The Hawkeyes' first-year coach wants to build a program similar to his football counterpart - Kirk Ferentz.
HOUSTON - Ben McCollum was prepared for the question to be asked, but no one could've expected what he would say to it.
The national media has tied Iowa basketball's first-year head coach to various major college basketball job openings such as North Carolina or even Kansas should it open up, but McCollum quickly squashed those claims when asked by Ethan Petrik of The Quad-City Times.
"Those are all lies," McCollum said during a press conference Friday. "The only person that would ever know would be -- well, three people -- would be my athletic director, my wife, and that's about it."
McCollum is a Hawkeye through and through. The Storm Lake native grew up a diehard Hawkeye fan and set a goal of building a successful program, not hopping from job to job.
McCollum even took some time to reflect on this after Iowa's 77-71 Sweet 16 victory over Nebraska on Thursday evening.
"I don't think people understand is the toll it takes on your family. That's the that's the biggest toll," McCollum said. "I don't get to spend as much time with them, but they are the reason that I'm here."
What coach does McCollum want to mimic in Iowa City? None other than Iowa's longtime football coach, Kirk Ferentz. Ferentz has led the Hawkeye football team since 1999, and just became the Big Ten's all-time winningest coach last season.
The on-field success has helped Iowa earn a reputation as a respected program, but the driving factor to earning the positive perception is what the Hawkeyes do off the gridiron. Iowa football players are always applauded by the media for their humanitarian efforts and respectful interactions with the local press.
That's the culture McCollum wants to bring to the basketball team.
"Kirk -- he's as classy as it gets," McCollum said. "He's done a great job with his entire program of recruiting great kids and great people and created a great culture."
It's only McCollum's first year, but the culture shift has been evident in Iowa City. The Hawkeyes are in the midst of their best NCAA tournament run in 39 years, and will play for the right to go to the Final Four - which would be Iowa's first trip in 46 years.
Standing in Iowa's way is longtime Big Ten rival Illinois, which seeks its first Final Four appearance since 2005. Head coach Brad Underwood praised McCollum's coaching job, and his answer circled back to one word - culture.
"He just knows how he knows how to coach, he knows how to win, and he's established that culture in a very quick amount of time, and found a lot of success," Underwood said.
McCollum's strong culture building skills have trickled down to his players, but there's no better example than point guard Bennett Stirtz. Mention McCollum in a conversation, and Stirtz will likely be the second subject.
The pair have lived out of a suitcase the last three years - beginning in Maryville, Missouri with Division II Northwest Missouri State, Des Moines with Drake, and ending in Iowa City with the Hawkeyes.
Stirtz, a potential NBA Draft lottery selection, could've bounced to the pros or transferred to a blue blood program for his final season of college. Instead, he chose to come to Iowa City and help McCollum rebuild the Iowa program.
"Some people were illegally recruiting him, offering him a lot more money, and he still chose to come to the University of Iowa," McCollum said. "I think that's probably as special as it gets, that he believes in you, and you believe in him."
Now, the Hawkeyes are one win away from the Final Four.
"They're a lot better team than the first time we played them, so obviously we'll watch some film from our game and see what we can do better," Stirtz said. "We're going to both make adjustments."
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