The Past, Present & Future; How do we look?

[OnceAhawk]

Fran is entering his sixth season; from where he/the program started to where he/the program are today, how has he done, in your mind? What do you want to see in year 6, in terms of post season, the BIG race, recruiting? Will Fran ever get that big time, program changing recruit? Time sure does fly, doesn't it?

Now with Bohannon committing on 8/28/2015 and Tyler Cook committing on 09/23/15, it is on to the 2017 class, where we have 1 more scholarships available (or none, if Baer gets put on scholarship).

Here is the updated break down of the Iowa roster by graduating class:

Graduating Class : Players

Future Graduating Classes:
2023: 1--6'6" SF Patrick McCaffery (not rated)
2022: 1--6'5" SG Joe Wieskamp (not rated)
2021: 1--6'5" SG Connor McCaffery (***)
2020: 4--6'8" PF Tyler Cook (****): 6'8" SF Cordell Pemsl (***); 6'9" PF Ryan Kriener (***); 6'0" PG Jordan Bohannon (***)

Current Roster (A full 13 are on scholarship):

2019: 6--6'6" SF Brandon Hutton (***): 6'6" SG Andrew Fleming (***), 6'7" SF Ahmad Wagner (***); 6'5" SF Isaiah Moss (***), 6'4" SG Brady Ellingson (***; was redshirted in 2014-15 season); 6'6" combo guard Christian Williams (***)

2018: 1--6'8" SF Dominique Uhl (***)
2017: 2--6'6" SG Peter Jok; 6'8" PF Dale Jones
2016: 4--PG Anthony Clemmons, PG Mike Gesell, C Adam Woodbury, SF Jarrod Uthoff

Notable Walk on players:
6'7" SF Nick Baer: listed as a preferred walk on; he redshirted in 2014; is set to graduate in 2018 (or 2019, if eventually put on scholarship)

Previous graduating classes:

2015: 4--SG Josh Ogelsby, PF Aaron White, C Gabe Olaseni, SG Kyle Denning

2014 (Fran's first recruiting class): 5--PF Melsahn Basabe, SG Devyn Marble, PF Zach McCabe, SF Darius Stokes (graduated & transferred), C Kyle Meyer (granted release & transferred; he redshirted his 2012 freshman season and therefore would have been se to graduate in 2017)

2013: 1--PG Patrick Ingram (would have been part of the 2016 graduation class; transferred in March 2013, after just one season at Iowa)

 

[Suterman]

I believe Tyler Cook will be a Hawkeye. Is he a big time recruit? Close.

 

[DanL53]

Kyle Meyer and Patrick Ingram were in the 2012 class with Gesell and company. I need to give some thought to your questions and will respond later.

 

[OnceAhawk]

Kyle Meyer and Patrick Ingram were in the 2012 class with Gesell and company. I need to give some thought to your questions and will respond later.

good point; i updated the orig post

 

[OnceAhawk]

I believe Tyler Cook will be a Hawkeye. Is he a big time recruit? Close.

It seems like Fran is so close to catching the "big one;" Fran is slowly building this thing back up from the crater Lick left things; i just hope we have not reached the ceiling on where this program can go

 

[DanL53]

Fran is entering his sixth season; from where he/the program started to where he/the program are today, how has he done, in your mind? What do you want to see in year 6, in terms of post season, the BIG race, recruiting? Will Fran ever get that big time, program changing recruit? Time sure does fly, doesn't it?

Ok. Entering season six I am completely satisfied with the job McCaffery and staff have done. From 4-14 in the Big Ten to 12-6 in the first five seasons with a steady progression and what appears to be a competitive team waiting for the 2015/16 season? I'll take it.

In year six I feel that a top six or seven finish in the Big Ten, 10-8 record and another NCAA invite is likely. The Big Ten is loaded this year, or I would expect more. Gotta recognize what we're up against. And that includes the schedule. Once we get to the NCAA's I feel like we could make a good run. Always some luck involved with draws and all though.

Recruiting? I'm very excited about the 2015 guys coming in. The three we've already got for 2016 actually measure quite well to those in 2015. The future is rock solid between the two McCafferys and Wieskamp. We've opened up Chicago a bit and frankly I'm a realist, Iowa is a small state, it is always going to be an uphill battle to recruit. We seem to be progressing up that hill.

Program changing recruit? I think going from 4-14 to 12-6 we must already have had some program changing recruits. But yeah, sooner or later we'll nab out of state guys with some extra stars. Just don't expect us to be Maryland or Ohio State or Michigan State. We aren't.

Yes, time flies.

 

[Scott559]

I don't think the program has reached it's ceiling, I think we are seeing more and more to get excited about in regard to recruiting, Every year we are getting in on more and more blue chip type recruits, I do think a really nice NCAA run (Elite 8 type) would be a big shot in the arm to sell recruits that we are truly a program on the rise and ready to be a regular NCAA threat to do some damage. We are close, It's been a slow and steady rise, I truly believe the best is yet to come with Fran and the program.

 

[hawksense]

we are one transcendent player away from the next level.

Whitey was transcendent in his own way. He helped raise our profile with his sheer determination and persistence. He was lacking in some polish, but I will never fault him for that.

Dev, too. Gator, too.

 

[freemanbrenner]

Wieskamps gonna be so damn good at iowa

 

[FSHawkeye87]

Fran is entering his sixth season; from where he/the program started to where he/the program are today, how has he done, in your mind? What do you want to see in year 6, in terms of post season, the BIG race, recruiting? Will Fran ever get that big time, program changing recruit? Time sure does fly, doesn't it?

Now with Bohannon committing on 8/28/2015, here is the updated break down of the Iowa roster by graduating class:

Graduating Class : Players

Future Graduating Classes:

2023: 1--6'6" SF Patrick McCaffery (not rated)
2022: 1--6'5" SG Joe Wieskamp (not rated)
2021: 1--6'5" SG Connor McCaffery (***)
2020: 3--6'8" SF Cordell Pemsl (***); 6'9" PF Ryan Kriener (***); 6'0" PG Jordan Bohannon (***)

Current Roster (a full 13 on scholarship):

2019: 6--6'6" SF Brandon Hutton (***): 6'6" SG Andrew Fleming (***), 6'7" SF Ahmad Wagner (***); 6'5" SF Isaiah Moss (***), 6'4" SG Brady Ellingson (***; was redshirted in 2014-15 season); 6'6" combo guard Christian Williams (***)

2018: 1--6'8" SF Dominique Uhl (***)
2017: 2--6'6" SG Peter Jok; 6'8" PF Dale Jones
2016: 4--PG Anthony Clemmons, PG Mike Gesell, C Adam Woodbury, SF Jarrod Uthoff

Previous graduating classes:

2015: 4--SG Josh Ogelsby, PF Aaron White, C Gabe Olaseni, SG Kyle Denning

2014 (Fran's first recruiting class): 5--PF Melsahn Basabe, SG Devyn Marble, PF Zach McCabe, SF Darius Stokes (graduated & transferred), C Kyle Meyer (granted release & transferred; he redshirted his 2012 freshman season and therefore would have been set to graduate in 2017)

2013: 1--PG Patrick Ingram (would have been part of the 2016 graduation class; transferred in March 2013, after just one season at Iowa)

I'm curious as to why you put the star rankings next to the names for some players, but stopped when you got to Jok's class. I also wonder why you did not include the player rankings for those of the players that are/were in Top 150 lists (E.g., Connor, Pemsl). It just seems like the information is a bit misleading with the way you have presented it.

 

[OnceAhawk]

I'm curious as to why you put the star rankings next to the names for some players, but stopped when you got to Jok's class. I also wonder why you did not include the player rankings for those of the players that are/were in Top 150 lists (E.g., Connor, Pemsl). It just seems like the information is a bit misleading with the way you have presented it.

Misleading? Really?

Whose rankings should I use for the future recruits? ESPN's? Scout's?

Also, I think the star system is irrelevant now that Jok, AC, MG, Woody and Uthoff have been playing at Iowa for several years. I think most would say every one of these guys are 3 star type players (even though MG and Woody were 4 star coming out of HS), with the exception of Uthoff (he is 4 star, imo).

Jones probably is 3 star as well.

Happy now?

 

[FSHawkeye87]

Misleading? Really?

Whose rankings should I use for the future recruits? ESPN's? Scout's?

Also, I think the star system is irrelevant now that Jok, AC, MG, Woody and Uthoff have been playing at Iowa for several years. I think most would say every one of these guys are 3 star type players (even though MG and Woody were 4 star coming out of HS), with the exception of Uthoff (he is 4 star, imo).

Jones probably is 3 star as well.

Happy now?

So why are the star rankings more relevant for Dominique Uhl then? You're not being consistent with the player comparisons, and when you pick and choose what numbers to put out there and leave out the numbers for other players as to putting the same numbers out there for everyone, the information becomes misleading. I'm not saying you were intentionally doing it, but when you don't compare everyone with the same data, you don't get the whole picture. I would also most definitely not say that Mike and Woody are 3-star type players, and it's an overbroad generalization to make in saying that most would say they are 3-star type players.

And I wasn't referring to other lists, but both Pemsl and Connor have been ranked in the top 150 of their class by Rivals.

 

[Steve Waite]

So why are the star rankings more relevant for Dominique Uhl then? You're not being consistent with the player comparisons, and when you pick and choose what numbers to put out there and leave out the numbers for other players as to putting the same numbers out there for everyone, the information becomes misleading. I'm not saying you were intentionally doing it, but when you don't compare everyone with the same data, you don't get the whole picture. I would also most definitely not say that Mike and Woody are 3-star type players, and it's an overbroad generalization to make in saying that most would say they are 3-star type players.

And I wasn't referring to other lists, but both Pemsl and Connor have been ranked in the top 150 of their class by Rivals.

I'm not sure where the OP is going with putting stars next to some players and then stating other players aren't rated. Really?
This is a half ass post if ever seen one.
You probably want to get your facts straight regarding player rankings, etc. to fairly evaluate a Coach and his program.
Joe Weiskamp is a 5 star player and ranked #19 per ESPN.
Connor McCaffery #91 ranked player currently 3 star and will end up a 4 star by his Senior year.
Patrick will be a 4-5 star player top 30 player in the country.
Cordell Pemsi 3star #139 and he didn't even play this summer due to injury. He has 4 star talent.
Tyler Cook 4 star #51per ESPN & #70 per rivals. Bohanno & Kreiner excellent players and underrated in my opinion.
2015 class Moss is 4 star per ESPN and the rest our 3 stars. Fleming should be a 4 star player. He is better than
Reaves who went to PSU and rated a 4 star player.
Prior classes Woodbury #50, Gessell #100 4 star players per rivals & ESPN.
Ogelsby & Uthoff are top 150 3 star players per Rivals.

Looking at the above info. Fran has shut down the boarders. Paige got away, but I'm a firm
Believer if he had more time Paige & Uthoff would have been in Iowa uniforms from day 1.

The future looks bright. We are getting better talent, which will result in more wins and advance farther in NCAA
Tournament.
Considering what he was left with, I couldn't be happier on the Job that Coach Fran has done for the
University of Iowa.

 

[skydog0784]

There are very few people that would have been willing to take the IA job in 2010 given the total cesspool Alford and Lickliter left us in that could have, or will in the foreseeable future, do a better job than McCaffrey. IA is very, very fortunate that he is IA's head coach.

I'm very optimistic.

 

[KeyWest Tim]

Fran is a great talent evaluator.

Very good coach.

And average recruiter--as evidenced by the number of early kids we have identified but failed to close when the Big Boys arrive.

But then we don't know what exactly some of the other coaches do that he may not be willing to do outside the rules.

This team will be very interesting to watch- with half of the team new players.

Fran has a chance now with Fred gone to again make the Hawks Iowa's team.

 

[EastIowaHawk]

Interesting that the Class of 2016 commits to Iowa are all AAU teammates- Kreiner, Pemsl and Bohannon. I think this is a solid three-get from the state. Bohannon is a tough competitor on the court; Kreiner has a very high ceiling; and Pemsl, who is recovering nicely from surgery at this point, is still growing and is around 6-9 now (and may actually be as tall as or taller than Kreiner).

 

[2432Hawk]

Interesting that the Class of 2016 commits to Iowa are all AAU teammates- Kreiner, Pemsl and Bohannon. I think this is a solid three-get from the state. Bohannon is a tough competitor on the court; Kreiner has a very high ceiling; and Pemsl, who is recovering nicely from surgery at this point, is still growing and is around 6-9 now (and may actually be as tall as or taller than Kreiner).

They only played in one event together and that was last year when Kriener joined MB. Pemsl missed this year... however they are all very close and that's the other thing about this class, and we might add Tyler Cook to that as he was one of the first people on twitter to send best wishes to Pemsl after his surgery this spring.

 

[nu2u]

I'll just say this: Fran wasn't my first choice to replace Todd Lickliter but I'm glad he is Iowa's coach. Turns out that Fran was a near perfect fit for the program. You might say that Barta hit a home run but it was more like a double bank shot to the corner pocket, a more difficult feat, because the program had flat-lined and Iowa needed a turnaround artist that would also be a savvy to Midwest sensibility that Iowa fans expect.

Very few fans anticipated the McCaffery hire and more than a few were skeptical -even up to last year when it was fairly evident that Iowa basketball was definitely on the rise again. What sold me initially was the methodical way he assembled his staff. All of his assistants are quality coaches in their own right and they are still with him (except Bowen) and that says a lot about McCaffery I think.

I would give Fran and staff a solid "B" on recruiting, a couple big misses away from a higher grade. I'm very high on the 2015 class and the future looks even brighter IMO. Retention / good. Player development / very good. Legal troubles/ few. He'll get that big fish from out of state before too long.

I get the feeling that Fran wants to stay at Iowa until its time to hang up the whistle. It will be a McCaffery family affair at CHA in the not too distant future. For the first time since Tom Davis, Iowa fans are feeling like they are a part of the bigger family which is Iowa basketball.

 

[TheHawkeyeDudeAbides]

Fran is entering his sixth season; from where he/the program started to where he/the program are today, how has he done, in your mind? What do you want to see in year 6, in terms of post season, the BIG race, recruiting? Will Fran ever get that big time, program changing recruit? Time sure does fly, doesn't it?

Now with Bohannon committing on 8/28/2015, here is the updated break down of the Iowa roster by graduating class:

Graduating Class : Players

Future Graduating Classes:

2023: 1--6'6" SF Patrick McCaffery (not rated)
2022: 1--6'5" SG Joe Wieskamp (not rated)
2021: 1--6'5" SG Connor McCaffery (***)
2020: 3--6'8" SF Cordell Pemsl (***); 6'9" PF Ryan Kriener (***); 6'0" PG Jordan Bohannon (***)

Current Roster (a full 13 on scholarship):

2019: 6--6'6" SF Brandon Hutton (***): 6'6" SG Andrew Fleming (***), 6'7" SF Ahmad Wagner (***); 6'5" SF Isaiah Moss (***), 6'4" SG Brady Ellingson (***; was redshirted in 2014-15 season); 6'6" combo guard Christian Williams (***)

2018: 1--6'8" SF Dominique Uhl (***)
2017: 2--6'6" SG Peter Jok; 6'8" PF Dale Jones
2016: 4--PG Anthony Clemmons, PG Mike Gesell, C Adam Woodbury, SF Jarrod Uthoff

I am not so worried about when prospects graduate but to have a top performing NCAA MBB club there needs to be some pro quality talent. This year's recruits look like stacking the shelves, not earth shakers. Waiting for Superman.

Iowa's NBA potential prospects: Uhl is athletic enough and if he fills out in his junior year , great. Moss and Fleming could be the next stars that could shine bright. Probably have to wait to see Williams on the stage.

Wieskamp and PMac seem like quality developing recruits but Iowa really has not land a major top 30 recruit under Fran. Granted, those guys are often several states away from Vanilla Iowa. A major athletic Big Man next year should be #1 priority list even if Tyler Cook commits to Iowa.

 

[freemanbrenner]

Wieskamp and Patrick could be McDonalds All Americans. Not sure there have been McDonalds All Americans in the state of Iowa in back to back years has ever.

 

[iowalawhawk]

First of all, Fran has won and put butts back in the seats. That's very important, and seemed like a pipe dream at points during and even after Lickliter's tenure.

Just as importantly, he's "done it right." No rumors of shady deals with recruits or runners. No hiring players' parents or AAU coaches. Our players stay eligible. They stay out of trouble for the most part.

He is willing to change his style of play to fit the personnel. He switches defenses. He abandoned the "first team/second team" substitution pattern after it nearly killed the team two years ago. He will put a team on the court that is all 6-6 or taller, and will put a team on the court next year that is all 6-8 or shorter.

He works his tail off. No matter what anyone says about him, he puts in the hours, recruiting, scouting, fundraisers, etc. If he thinks it would help, he'll do it.

His player development has been all over the board. People like White, Marble and Olaseni have made tremendous strides. Others haven't. This is true at any program though, and much of it has to do with the individual players, so I don't give him too much credit for the developers or too much blame for the ones who don't.

The bad part is that he hasn't been a really good recruiter yet - and frankly I doubt he will become one. His classes should get better though if we can keep winning consistently, and if the young guys like Wieskamp and Pat pan out, but he won't be one of those guys who lands big fish all the time. He garnered too much bad publicity for his on-court meltdowns, but he seems to have really turned the page there. Unfortunately, his reputation will be very difficult to change.

I'm sure he's great with donors and at IClub events and stuff, but he's also not the personality type who is great on the national scale. He isn't that Bruce Pearl type that ESPN will want to have on to talk shop.

All in all, I'd give him an A, although he hasn't been perfect.

 

[yerpHAWK]

Final 4.......

 

[Servbot24]

Final 4.......

Within 4 years, I think it could happen.

 

[OnceAhawk]

I believe Tyler Cook will be a Hawkeye. Is he a big time recruit? Close.

You called it!!!

 

[OnceAhawk]

Now with Bohannon committing on 8/28/2015 and Tyler Cook committing on 09/23/15, it is on to the 2017 class, where we have 1 more scholarships available (or none, if Baer gets put on scholarship).

 

[OnceAhawk]

If Nick Baer is put on scholarship, the 2017 class is done then, too; otherwise, there is 1 schollie left for 2017

there is also just one available schollie for 2018

 

[icwesthawk]

There are very few people that would have been willing to take the IA job in 2010 given the total cesspool Alford and Lickliter left us in that could have, or will in the foreseeable future, do a better job than McCaffrey. IA is very, very fortunate that he is IA's head coach.

I'm very optimistic.

"very few people that would have been willing to take IA job in 2010"? I've never heard that. I think Iowa got who they offered the job to. I think there were plenty of coaches who understood what Iowa was once and could be again. I do agree that we are blessed to have Fran as our coach and I still think we are trending upward. I'm optimistic too.

 

[Suterman]

I think Fran is an excellent recruiter. We have a great roster and finished 3rd in the B1G last year. We are very likely ti make the NCAA field again this year, What the eff do you want?

 

[hawk-i bob]

I think Fran is an excellent recruiter. We have a great roster and finished 3rd in the B1G last year. We are very likely ti make the NCAA field again this year, What the eff do you want?

I agree Tom ... but you can be a pretty good team and finish 9-9 in the B1G...league is really good as it is most of the time. Iowa will be in the hunt ...

 

[ft254]

I agree Tom ... but you can be a pretty good team and finish 9-9 in the B1G...league is really good as it is most of the time. Iowa will be in the hunt ...

Fran has turned the program around and with Cook has landed the blue chipper he needed to get attention. The B1G is becoming a hornets nest but it looks like Iowa has the horses to compete. How the 2015 recruits pan out is intriguing. Are these guys big time recruits? We have upper class talent to provide transition. Football is providing lots of excitement but I can't wait for BB to start.