WEATHER ALERTS RIGHT AT YOUR FINGERTIPS. WELL, SOME BREAKING NEWS FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA. FRAN MCCAFFERY IS OUT AS HEAD COACH. THE SCHOOL ANNOUNCED THAT DECISION LESS THAN AN HOUR AGO. vlog SPORTS DIRECTOR SCOTT REISTER HAS COVERED THE TEAM FOR ALL 15 YEARS OF MCCAFFREY’S TENURE. SCOTT, WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED ABOUT THIS DECISION? YEAH, WELL, MCCAFFERY DID HAVE A LOT OF GOOD SEASONS. A LOT OF BIG MOMENTS IN HIS DECADE AND A HALF LEADING THE PROGRAM. BUT THE PAST TWO SEASONS WERE NOT GOOD. AND THAT COMBINED WITH DWINDLING ATTENDANCE NUMBERS, WAS ENOUGH FOR AD BETH GOETZ TO MAKE THIS DECISION. AND WHAT HAPPENED WAS THEY WERE AT THE BIG TEN TOURNAMENT. IOWA LOST THAT GAME TO ILLINOIS, GOT BACK. AND THEN TODAY, BETH GOETZ MET WITH FRAN MCCAFFERY. AND THEN MCCAFFERY WOUND UP TALKING TO HIS PLAYERS AFTERWARDS. AND THAT’S THE MOMENT THAT WE GOT THE PRESS RELEASE WHERE WE SAW THE STATEMENT FROM BETH GOETZ, AND IN THAT STATEMENT, SHE THANKED COACH FRAN MCCAFFERY FOR ALL HIS HARD WORK OVER THE PAST 15 YEARS, SAYING THAT WE ARE GRATEFUL FOR THE POSITIVE IMPACT HE HAS MADE ON THE INSTITUTION AND THE COMMUNITY. WE HAVE A DEEP APPRECIATION FOR HIS DEDICATION TO OUR STUDENT ATHLETES AND HIS PASSION FOR THE GAME THAT WILL HAVE A LASTING IMPACT ON OUR PROGRAM. AND AS I MENTIONED, A LOT OF GOOD MOMENTS. THEY HAD RECORD AT IOWA 297 AND 207. IT WAS HIS WIN LOSS RECORD. MOST WINS IN SCHOOL HISTORY, A BIG TEN TOURNAMENT TITLE IN 2022, SEVEN NCAA TOURNAMENT TRIPS, BUT NEVER GOT IT DONE IN MARCH, JUST FOUR NCAA TOURNAMENT WINS NEVER TOOK THE HAWKEYES TO THE SWEET 16. THEY MISSED THE BIG DANCE LAST SEASON, MISSED IT AGAIN THIS YEAR, AND NEARLY MISSED THE BIG TEN TOURNAMENT ALTOGETHER. HE DID HAVE THREE YEARS LEFT ON HIS CONTRACT AND IS OWED $4 MILLION AS PART OF THE BUYOUT CLAUSES ON THAT CONTRACT. RIGHT NOW, THERE WILL BE A NATIONAL SEARCH FOR HIS REPLACEMENT, BUT THE HAWKEYES ARE TURNING THE PAGE ON THE FRAN MCCAFFERY ERA. GUYS. YEAH, SCOTT. THANK YOU. MCCAFFREY’S DOUBLE TECHNICAL AND BEING EJECTED FROM LAST NIGHT’S GAME IS NOT THE GREATEST WAY TO END A CAREE
Iowa fires basketball coach Fran McCaffery after 15 years
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Updated: 4:10 PM CDT Mar 14, 2025
Fran McCaffery is officially out as Iowa's men's basketball coach. The University of Iowa announced Friday afternoon that Athletics Director Beth Goetz fired McCaffery after 15 seasons. He's the all-time wins leader for the Hawkeyes, with a 297-207 record since 2011. "Fran McCaffery has been an integral part of our Hawkeye family for the past 15 years. He is a tremendous coach and teacher, and we are grateful for the positive impact he has made on the institution and the community," Goetz said in a news release announcing the coaching change. "We have a deep appreciation for his dedication to our student-athletes and his passion for the game that will have a lasting impact on our program."McCaffery's contract buyout is $4.2 million, according to the Associated Press.The Hawkeyes went 17-16 overall this season and 7-13 in the Big Ten Conference to finish 12th. They opened the Big Ten tournament with a 77-70 win against Ohio State but fell to Illinois in the second round, 106-94.McCaffery received two technical fouls and was ejected in the second half of Iowa's loss against Illinois.McCaffery, 65, has seven NCAA Tournament bids with the Hawkeyes — 2014, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2022 and 2023. McCaffery is 548-384 in more than 30 years as a head coach, with previous stops at Lehigh, UNC-Greensboro and Siena.The university says it will begin a national search for McCaffery's replacement immediately. Iowa basketball: Top 5 winningest coachesFran McCaffery: 297-207, 2011-2025Tom Davis: 269-140, 1987-1999Lute Olson: 165-93, 1975-1983Steve Alford: 152-106, 2000-2007Rollie Williams: 139-131, 1930-1951
IOWA CITY, Iowa — Fran McCaffery is officially out as Iowa's men's basketball coach.
The University of Iowa announced Friday afternoon that Athletics Director Beth Goetz fired McCaffery after 15 seasons. He's the all-time wins leader for the Hawkeyes, with a 297-207 record since 2011.
"Fran McCaffery has been an integral part of our Hawkeye family for the past 15 years. He is a tremendous coach and teacher, and we are grateful for the positive impact he has made on the institution and the community," Goetz said in a news release announcing the coaching change. "We have a deep appreciation for his dedication to our student-athletes and his passion for the game that will have a lasting impact on our program."
McCaffery's contract buyout is $4.2 million, according to the Associated Press.
The Hawkeyes went 17-16 overall this season and 7-13 in the Big Ten Conference to finish 12th. They opened the Big Ten tournament with a 77-70 win against Ohio State but fell to Illinois in the second round, 106-94.
McCaffery received two technical fouls and was ejected in the second half of Iowa's loss against Illinois.
McCaffery, 65, has seven NCAA Tournament bids with the Hawkeyes — 2014, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2022 and 2023. McCaffery is 548-384 in more than 30 years as a head coach, with previous stops at Lehigh, UNC-Greensboro and Siena.
The university says it will begin a national search for McCaffery's replacement immediately.
Iowa basketball: Top 5 winningest coaches
- Fran McCaffery: 297-207, 2011-2025
- Tom Davis: 269-140, 1987-1999
- Lute Olson: 165-93, 1975-1983
- Steve Alford: 152-106, 2000-2007
- Rollie Williams: 139-131, 1930-1951
