Iowa State Basketball Assistant Kyle Green Hired by Northern Iowa

The Iowa State Cyclones men’s basketball coaching staff is going to look a lot different during the 2026-27 season than it has in the first five years under T.J. Otzelberger.

That is because another assistant coach is departing. According to college basketball insider Jon Rothstein on X, Kyle Green is being hired by the Northern Iowa Panthers to become their next head coach.

There were reports surfacing on March 31 that Green reached out to people at the university, stating that he was interested in the head coach opening. Just the day before, Ben Jacobson announced that he was leaving the program to become the head coach of the Utah State Aggies after 20 seasons at the helm.

Green and Northern Iowa agreed to a five-year contract, and he will be formally introduced as head coach at a press conference at a later date.

Kyle Green hired to become head coach of Northern Iowa

Iowa State Cyclones head coach T.J. Otzelberger with assistants JR Blount and Kyle Green. — Mar 4, 2025; Ames, Iowa, USA; Iowa State Cyclones head coach T.J. Otzelberger, JR Blount and Kyle Green watch the Cyclones play the Brigham Young Cougars during the second half at James H. Hilton Coliseum. | Reese Strickland-Imagn Images

"It is a great pleasure to welcome Kyle Green back to the University of Northern Iowa," said President Mark Nook, via the team’s official website. "Kyle and his family have been a big part of UNI athletics for two decades. Kyle was an integral part of the Panther coaching staff during some of our most successful seasons and helped develop many outstanding players. I look forward to Kyle's leadership in continuing to grow the legacy of Panther Men's Basketball."

The Panthers are a team that Green is very familiar with. During his 30 years of coaching, 16 of them have been spent in Cedar Falls.

Before he joined Otzelberger’s staff in Ames for the last five years, he was the associate head coach under Jacobson for four years at Northern Iowa. That was part of his third stint with the program, which began in 2012.

The other 16 years with the Panthers spanned from 2001 to 2003 and 2006 to 2011.

"I am incredibly honored and grateful for the opportunity to become the next head coach at UNI, a university and community that has meant so much to me and my family," said Green. "We are so thankful to Athletic Director Megan Franklin and President Nook for this opportunity."

Northern Iowa has hired Iowa State's Kyle Green as its next head basketball coach, per release.
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) April 1, 2026

In between those stints in Cedar Falls, Green was an assistant coach with the Marquette Golden Eagles for the 2003-04 season before being the head coach at Lewis University for two campaigns from 2004-06.

A one-year stint as head coach at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire was done during the 2011-12 campaign. And now, after five years with Iowa State, he is back with Northern Iowa.

"This is more than just a school or job to me and my family," Green added. "It is a home. A place that has given so much more to our family than we could ever give back. A school with unparalleled history in men's basketball. A tradition built by Hall of Fame coaches in Eldon Miller, Greg McDermott and Ben Jacobson. Coaches who I am fortunate to say are also mentors of mine. I don't take the honor of carrying the torch forward lightly and cannot wait to get started. Go Panthers!"

This is a huge blow to the Cyclones, with Green being credited as the architect behind the team’s incredible defensive performance.

He is the second assistant coach to leave for a head coaching position, with JR Blount also departing Ames to become the head man with the San Diego Toreros.