Ben to Kansas, Jawhawks?

Caveat. I do not think he's leaving. I think he's here for extended time and its not worth worrying over - need to enjoy the uncommon level of success and hope we find ourselves in. That said -- I have wondered - even if Ben wants to be here forever personally. What sort of loyalty or weight does he place on whats best for his assistants, players etc. Seems like a tightknit program top to bottom. The opportunities are undoubtedly higher at Kansas on all fronts. His players will have better professional opportunities. His assistants would make a lot more $ with greater future opportunities. Does any of that influence him. I think Iowa can greatly raise up on all fronts and I do expect him to stay and build things and he strikes me as the type to prefer creating something in his ideal vision state vs. picking something already great and maintaining it.

He turned down multiple jobs in 15 years at NWMS. If Iowa hadn't opened last year, he would have remained at Drake. He's been accused by assistants of having the attitude of "his grass is always greener." Not worried in the least.

CatCoach said:

Down here in KC the big topic of conversation is Ben McCollum to Kansas if Self steps down. All the talking heads on 810 am radio are drooling over him. All I heard on my drive to work Monday and today was Ben is who they want and then again last night on the way home. What is the general feeling in Iowa if Kansas were to came calling? Does Ben do a 1 & done at Iowa? I'm just hoping Ben's ties to Iowa will keep him in IC!!

My feeling is that it's great to have a coach that other fan bases want.

OH_HAWKS said:

Caveat. I do not think he's leaving. I think he's here for extended time and its not worth worrying over - need to enjoy the uncommon level of success and hope we find ourselves in. That said -- I have wondered - even if Ben wants to be here forever personally. What sort of loyalty or weight does he place on whats best for his assistants, players etc. Seems like a tightknit program top to bottom. The opportunities are undoubtedly higher at Kansas on all fronts. His players will have better professional opportunities. His assistants would make a lot more $ with greater future opportunities. Does any of that influence him. I think Iowa can greatly raise up on all fronts and I do expect him to stay and build things and he strikes me as the type to prefer creating something in his ideal vision state vs. picking something already great and maintaining it.

My guess is Kansas at least inquires if Self retires (which it seems as if he might). I think the timing helps Iowa here, as McCollum making a Sweet 16 shows him that he CAN win in March at Iowa. And that with an uptick in resources he might be able to have a roster that could finish in the top 3-4 of the Big 10. Really competing for Big 10 regular season titles should be the primary goal, as the other things fall into place if you are doing that. It means you are seeded in the 2-5 lines, and not the 9 seed line. But I would not say that it's 100% for sure that he would say no to Kansas. That type of job is the best of the best. We would be foolish to think that there's no way he would be interested.

DodgerHawki said:

My guess is Kansas at least inquires if Self retires (which it seems as if he might). I think the timing helps Iowa here, as McCollum making a Sweet 16 shows him that he CAN win in March at Iowa. And that with an uptick in resources he might be able to have a roster that could finish in the top 3-4 of the Big 10. Really competing for Big 10 regular season titles should be the primary goal, as the other things fall into place if you are doing that. It means you are seeded in the 2-5 lines, and not the 9 seed line. But I would not say that it's 100% for sure that he would say no to Kansas. That type of job is the best of the best. We would be foolish to think that there's no way he would be interested.

The periods of time when Kirk ramped up investment in his staff/ program from AD the most are when there was concern about him leaving for NFL job X or Y. Would be smart for Ben to play the same cards now to maximize investment from boosters/ AD. Next years march success is not a sure thing - so leverage all that you can now to make the program better well into future.

Could we just have a unified thread of all the open jobs that Ben isn't taking?

OH_HAWKS said:

The periods of time when Kirk ramped up investment in his staff/ program from AD the most are when there was concern about him leaving for NFL job X or Y. Would be smart for Ben to play the same cards now to maximize investment from boosters/ AD. Next years march success is not a sure thing - so leverage all that you can now to make the program better well into future.

100% correct. Iowa could be a better team next year and not make the Sweet 16. The tournament is a fickle thing.

He is being mentioned for UNC job also

CatCoach said:

Down here in KC the big topic of conversation is Ben McCollum to Kansas if Self steps down. All the talking heads on 810 am radio are drooling over him. All I heard on my drive to work Monday and today was Ben is who they want and then again last night on the way home. What is the general feeling in Iowa if Kansas were to came calling? Does Ben do a 1 & done at Iowa? I'm just hoping Ben's ties to Iowa will keep him in IC!!

Lot of deniers in here but I remember the day it was reported that Lute Olsen was leaving for Arizona.. People were in shock.

CatCoach said:

Down here in KC the big topic of conversation is Ben McCollum to Kansas if Self steps down. All the talking heads on 810 am radio are drooling over him. All I heard on my drive to work Monday and today was Ben is who they want and then again last night on the way home. What is the general feeling in Iowa if Kansas were to came calling? Does Ben do a 1 & done at Iowa? I'm just hoping Ben's ties to Iowa will keep him in IC!!

And that's just what it will end up being, conversation. They can talk all they want. He's not leaving for the foreseeable future. Maybe sometime down the road that could change. I'm sure Kansas will have a big bag waiting for him, but I don't think he's wired that way. And he's had to move his family twice in the last two years and said this is his dream job. I think he's sincere about that. I think there's a lot of KF in him. In this business, you never say never, especially when a blueblood comes calling, but I think in this case, he's staying at Iowa.

CatCoach said:

Down here in KC the big topic of conversation is Ben McCollum to Kansas if Self steps down. All the talking heads on 810 am radio are drooling over him. All I heard on my drive to work Monday and today was Ben is who they want and then again last night on the way home. What is the general feeling in Iowa if Kansas were to came calling? Does Ben do a 1 & done at Iowa? I'm just hoping Ben's ties to Iowa will keep him in IC!!

Tired of this s h i t already.

HawkiGreg said:

Lot of deniers in here but I remember the day it was reported that Lute Olsen was leaving for Arizona.. People were in shock.

Not really a good comparison at all, no offense. Lute was at Iowa for 9 seasons. Ben has been here for 1. He's not leaving.

CatCoach said:

Down here in KC the big topic of conversation is Ben McCollum to Kansas if Self steps down. All the talking heads on 810 am radio are drooling over him. All I heard on my drive to work Monday and today was Ben is who they want and then again last night on the way home. What is the general feeling in Iowa if Kansas were to came calling? Does Ben do a 1 & done at Iowa? I'm just hoping Ben's ties to Iowa will keep him in IC!!

First, you really believe Ben wants to go follow a legend like Self vs creating his own legacy at Iowa ? Mostly though, this is a case of common lazy journalism. KC media sees a guy who has been huge in the national spotlight since Sunday, has longtime times in Maryville, MO (not tremendously far from Lawrence), and therefore tie his name to Kansas. Hawk fans need to sit back and relax. Ben is going nowhere.

TailgateTom said:

He turned down multiple jobs in 15 years at NWMS. If Iowa hadn't opened last year, he would have remained at Drake. He's been accused by assistants of having the attitude of "his grass is always greener." Not worried in the least.

There was zero chance Ben was EVER going to turn down Iowa to stay at Drake; at any point in time. You’re right that had the Iowa gig not come open a year ago he’d have stayed at Drake. Iowa had been his dream job for a long time. That came directly from a family member. People need to relax.

I would bet Otz takes KU

DodgerHawki said:

But I would not say that it's 100% for sure that he would say no to Kansas. That type of job is the best of the best. We would be foolish to think that there's no way he would be interested.

I will say it IS 100% he would say no to Kansas.

The other day when the game was going on, I had a thought that some big jobs were likely to come open this year and that someone might try to lure him away. He was a home run hire for us and I am so excited about the future of Iowa Basketball. As we were leading most of the game against Florida, I was thinking, please just finish them off so we can end the Sweet 16 drought and have a realistic shot at an Elite Eight because we had already split with the team we would match uo against. At that point, I was resigned that whatever he feels is best for his family, I would be OK with. Of course, I want him to be here very long term and love what he could turn this program into. But, if he made a deep run this year and wanted to leave for a blue blood job, I would be OK with it. Because he ended our Sweet Sixteen drought in year one and because the positive press about our program and the spotlight we would be in would allow us to land another really good coach to take over the reigns. The truth is, the better we do, the more people will come after him. That being said, I personally believe this is where he wants to be and like another poster added, I think he should leverage this great run to get more pay and benefits for his staff and more NIL guarantees so he truly is able to re-build the program how he wants it. He has more than proven to be a great coach and he will continue to win and even at a higher clip if he can get the guys he wants that are still good fits for what he requires out of players. I am excited about the trajectory of our program. This is awesome!!! Go Hawks!! Beat the Big Red tomorrow night!!!!

lucas80 said:

Could we just have a unified thread of all the open jobs that Ben isn't taking?

Too bad for all the Iowa fans who won’t fully enjoy the Iowa success because they are too worried Ben might leave for somewhere else.

Whiskey_Hawk said:

Not really a good comparison at all, no offense. Lute was at Iowa for 9 seasons. Ben has been here for 1. He's not leaving.

Exactly. He doesn't have any long term relationships at Iowa. It would be easy for him to pickup stakes and move elsewhere.

HawkiGreg said:

Lot of deniers in here but I remember the day it was reported that Lute Olsen was leaving for Arizona.. People were in shock.

Isn't even anywhere close to the same situation. Lute was at Iowa for nine full seasons, first of all. And Arizona was hardly a blueblood at the time. I think it was a combination of being in the small fishbowl with all the criticism (he had lost in the tournament to Idaho and Wichita State in successive years) and his wife's and his preference for a warmer climate were the driving reasons. Some people might have been shocked at the time, but many close to the program were not shocked at all. Not even a good comparison.

HawkiGreg said:

Lot of deniers in here but I remember the day it was reported that Lute Olsen was leaving for Arizona.. People were in shock.

I was in the thick of the Iowa program when Lute left. Those close to the situation were not shocked. Breaths were being held either Arizona school or UCLA would come along and offer him. Bobbi his wife truly wanted to get back to warm weather and Lute grew increasingly frustrated he couldn’t get the talent he badly wanted from the west coast to come to Iowa. Iowa “fishbowl” a factor also. Once word leaked from within that Arizona AD Cedric Dempsey flew to Kansas City specifically to talk to Lute after the Sweet 16 loss to Villanova we knew he was gone.

L.Wade Childress IV said:

I would bet Otz takes KU

Far more likely than Ben to Kansas and don’t even think Otz leaves Ames.

Downtownhawkredux said:

Isn't even anywhere close to the same situation. Lute was at Iowa for nine full seasons, first of all. And Arizona was hardly a blueblood at the time. I think it was a combination of being in the small fishbowl with all the criticism (he had lost in the tournament to Idaho and Wichita State in successive years) and his wife's and his preference for a warmer climate were the driving reasons. Some people might have shocked at the tume, but many close to the program were not shocked at all. Not even a good comparison.

100%. Read my post that came immediately after this one of yours.