Iowa men’s basketball isn’t a stepping-stone program, but considering this is the Hawkeyes first trip to the Elite Eight since 1987, you’re not going to fool anyone into thinking it's a blue-blood either. Head coach of the Hawkeyes isn’t the dream job for most coaches when they start their careers, but most coaches aren’t Ben McCollum.
The 44-year-old Iowa City native is nothing if not loyal. Sure, he bolted from Drake after one season, but despite winning four Division II national titles at Northwest Missouri State, the first of which came in 2017, he stayed to lead the program for 15 seasons. Now, he’s home, and though he’d be one of the hottest names on the college basketball coaching carousel, he’s not ready to take it for another spin.
Along Iowa’s dream run to the Elite Eight, McCollum has emerged as a potential candidate for the North Carolina job, vacated by Hubert Davis’s firing, and the Kansas job, which could come open if Bill Self’s health concerns force him to retire. Both are top-five jobs in the sport, but that doesn’t mean they’d entice McCollum to leave his hometown so soon.
McCollum was asked about the speculation surrounding the two jobs on Friday, after his off-day press conference in Houston, and made his feelings crystal clear, stating his intention to coach the Hawkeyes next season and calling the rumors “lies.”
Iowa head coach Ben McCollum’s name has been floated in connection to coaching positions like at North Carolina and Kansas.
— Eliot Clough (@EliotClough) March 27, 2026
Asked if he is planning on returning to Iowa next year: “Yes.”
“Those [rumors] are all lies.” pic.twitter.com/f6ckzBiX5C
Ben McCollum plans to return to Iowa next season
With his methodical pace of play and deliberate offensive attack, McCollum has already cemented his place as one of the most terrifying postseason matchups in the country. He immediately turned Drake into a 30-plus win team and led the Bulldogs to their first NCAA Tournament win since 1971 over Missouri last year.
This postseason, he’s already gotten the best of Clemson’s Brad Brownell, defending national champion Todd Golden, and the Big Ten Coach of the Year, Fred Hoiberg, on Thursday night. Most impressively, McCollum was able to negate Florida’s immense size advantage by pulling Golden’s bigs away from the rim, and his Hawkeyes outscored the Gators 32-30 in the paint.
McCollum will face a major test next season without Bennett Stirtz, his star point guard who followed him from DII to Drake and now to Iowa City. But there’s nothing on his resume that says he won’t be up to the task.
Eventually, if McCollum keeps winning, a big-time job may pluck him away. Especially if he feels he’s bumping his head on the ceiling of Iowa’s comparatively limited financial resources. However, it doesn’t sound like this will be that year, and that’s a massive relief for Hawkeyes fans hoping to keep the good vibes rolling.