Fran McCaffery was appointed as the new head coach for the University of Pennsylvania’s men’s basketball team on Thursday. This decision follows his dismissal from Iowa just a fortnight earlier after the team had its lowest performance in the Big Ten regular-season standings over the past seven years. Just earlier this month, Penn parted ways with Steve Donahue, who concluded his nine-year period with the team on an 8-19 record this season.
McCaffery returns to Penn with a notable legacy, having played three significant seasons with the Quakers. He led the Ivy League in both assists and steals during his senior year in 1981-82 and contributed to Penn’s dominant 36-6 Ivy League record during his tenure, where they clinched three conference titles and participated in two NCAA Tournaments.
With aspirations of reinstating Penn’s former glory, McCaffery is on a mission to revive the Quakers, who have only secured two tournament appearances since the departure of Fran Dunphy in 2006. During Donahue’s leadership, the team reached the NCAA Tournament in 2018 after winning the Ivy League Tournament on their home turf at the Palestra, but faced defeat in the first round against the top-seeded Kansas. Under Donahue since 2015, the Quakers had an overall record of 131-130 and were 63-63 in conference play.
“My vision is to return Penn to prominence in the Ivy League and beyond, and bring an exciting style of play to the Palestra,” McCaffery expressed regarding his new role. A veteran at 65, McCaffery holds the title of Iowa’s all-time wins leader and the most extended head coaching tenure in the program’s history, with a 15-year stretch.
Before his stint with Iowa, McCaffery was at the helm at Lehigh, UNC Greensboro, and Siena, eventually joining Iowa in 2010 under then athletic director Gary Barta. During his Iowa career, he achieved eight seasons with over 20 wins and won NCAA Tournament games in four of the seven appearances between the 2012-13 and 2022-23 seasons. Standing with an overall record of 548-384, McCaffery boasts a .588 winning percentage.
Remarkably, Iowa achieved a No. 3 national ranking in both the 2016 and 2021 seasons. The team was consistently ranked for 16 weeks in 2019, stayed in the top 15 of the AP Poll throughout the entire 2021 season, marking the first occurrence since 1989, and ended at No. 16 in the 2022 final poll.
Penn’s athletic director, Alanna Wren, praised the appointment, stating, “Fran has had success at every level of Division I and is passionate about restoring our program to glory. His energy and enthusiasm for leading young men was apparent throughout the process, and he has proven to be committed to player development and relationship-building with his student-athletes throughout his storied career.”