POWERED BY CARL’S AUTO GROUP. THE BEN MCCULLUM ERA IS NOW OFFICIALLY IN FULL SWING. THE HAWKEYES ARE IN THE MIDDLE OF THAT SUMMER GRIND, AND AS vlog JEFF DUBROF REPORTS, IT IS A GRIND. THERE HAS BEEN A LOT OF PRAISE HEAPED ONTO THE IOWA MEN’S BASKETBALL PROGRAM THIS OFFSEASON. SOME NATIONAL PUBLICATIONS GOING AS FAR AS TO CALL THE HAWKEYES THE CHAMPIONS. THE WINNERS OF THE OFFSEASON. OF COURSE, YOU BRING IN BEN MCCULLUM AS YOUR NEW HEAD COACH. HE BRINGS IN BENNETT STURTZ TO HEADLINE A NICE TRANSFER CLASS. BUT OFF-SEASON CHAMPIONSHIPS WON’T GET YOU A BANNER IN THE RAFTERS HERE AT CARVER-HAWKEYE ARENA. THEY’RE IN THE MIDDLE OF THEIR SUMMER WORKOUTS, AND THEY’RE HOPING TO SET THE TONE EARLY. AND THE PLAYERS ARE ALL TELLING ME WHETHER IT’S IN THE WEIGHT ROOM OR ON THE COURT. IT HAS BEEN TOUGH. IT HAS BEEN THE STUFF OF LEGENDS THAT BEN MCCULLUM HAS BEEN PUTTING THEM THROUGH, AND THE TEAM IS BONDING THROUGH BLOOD, SWEAT, TEARS. AND MAYBE ONE MORE THING. THERE WAS SPEAKERS ON DAY ONE LAST YEAR. ON DAY ONE, I DEFINITELY THOUGHT ABOUT IT, BUT I DIDN’T. BUT YEAH, JUST GETTING THEM ALONG, YOU KNOW, LIKE WE DID LAST YEAR. SO WE’RE USED TO THIS. SO JUST ATTACKING IT, NOT REALLY JUST GETTING THROUGH IT BUT ATTACKING IT. I DID PUKE. YEAH I DIDN’T I DIDN’T EAT BREAKFAST. I DIDN’T I DIDN’T EAT BREAKFAST. SO I WILL BLAME THAT I WAS FINE UNTIL WE STARTED DOING OUR FINISHER AT THE END. AND THEN IT GOT TO ME AND YEAH, I PUKED AND THAT WAS THAT. I MADE IT THROUGH. BUT NO, I WASN’T ONE OF THOSE. BUT IT WAS REALLY TOUGH. BUT NO, I MADE IT THROUGH. IT WAS A BIG WAKE UP CALL FOR THE NEW GUYS WHO HAD A LOT OF PUKERS IN THE FIRST DAY. SO IT WAS A FUN FIRST DAY. THEY’RE HOPING THE FANS SEE THE RESULTS OF THOSE WORKOUTS WHEN THE SEASON BEGINS IN ABOUT 3 TO 4 MONTHS, WHEN HALF EMPTY CARVER-HAWKEYE ARENA, THAT BECOMES A THING OF THE PAST. REPORTING FROM IOW
Ben McCollum brings record of success to Iowa as he takes another step up on the coaching ladder
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Updated: 12:05 PM CDT Oct 29, 2025
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The Hawkeyes are turning to Ben McCollum to energize a program that had faded the past two years under all-time wins leader Fran McCaffery. McCollum was one of the biggest stories in college basketball last season. He moved up from Division II Northwest Missouri State to lead Drake to a school-record 31 wins, Missouri Valley regular-season and tournament championships and to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.Players to watchNBA draft prospect Bennett Stirtz, among five players and two recruits who followed McCollum from Drake, blossomed into the nation's premier mid-major player last season. He was the first MVC player to record 600 points (673), 200 assists (200) and 70 steals (72) in a season. ... Kansas State transfer Brendan Hausen provides much-needed power-conference experience. He started all 33 games for the Wildcats, averaged 10.9 points and is a reliable 3-point threat. ... Alvaro Folgueiras was Horizon League player of the year at Robert Morris after averaging 14.1 points, 9.1 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.4 steals per game.Departures and arrivalsOf 14 players who played for Iowa last season, only two are back, unrelated reserves Cooper and Jacob Koch. ... In addition to Stirtz, Hausen and Folgueiras, MVC Sixth Man of the Year Tavion Banks (Drake) will be counted on after he shot 52% from the field and averaged 10.1 points and 5 rebounds per game. ... The 6-foot-9, 250-pound Cam Manyawu and the 6-10, 230-pound Folgueiras are the beefiest players for a team that will be challenged physically. Manyawu averaged 7.1 points and team-leading 5.3 rebounds for Drake.Top gamesThe opener is at home against Robert Morris on Nov. 4. The Hawkeyes go to the Acrisure Classic in Palm Springs, California, to play Mississippi on Nov. 25 and Grand Canyon or Utah on Nov. 26. The Big Ten opener is at No. 22 Michigan State on Dec. 2, and the annual CyHawk Game is at Iowa State on Dec. 11. The Hawkeyes play No. 1 Purdue twice, on the road Jan. 14 and at home Feb. 14.Facts and figuresMcCollum's Drake team had the longest average possession length last season at 21.9 seconds, according to KenPom. He said Iowa will have the ability to speed things up, but don't look for the Hawkeyes to get up and down the court like McCaffery's teams did in their heyday. ... McCollum has not addressed whether he will take disciplinary action against Banks, who was charged with public intoxication and disorderly conduct following an alleged bar fight Oct. 15. ... As of Monday, a total of 7,908 season tickets have been sold. That's nearly a 10% bump from the 7,204 sold last year, when average attendance dipped to 9,161 per game.WATCH: See the full news conference as Ben McCollum is introduced as Iowa's new head coach» Subscribe to vlog's YouTube page» Download the free vlog app to get updates on the go: Apple | Google Play
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — The Hawkeyes are turning to Ben McCollum to energize a program that had faded the past two years under all-time wins leader Fran McCaffery. McCollum was one of the biggest stories in college basketball last season. He moved up from Division II Northwest Missouri State to lead Drake to a school-record 31 wins, Missouri Valley regular-season and tournament championships and to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Players to watch
NBA draft prospect Bennett Stirtz, among five players and two recruits who followed McCollum from Drake, blossomed into the nation's premier mid-major player last season. He was the first MVC player to record 600 points (673), 200 assists (200) and 70 steals (72) in a season. ... Kansas State transfer Brendan Hausen provides much-needed power-conference experience. He started all 33 games for the Wildcats, averaged 10.9 points and is a reliable 3-point threat. ... Alvaro Folgueiras was Horizon League player of the year at Robert Morris after averaging 14.1 points, 9.1 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.4 steals per game.
Departures and arrivals
Of 14 players who played for Iowa last season, only two are back, unrelated reserves Cooper and Jacob Koch. ... In addition to Stirtz, Hausen and Folgueiras, MVC Sixth Man of the Year Tavion Banks (Drake) will be counted on after he shot 52% from the field and averaged 10.1 points and 5 rebounds per game. ... The 6-foot-9, 250-pound Cam Manyawu and the 6-10, 230-pound Folgueiras are the beefiest players for a team that will be challenged physically. Manyawu averaged 7.1 points and team-leading 5.3 rebounds for Drake.
Top games
The opener is at home against Robert Morris on Nov. 4. The Hawkeyes go to the Acrisure Classic in Palm Springs, California, to play Mississippi on Nov. 25 and Grand Canyon or Utah on Nov. 26. The Big Ten opener is at No. 22 Michigan State on Dec. 2, and the annual CyHawk Game is at Iowa State on Dec. 11. The Hawkeyes play No. 1 Purdue twice, on the road Jan. 14 and at home Feb. 14.
Facts and figures
McCollum's Drake team had the longest average possession length last season at 21.9 seconds, according to KenPom. He said Iowa will have the ability to speed things up, but don't look for the Hawkeyes to get up and down the court like McCaffery's teams did in their heyday. ... McCollum has not addressed whether he will take disciplinary action against Banks, who was charged with public intoxication and disorderly conduct following an alleged bar fight Oct. 15. ... As of Monday, a total of 7,908 season tickets have been sold. That's nearly a 10% bump from the 7,204 sold last year, when average attendance dipped to 9,161 per game.
WATCH: See the full news conference as Ben McCollum is introduced as Iowa's new head coach
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