Drake coach Ben McCollum did the media rounds on Monday after his 30-3 team received their NCAA Tournament invitation.
McCollum has been frequently mentioned as a potential candidate for the head coaching vacancy at Indiana, Iowa and elsewhere.
Here were McCollum comments during an interview with former IU player and coach Dan Dakich on Outkick when asked about dealing with job rumors as he prepares his team for the NCAA Tournament.
“We’ve dealt with this at Northwest (Missouri State) for maybe six, seven, eight years when jobs started to come and go,” McCollum said. “I’ve learned through some of my mentors and just through myself, that the kids who play for us are very loyal to us. So for me, I have to reciprocate that. And so in a lot of these settings it’s very important I don’t have a divided heart.”
“To be quite honest, I don’t pay attention to social media a lot. I just cut that off, and to be quite honest just don’t pay attention to it because it really doesn’t help anything. I think our guys will stay focused. They know I’m staying focused. They know I don’t have a divided heart. We’re going to keep fighting and see what we can do in this NCAA Tournament.”
“It’s the nature of the beast, but you just have to keep your heart where it belongs. I know a lot of coaches in this profession are on a fast track, just like a lot of players, but I still think at the end of the day there’s a humility and a genuineness that wins at an elite level. I always want to be that way.”
Here are two of McCollum’s interviews from Monday. He touches on being an often mentioned coaching candidate in both interviews.
For our profile of McCollum, GO HERE.
For the 2025 coaching search hot board, GO HERE.
Drake Basketball Coach Ben McCollum opens up on the Indiana and Iowa rumors… WATCH ⬇️ @dandakich
Don’t sleep on the Drake Bulldogs in March either! pic.twitter.com/jSV98fFWwe
— OutKick (@Outkick) March 17, 2025
For complete coverage of IU basketball’s 2025 coaching search, GO HERE.
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