March 23, 2007 is a date that will live in infamy for Hawkeye fans. On that day, Iowa Men’s Basketball coach Steve Alford walked into (or most likely, sprinted into) the head coach opening at New Mexico’s program. Why all of the cardio for Alford? Well, for starters, Hawk fans weren’t big Alford supporters. Alford definitely reciprocated those feelings, calling the University of Iowa “a football school” before leaving. Another huge reason for leaving has to be that this Lobos team he’s coming to is loaded, with four returning starters, while in contrast, he’s leaving his former program with peanuts at nearly every position. It must also be easier recruit to that New Mexico weather, because Alford has what looks to be a Top 10 recruiting class for ’08, with five solid verbals already.
Even with a disliked former coach going to what seems to be bigger and better things, there seems to be a resounding view of optimism for the future of the Hawkeyes’ basketball program. The man that is restoring that faith is the reigning National Coach of the Year, Todd Lickliter. While he wasn’t the AD’s first choice (Bruce Pearl) or the fans’ (Dana Altman, Rick Majerus, Kevin Stallings), he is certainly looking like the best fit at Iowa.
Lickliter’s resume at Butler University was simply outstanding. In his six years at the head coaching position, he led the Bulldogs to a 131-61 record. Most importantly, though, was his postseason success (an area where Alford failed miserably). He reached postseason play in four of his seasons, and took his team to the Sweet 16 twice.
All of the faith in the world, sadly, does not necessarily translate into wins on the basketball court. This upcoming season (starting this Friday at home against Idaho State) is one that will require a lot of patience from the Hawkeye fans. We lost our two best players from last year; Adam Haluska who is playing with the New Orleans Hornets, and Tyler Smith, a talented sophomore who transferred to Tennessee. To add to the obstacles Lick will have to hurdle, his best returning playmaker, Tony Freeman, is going to be out the first 4-6 weeks of the season with a broken foot.
Is it reasonable to think that Lickliter will be able to turn this program into a national or even Big 10 contender this year? No. At this point (until Freeman comes back), our offense can’t compete with most of the teams we’ll play this year. My prediction is that the Hawkeyes will finish 12-18 (7-5 Non-conference, 5-13 in the Big 10). If somehow Coach Lickliter can implement his system filled with hard-nosed defense and team-first offense, I think they could surprise people and finish with as many as 16 wins this year.
If for some reason the wheels fall off of this team, and they end up with less than 10 wins this season, I stress again that that Hawkeye fan-base shows patience. Remember, it hasn’t been that long ago since Kirk Ferentz started his tenure with a 1-10 season, followed by a 3-9 season the next year. Since then, Kirk has been 56-29, with two Big 10 Titles and many postseason accolades. Expect the same from Lickliter’s basketball program, a couple of rough years followed by many good ones. The Hawks are lucky to have a coach of his caliber, and it will be interesting to see where he will take them in the years to come.
- Neal Wiebers, 11/9/07
