Iowa Extends Contract of Fran McCaffery

[InGoodCo]

I think you pony up then, well Elite 8 for sure. We would not let him go to Notre Dame.

An extension now just reeks of desperation that we can't do any better than Fran.

Again, my beef here is not with Fran, it is with Barta and his negotiation tactics.

Fran is going nowhere, with or without an extension now. Why the rush, unless you think we can't do any better than Fran.

By then it’s too late though, I work contract negotiations for a living. Lock him up so there’s no question. Iowa isn’t firing him any way you slice it and he needs more than 3 years to recruit. So ya lock him up before he potentially becomes a hotter commodity

 

[hawkinn3]

Dude just led us to a top 5 finish with the player of the year, you don’t extend him you may as well fire him. Anyone saying this is premature doesn’t get how it works.

 

[Bigtenchamp]

Fran has been solid... not amazing but solid.

For people that complain about him... id like to point out that illinois hadn't been in the NCAA tournament since 2013

 

[hawkdrummer1]

Dude just led us to a top 5 finish with the player of the year, you don’t extend him you may as well fire him. Anyone saying this is premature doesn’t get how it works.

Top 5 finish in what? The B1G? The season is far from over...how high we finish is yet to be determined.
Even if we agree Fran's deserving of an extension...the timing on this is idiotically bad by Barta. Does this guy ever learn from his mistakes? FFS...

 

[InGoodCo]

Top 5 finish in what? The B1G? The season is far from over...how high we finish is yet to be determined.
Even if we agree Fran's deserving of an extension...the timing on this is idiotically bad by Barta. Does this guy every learn from his mistakes? FFS...

Why is it bad? It could go either way. In 2 weeks it could be very bad if Iowa doesn’t have him locked up too. Iowa has a path to the 2nd weekend, we’re ranked 5th in country. If you’re Iowa, ya can’t expect to lose, ya expect to win. If Iowa wins, they’re gonna want to know their coach isn’t going any where. Iowa was going to extend him anyways. I don’t really get why people question the timing on this. The last one was ridiculous, this one should be met with cheers imo.

 

[Fryowa]

3 years left on his deal isn't like it expires tomorrow lol. A hell of a lot can change in 3 years. Do you really think a recruit is going to look at that and think "hmm, he's only signed for 3 years, that means he's guaranteed to be gone by the time I'm a senior." No recruit is going to think that or be concerned that Fran "only" has 3 years left.

LOL, yes they are. Jesus, what world do you guys live in?

Re: bolded above..

Uhh, they sure as hell are going to look at that because that’s one of the biggest things other teams are going to point out during the recruitment process.

Taylor Zeutenhorst from Sheldon had the same thing happen to him only in reverse. He had a shit coach for three years (sorry, but Jack Dahm was hot garbage), and his senior year got to play for Heller. He was on the verge of leaving to play in Texas when Dahm got bounced and he said the only reason he stayed was because a great coach came on board.

Where I played college baseball we had a kid from Virginia that our coach wanted really bad, he was a stud outfielder and definitely a guy who would get drafted (he did, bounced around the minors for quite a while). The kid’s tie was that he had family in the area and our job as players was to take him around during his visit and make him feel like our school was the place to be, and you can bet your ass shit talking the other team and coach was top of the priority list.

Recruiting is a nasty business, man, and I was definitely not at the B1G level. When you get to the big show like this it’s a whole new level of espionage and I’m not really joking. There are guys here who have played college sports a they will tell you the same thing.

 

[BigD]

I agree that it could have waited until after the tournament.

Frank is the one who coached up Garza. He should be getting a check from Barta.

 

[InGoodCo]

Re: bolded above..

Uhh, they sure as hell are going to look at that because that’s one of the biggest things other teams are going to point out during the recruitment process.

Taylor Zeutenhorst from Sheldon had the same thing happen to him only in reverse. He had a shit coach for three years (sorry, but Jack Dahm was hot garbage), and his senior year got to play for Heller. He was on the verge of leaving to play in Texas when Dahm got bounced and he said the only reason he stayed was because a great coach came on board.

Where I played college baseball we had a kid from Virginia that our coach wanted really bad, he was a stud outfielder and definitely a guy who would get drafted (he did, bounced around the minors for quite a while). The kid’s tie was that he had family in the area and our job as players was to take him around during his visit and make him feel like our school was the place to be, and you can bet your ass shit talking the other team and coach was top of the priority list.

Recruiting is a nasty business, man, and I was definitely not at the B1G level. When you get to the big show like this it’s a whole new level of espionage and I’m not really joking. There are guys here who have played college sports a they will tell you the same thing.

Yeah. It’s a huge thing. Not showing him that support would put him at a disadvantage as well

 

[thedukeofearl]

Diamonds in the Rough

Aaron White
Melsohn Basabe
Nicholas Baer
Jordan Bohannon
Isaiah Moss
Luka Garza
CJ Frederick
Keegan Murray
Kris Murray
Aaron Ulis
Tony Perkins

No need to mention

Connor McCaffrey
Patrick McCaffrey

Jack Mac upcoming
Riley Mulvey upcoming

And: Of Course: Dom Uhl

 

[RobHowe]

Iowa earned a two seed in the ncaa tournament. That matched the highest seed in the history of the program. That happened one other time, in 1987.

It reflects on a full regular season, one which took place during a pandemic in a Big Ten conference ranked among the best in decades per metrics. It represented a heck of a season.

A chance to make an NCAA run last season with a consensus all-American was wiped out a year after the Hawkeyes just missed the Sweet 16.

 

[HuckFinn]

exactly. If Fran doesn't make the round of 32, Iowa is going to fire him? No, of course not. So, you want him to try and recruit with only 3 years on his deal? That's no good either. So, you want other schools to take him? So not a good look for Iowa as a program. This was when this deal needed to be done.

You ended any reasonable argument that the extension was a mistake when you pointed out asking Fran to recruit with a three year contract.

 

[HuckFinn]

3 years left on his deal isn't like it expires tomorrow lol. A hell of a lot can change in 3 years. Do you really think a recruit is going to look at that and think "hmm, he's only signed for 3 years, that means he's guaranteed to be gone by the time I'm a senior." No recruit is going to think that or be concerned that Fran "only" has 3 years left.

You are likely dead wrong. Recruits and their advisors are smart.

 

[HuckFinn]

I just read the entire 4 page thread and took time to make a couple of comments. My head hurts.

 

[hawkeyesgonewild]

Congrats fran on new contract now let's kick some ass in the tournament. And thank you to bring iowa back from the deep hole we were in.

 

[teachercoach]

If you had to hire a new coach and the resum'e said:

He guided the nationally-ranked _____ to a 21-8 regular season record and a third-place finish in the Big Ten with a 14-6 league mark in 2020-21. ____ has been ranked inside the Top 15 of the AP Poll every week this season, including No. 5 on March 9. He has guided _____ to first-division finishes in eight of the last nine seasons and 20 wins or more in seven of the last nine seasons. He will coach the _____ in the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in the last seven completed seasons. He is ______ second all-time winningest coach with 215 overall wins and 103 Big Ten victories.

He continues to create interest with recruits on a national level due to his tireless work ethic. He recruited and coached two-time National Player of the Year and Big Ten Player of the Year, Luka Garza. He has coached a first-team All-Big Ten honoree in five of the last seven seasons (Devyn Marble, 2014; Aaron White, 2015; Jarrod Uthoff, 2016; Peter Jok, 2017; and Luka Garza, 2020-21), the most over a seven-year span since 1956-62.

I think fans would be pretty excited with this hire.

 

[HaydenHawk56]

Iowa earned a two seed in the ncaa tournament. That matched the highest seed in the history of the program. That happened one other time, in 1987.

It reflects on a full regular season, one which took place during a pandemic in a Big Ten conference ranked among the best in decades per metrics. It represented a heck of a season.

A chance to make an NCAA run last season with a consensus all-American was wiped out a year after the Hawkeyes just missed the Sweet 16.

Still, does a 3rd place finish, 1 and done in the BTT, and a ranking of 5th before the final seeding warrant a 4 year extension before an NCAA tournament game has even been played?

A 4 year extension!?

If they flame out early, this will get ripped so bad. If they make a run it will look good, but it is the very definition of putting the cart before the horse.

A coach that is not leaving Iowa with or without an extension that has kids playing in the program and wifey settled into Iowa City? Where things are in a good place for coach at the moment.

Fran is going nowhere but Iowa regardless.

 

[HaydenHawk56]

If you had to hire a new coach and the resum'e said:

He guided the nationally-ranked _____ to a 21-8 regular season record and a third-place finish in the Big Ten with a 14-6 league mark in 2020-21. ____ has been ranked inside the Top 15 of the AP Poll every week this season, including No. 5 on March 9. He has guided _____ to first-division finishes in eight of the last nine seasons and 20 wins or more in seven of the last nine seasons. He will coach the _____ in the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in the last seven completed seasons. He is ______ second all-time winningest coach with 215 overall wins and 103 Big Ten victories.

He continues to create interest with recruits on a national level due to his tireless work ethic. He recruited and coached two-time National Player of the Year and Big Ten Player of the Year, Luka Garza. He has coached a first-team All-Big Ten honoree in five of the last seven seasons (Devyn Marble, 2014; Aaron White, 2015; Jarrod Uthoff, 2016; Peter Jok, 2017; and Luka Garza, 2020-21), the most over a seven-year span since 1956-62.

I think fans would be pretty excited with this hire.

Great, but you know what is missing from all that? No Sweet 16s, No Elite 8s, No Final Fours.......no Big Ten Titles in 11 years. From a guy who has, and I repeat, has never been passed the first weekend anywhere.

And he is locked up now for 7 years. They could lose to Grand Canyon and that 4 year deal has been inked.

Barta sure as shit better hope he has a long run in the tournament. I mean they probably will, but they likely have some battles ahead in route to it. This could come back to bite him. Again, it just seems like this could have waited.

 

[scout22]

some of these comments are insane. Iowa is a #2 seed, lets reflect on the Lick years. The rare games that Lick won, it was like watching paint dry. Fran deserves this, some of the critics need to get out of the fish bowl and realize Iowa is not a hot bed of basketball and look at the guys he has brought in that have truly develop under Fran's leadership. He consistently takes 2 star players and get the most out of them. Now lets make a deep run in the dance.

 

[HaydenHawk56]

some of these comments are insane. Iowa is a #2 seed, lets reflect on the Lick years. The rare games that Lick won, it was like watching paint dry. Fran deserves this, some of the critics need to get out of the fish bowl and realize Iowa is not a hot bed of basketball and look at the guys he has brought in that have truly develop under Fran's leadership. He consistently takes 2 star players and get the most out of them. Now lets make a deep run in the dance.

This is Mr. Davis in 9 out of 13 years:
9 NCAAs in 13 years
1 Elite 8 (he had another at Boston College)
2 Sweet 16s
Never lost a first round game

He was let go in year 13.

Fran is about to have his 6th NCAA appearance in 11 years (one of those was a play-in game). He is 3-0 in first round games. 0-1 in the play-in game. One year lost because of covid.

Fran has seven more years on this contract. So, he will be at Iowa for 18 years if he stays until the end of it.

This is how it sits pre Grand Canyon game. Better than Lickliter by far, but what an extension compared to the last good coach at Iowa. Yes, he did have a big rebuilding job, but hopefully he adds what is missing to his resume in this tourney.

 

[WindsorHawk]

Okay so anytime a team happens to reach a top 5 ranking they should just immediately extend their coach without taking anything else into consideration?

Look, we clearly disagree, so it's probably silly for us to continue arguing, and I like you as a poster, so let's just agree to disagree.

You’re argument gets worse post by post. I was going to let Admin Fry and In Good handle this but I’ll chime in.

Did you read the story? Did you see the NCAA bids? Did you see the 1st team all conference players? The all freshmen team guys over the years weren’t even mentioned...a testament to Fran’s ability to identify talent.

I chose this post to quote because you suggest it’s the Top 5 ranking as “the reason.” There are lots of reasons and this extension is merited.

And for the record I don’t think we were in imminent danger of losing him. He earned this. And it would have happened last year if not for the pandemic, etc. So this was already going to happen.