Former Iowa Hawkeyes Coach Fran McCaffery To Accept New Job

Former Iowa Hawkeyes head coach Fran McCaffery is reportedly taking a new job, and this one makes a ton of sense for him.

Dec 10, 2023; Iowa City, Iowa, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes head coach Fran McCaffery directs his team against the Michigan Wolverines during the first half at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images | Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

Fran McCaffery spent 15 seasons as the head coach of the Iowa Hawkeyes men's basketball program. He was one of the most consistent coaches in the Big Ten and he had plenty of success in Iowa City.

McCaffery took the Hawkeyes to the NCAA Tournament seven times and he won the Big Ten Tournament once.

The problem for McCaffery was that this season ended with a middling 17-16 record and it went down as the second season in a row the Hawkeyes missed out on March Madness. Iowa decided to go in a different direction and soon after parting ways with McCaffery, the Hawkeyes hired up-and-coming superstar coach Ben McCollum from Drake.

The Hawkeyes will now move forward with plenty of excitement due to McCollum because he is a proven winner and champion, but McCaffery isn't staying stagnant himself. In fact, it's being reported that McCaffery is expected to be the next head coach at Penn, which is his alma mater.

BREAKING: Penn is nearing a deal with former Iowa head coach Fran McCaffery. A deal is “imminent,” multiple sources told me.

— Sam Federman (@Sam_Federman) March 26, 2025

Former Iowa head coach and former Penn player and assistant, Fran McCaffery is coming back home to Philly as the new Penn head basketball coach according to @dailypenn pic.twitter.com/xgWqaYQ5We

— John Clark (@JClarkNBCS) March 26, 2025

McCaffery was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1959, so much like McCollum heading back to Iowa City is a homecoming for him, McCaffery coaching at Penn will be a homecoming as well.

McCaffery was a college hooper at Wake Forest from 1977-1978 but then he transferred to Penn and played for the Quakers from 1979-1982. His first college coaching gig was at Penn, too. He was an assistant from 1982-1983 before heading to Lehigh, where he eventually became head coach.

Part of the Ivy League since 1903, the Quakers haven't been to the NCAA Tournament since 2017-18. They went 8-19 this past season, which led to the ouster of former head coach Steve Donahue after nine seasons.

McCaffery will have his work cut out for him.