrace. One thing that’s always been fascinating to me is that for the most case, opposing coaches, national media and others immersed in the world of college basketball tend to LOVE McCaffery. Often, he seems more popular among them than the actual Hawkeye fanbase.
yeah I know. An old sportswriter friend of mine actually got to have dinner with him and his wife and said he was very nice. Great, actually. But when your own assistants have to hold you back from going after a ref, and then get testy with your own play by play announcer on a coach's show afterward, well, that reflects negatively not only on you but the university. I get the heat of battle -- God knows I can remember Johnny Orr losing it a few times. I would say it's not peculiar to one region of the country since Johnny was from downstate Illinois and his first coaching job was at Dubuque Senior High School.
But I also saw a documentary on John Wooden where he could put players or refs on edge just saying, "Oh my goodness," He didn't have to throw a chair, bust a telephone on a scorer's table or take bullwhips to press conferences for theatrical effect like someone else. To Fran's credit I never heard of him being a bully.
Then there's "the good old days" when I read Woody Hayes and Iowa's Forrest Evashevski almost came to blows at a coach's conference....
It's time for a change. Fran may be a good guy and his players may still be playing hard but the fans are mostly tuned out and ready for something different. In the NIL era this is fatal and I suspect Beth Goetz knows it. I trust her to handle the transition with tact and with class; the bigger challenge will be finding the next coach who can do all of the things needed to be successful in this era, which includes selling the program's new direction to the currently apathetic fanbase. Iowa is a very difficult place to win in men's college basketball bc of the limited top end in-state talent and the difficulty in getting out of state recruits to come with the limited track record of success. Plus money matters more than ever--both in terms of potentially buying out a sitting coach like Darian Devries (on top of Fran's buyout) AND in terms of limited NIL committed to men's basketball. Regardless of the challenges it's time for a change and most Hawkeye fans know it.
I agree it feels like time for a new direction. That said, despite his post-season struggles, there is a fairly decent chance Iowa as a program performs worse under the McCaffery successor than better. As you note, tough place to win in an extremely competitive conference.
What you said, Tory. Totally agree. Look, I don't have a dog in this fight as a Cyclone fan and alum. I think Fran is a hothead, even a bit of a clown sometimes, and Gary Barta confirmed publicly it was "no secret" he didn't get along with play-by-play announcer Gary Dolphin. But Fran damn sure has been more successful than either of his two immediate predecessors, definitely a better individual than the latter one you mentioned. And if he is done, he sure as hell deserves a better sendoff than Dr. Tom got. That was downright disgraceful. Just remember Dr. Tom took Iowa to the Sweet 16 for a swan song and the Hawks haven't been back since. So don't let the boo birds foul the Hawk nest. Fran's the longest tenured and winningest coach in school history and has the best winning percentage since Dr. Tom. So give him his due. You dont take a guy who's given 15 years of his life to a progam and say don't let the door hit you in the rear on the way out.
I know Lute Olson is still a god in Iowa City and every coach since has had to live up to his luminescent image. But Lute left for another school. Fran hung in there all these years, he's 65 years old and this might be his last stop on the train. Give the man a break and back him and his guys. His emotions after the Rutgers game say a lot. You wouldn't have gotten that out of Alford. I much prefer a temper tantrum out of a guy who still has some passion for his team. Fran still cares and this is still a big deal to him. And good for him.
I think Fran’s caustic East Coast personality was always a challenge for many Iowa fans to embrace. One thing that’s always been fascinating to me is that for the most case, opposing coaches, national media and others immersed in the world of college basketball tend to LOVE McCaffery. Often, he seems more popular among them than the actual Hawkeye fanbase.
yeah I know. An old sportswriter friend of mine actually got to have dinner with him and his wife and said he was very nice. Great, actually. But when your own assistants have to hold you back from going after a ref, and then get testy with your own play by play announcer on a coach's show afterward, well, that reflects negatively not only on you but the university. I get the heat of battle -- God knows I can remember Johnny Orr losing it a few times. I would say it's not peculiar to one region of the country since Johnny was from downstate Illinois and his first coaching job was at Dubuque Senior High School.
But I also saw a documentary on John Wooden where he could put players or refs on edge just saying, "Oh my goodness," He didn't have to throw a chair, bust a telephone on a scorer's table or take bullwhips to press conferences for theatrical effect like someone else. To Fran's credit I never heard of him being a bully.
Then there's "the good old days" when I read Woody Hayes and Iowa's Forrest Evashevski almost came to blows at a coach's conference....
The contrast with Iowa State’s program is not helping them right now either.
Great article! One quick edit: they won at Rutgers, not Purdue (I wish!) 👍😂
Oh crumbs, you are right - was still thinking about the big 2010 upset! I'll edit, thanks
It's time for a change. Fran may be a good guy and his players may still be playing hard but the fans are mostly tuned out and ready for something different. In the NIL era this is fatal and I suspect Beth Goetz knows it. I trust her to handle the transition with tact and with class; the bigger challenge will be finding the next coach who can do all of the things needed to be successful in this era, which includes selling the program's new direction to the currently apathetic fanbase. Iowa is a very difficult place to win in men's college basketball bc of the limited top end in-state talent and the difficulty in getting out of state recruits to come with the limited track record of success. Plus money matters more than ever--both in terms of potentially buying out a sitting coach like Darian Devries (on top of Fran's buyout) AND in terms of limited NIL committed to men's basketball. Regardless of the challenges it's time for a change and most Hawkeye fans know it.
I agree it feels like time for a new direction. That said, despite his post-season struggles, there is a fairly decent chance Iowa as a program performs worse under the McCaffery successor than better. As you note, tough place to win in an extremely competitive conference.