Iowa Hawkeyes head coach Ben McCollum Lily Smith/The Register / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Iowa's Ben McCollum Bridging Gap With Historic Team

Originally posted on Iowa Hawkeyes on SI | By Lane Mills | Last updated Dec 25, 2025 7:00 AM ET

Under head coach Ben McCollum in his first season, the Iowa Hawkeyes have redefined the men's basketball program. What had been, in recent years, a relatively down-trodden tradition has quickly turned into a formidable, smash-mouth style B1G competitor. At 10-2 (1-1) on the new year, black and gold hoops has already taken on a new meaning in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Yet, in spite of what the team had become in the waning years of Fran McCaffery's regime, there are a litany of historic Hawkeyes who hold a load of positive favor from within Iowa's fanbase. Whether in recent years - such as NBA-bound big Luka Garza - or more old-fashioned options like Fred Brown and Bill Logan, the program is steeped in memorable, winning tradition.

And even as he works to outline his own future for the Hawkeyes, Coach McCollum understands the importance of connecting with what had come before him; that includes, of course, welcoming those guys back if they so wish to be around.

Greater Importance

"I think it's more of an offseason thing, but I think that's one of those things—just trying to do everything like that is really tricky," McCollum said, addressing the potential of folding past Hawkeyes into the program's current operations. "The importance of that is greater than people think."

To nobody’s surprise, Iowa is off to a 10-2 start in Ben McCollum’s year one as a result of fit, synergy and a decision to build around Bennett Stirtz.

“We’re counterintuitive.”

Inside the build and McCollum’s roster-building philosophy @basket_review: https://t.co/bdXBh9dt6E
— Joey Dwyer (@joey_dwy) December 23, 2025

"We'd like to do a great job of that and get them back. We'd like to have activities where people can engage," he continued. "We have a little bit of that, but not to the level we'd like."

History is Always Welcome

"I will say this: every time they text me, it's always, "Hey, you're always welcome to come to a practice or a game. As a matter of fact, we'd actually like that." And we'd like them to engage, come back, and be part of the family for anybody who has played here—even the ones who have transferred out."

"They're still a Hawkeye," McCollum assured. "We're creating that. It's probably one of the harder things, and it takes time, simply because when you come in, there's a NIL component now."

Once a Hawkeye, always a Hawkeye. As McCollum's trajectory at the top of the program continues to move in a positive direction, the HC is already benefitting from recognizing what came before him. In the same breath, members of the stellar group that he's put together right now could join those aforementioned names in infamy one day soon.

This article first appeared on Iowa Hawkeyes on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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