A Family Man First

March 30, 2010

• Coach McCaffery Press Conference Photo Gallery
• Coach McCaffery Pep Rally
• Watch: McCaffery Press Conference
• What they’re saying about Fran McCaffery
• Watch: McCaffery Discusses Iowa
• Watch: McCaffery on BTN
• Register for ticket information online
  
• 2010-11 Ticket Information Form

Editor’s Note: The following first appeared in the University of Iowa’s Official Sports Report, a free e-newsletter delivered daily to fans of the Hawkeyes. To learn more about the Hawkeyes’ OSR, click HERE.

IOWA CITY, Iowa — – So, where do you begin?

Do you like the fact that he’s been on the UI campus and in Carver-Hawkeye Arena, and remembers it like it was yesterday?

Do you like the fact that there was no doubt in his mind: It was the University of Iowa from Day 1. He wanted to be the next head men’s basketball coach at the UI.

Do you like the fact that he’s interested in an up-tempo game played by smart, well-prepared student-athletes who are having fun?

Do you like the fact that he’s eager for the active participation of former Hawkeyes in the current UI men’s basketball program?

Do you like the self-confidence…confidence in his ability to coach, confidence in his ability to win, confidence in his ability to create an environment in which his student-athletes have fun.

Whatever tripped your trigger — and, make no mistake, there were plenty of reasons to get excited — Fran McCaffery’s debut performance in front of the cameras and microphones inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena yesterday morning was an unqualified success. It wasn’t just a double or a triple or even a home run. It was a grand slam. A grand slam in the bottom of the ninth with two outs and two strikes and a Hall of Famer throwin’ heat.

He was candid. He was straightforward. He was passionate. He was cerebral. He was personable. He was honest. He was real, very real. And Iowans and student-athletes love real.

“I wanted to be here,” McCaffery said at the very top of his visit inside a busting-at-the-seams Big Ten Room on the third floor of Carver-Hawkeye.

“This is where I want to raise my family and, obviously, that is the most important thing.”

His family consists of his wife, Margaret, and his four children: sons Conner, Patrick and Jack, and daughter Marit. The McCaffery’s were joined on Monday by Fran’s in-laws, Dick and Marit Nowlin of Saint Paul, Minn., long-time Minnesota Golden Gopher fans who have, effective early Sunday, changed their team colors.

Then, of course, there’s the basketball family. If you “Google” Iowa’s new head coach and begin examining the photographs that are available, you’ll notice McCaffery hugging his players in more than just a handful. There’s a reason for that.

“I can promise you this: We’re going to compete. We’re going to play the game the right way. I’m going to coach with passion, but our players are going to have fun. They’re going to enjoy what they do on the floor,” McCaffery said flatly.

“Those who play for me will tell you they love playing for me. Am I demanding? Yes. Am I reasonable? Yes. Do I communicate? Do I make sure they have fun? Absolutely,” he continued.

“Do we have a plan? Do we have a goal? Absolutely. Do we ever lose sight of it? Absolutely not. Will we do it with integrity? Absolutely.”