McCaffery has first taste of I-Club circuit in Burlington

BURLINGTON - New Iowa Coach Fran McCaffery walked into the banquet room at Burlington's Pzazz! Convention and Event Center to a standing ovation Thursday night.

More than 450 people crammed into the room, a Des Moines County I-Club record, many of whom had their first glimpse at Iowa's new men's basketball coach. It was the same for McCaffery.

A little more than a month into his tenure, McCaffery got his first taste of the I-Club circuit. He sat through the jokes and rhetoric from football defensive coordinator Norm Parker and wrestling coach Tom Brands, all of which generated roaring laughter.

McCaffery admitted he was nervous when he opened his remarks and then deviated from the script, mostly after listening to Iowa's two coaching icons. He said Iowa Athletics Director Gary Barta gave him two rules before entering the I-Club circuit.

“One, don't refer to anybody as sons of ....” McCaffery said to rousing laughter after listening to Parker using the term in jest while talking about some of his favorite players. “And two, don't threaten to kick anybody's ass.” That was in response to Brands joking with a fan who won a pair of Hawkeye headgear.

McCaffery had to win over the fans, especially those who sat in the back of the room.

“We can't hear you coach,” one fan shouted.

McCaffery then grabbed the microphone and said “no wonder nobody was laughing at my jokes.”

McCaffery spoke for about 10 minutes to the captive audience. He said Iowa junior Jarryd Cole had off-season knee surgery and praised his players in helping recruit Melsahn Basabe. He told fans “we're on the right track” and left the stage to another ovation.

McCaffery promised the crowd he'd play fast and the fans would enjoy his style of play. That resonated well with Burlington resident Jim Carter.

“I'm impressed,” Carter said. “He said the right things and I liked what he said about being fast, pushing, on moving defense and running. I think that's what we lacked. I was talking with some friends together and what they said was they fell asleep during the games last year because it was kind of boring.”

Before the banquet, McCaffery told reports he hopes to add at least one more men's basketball player before the team takes the court this fall.

“I would anticipate at least signing one,” McCaffery said. “We may shut it down there, we may keep going. Again, it's always a question is who are we signing and in a perfect world we'd probably get at least one, maybe two. If it's not the right fit, we wouldn't do it. I think we need another guard. We only have three (guards) right now. It'd be nice to add at least one more guard and maybe one more big. We'll see.”

McCaffery said he has received a good response from the state's AAU coaches and has contacted them frequently since taking over at Iowa.

“It's been phenomenal, and it will continue to be a big part of my day just reaching out to those AAU coaches and making sure they understand what we're trying to do what we're looking for and develop relationships that will endure for a long time,” McCaffery said.

New administrative assistant/video coordinator Ryan Bowen received one of the loudest ovations from his local fan base. Bowen hails from Fort Madison but lives in Burlington. He commutes to Iowa City daily.