Inside The Hawkeyes

Former Iowa HC Joins NBC Broadcast Team

NBC announced that this former Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball coach would be joining their broadcast team.
Jordon Lawrenz|
Former Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder talks on Big Ten Network on Friday, March 7, 2025, in a quarterfinals game at the 2025 TIAA Big Ten Women's Basketball Tournament between the Iowa Hawkeyes and the Ohio State Buckeyes at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The Buckeyes defeated the Hawkeyes, 60-59.
Former Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder talks on Big Ten Network on Friday, March 7, 2025, in a quarterfinals game at the 2025 TIAA Big Ten Women's Basketball Tournament between the Iowa Hawkeyes and the Ohio State Buckeyes at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The Buckeyes defeated the Hawkeyes, 60-59. | Grace Smith/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Iowa Hawkeyes

Iowa Hawkeyes fans will soon recognize a familiar face on NBC and Peacock. NBC announced that longtime Hawkeyes women's basketball head coach Lisa Bluder will be joining their broadcast team.

Bluder, who coached Iowa from 2000-24, had a career 889-394 record. She was named Big Ten Coach of the Year on three occasions, along with winning the Naismith College Coach of the Year award in 2019.

Having coached since 1984, the 64-year-old will bring countless years of experience to the broadcast booth. While she failed to win the big one at the peak of Caitlin Clark's career, Bluder's accomplishments with Iowa won't go unnoticed and she helped build a dynasty that Jan Jensen is expected to take to new heights.

Lisa Bluder's New NBC Duties

Keith Murphy broke the news on social media that Bluder, "will join the broadcast team as a women's basketball College Countdown studio analyst."

She's expected to work for numerous conferences, including the B1G, "Bluder will work Big Ten, Big 12, and Big East games on NBC & Peacock."

On October 30, NBC released the following press release.

"New Analysts this Season on Peacock Include Former Iowa Head Coach Lisa Bluder, NBA Veterans Brendan Haywood and Evan Turner, and Big Ten All-Time Leading Scorer Calbert Cheaney," the release read.

NBC Sports 2025-26 schedule will feature nearly 200 men's and women's games across three conferences: B1G, Big 12, and Big East.

Bluder is one of the notable analysts joining NBC Sports college basketball coverage this season. On the women's College Countdown studio show, she'll work alongside Carolyn Manno, Lindsay Czarniak, Aliyah Boston, Meghan McKeown, and Aja Ellison.

Lisa Bluder's Storied Coaching Career

The Appleton, WI, native found a way to continue her legacy in college basketball after retiring on May 13, 2024. Bluder, who played for Northern Iowa from 1979-83, began coaching for St. Ambrose in '84. She stayed with the team until 1990 when she made the jump to Drake, a team she coached until 2000.

Bluder's resume speaks for itself: Back to back Final Four appearances (2023 and 2024), five-time B1G Tournament Champion, two-time B1G Regular Season Champion, 4 MVC Tournament Championships and 3 MVC Regular Season Championships.

Her coaching skills ranged beyond the college level as Bluder has also worked for Team USA. As an assistant coach in 2001, she helped guide the United States to a gold medal in the World University Games. 14 years later, USA took home a silver medal when she was the head coach at the Pan American Games.

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Jordon Lawrenz
JORDON LAWRENZ

Jordon Lawrenz serves as the Eastern United States College Recruiting beat writer On SI. Jordon is an accomplished writer covering the NFL, MLB, and college football/basketball. He has contributed to PFSN’s and Heavy’s NFL coverage. Having graduated from the University of Wisconsin - Green Bay with a Sports Communication and Journalism degree, Jordon fully embraced the sports writing lifestyle upon his relocation to Florida.

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