UNC coaching search may have put Iowa on alert over Ben McCollum

With North Carolina’s firing of Hubert Davis last week, one of college basketball’s premier jobs is up for grabs. As a result, every big-name coach from Arizona’s Tommy Lloyd to Chicago Bulls coach Billy Donovan has been asked about the opening. The search is already driving up the market, too, as one potential candidate, Vanderbilt’s Mark Byington , has received a contract extension.

Another name that has surfaced is Iowa head coach Ben McCollum . He is not officially a candidate, but leading the Hawkeyes to the Elite Eight — their deepest NCAA Tournament run since 1987 and their first trip past the round of 32 since 1999 — is enough to put him in the conversation. McCollum’s rapid rise has generated so much noise that Iowa athletic director Beth Goetz felt compelled to publicly plant a flag about his future in Iowa City.

"I couldn’t be more thrilled with what our program has accomplished and the leadership of Coach McCollum,” Goetz told Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports. “We are excited about Ben’s future here at Iowa and will work in partnership with him toward continued success. " Iowa AD Beth Goetz tells me the following after the Hawkeyes' run to the Elite Eight under Ben McCollum: "I couldn’t be more thrilled with what our program has accomplished and the leadership of Coach McCollum.

We are excited about Ben’s future here at Iowa and will work in… — Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) March 30, 2026 McCollum signed a six-year contract worth more than $19 million, including incentives. In his first season, he was paid $3. 35 million and earned a $150,000 bonus for reaching the Elite Eight.