Hawkeyes land Drake star in transfer portal after Ben McCollum hire
03/25/2025 12:43 PM
With four Big Ten teams remaining in the 2025 men’s NCAA Tournament, the conference still has a lot to settle before the season ends. Iowa basketball, however, has already made a major move for the 2025-26 season.
The Hawkeyes hired Drake coach Ben McCollum to replace Fran McCaffery earlier this week. His star for the Bulldogs, Bennett Stirtz, is following him, according to Field of 68’s Jeff Goodman.
It’s seismic news in the Big Ten. Iowa finished the season 7-13 in Big Ten play, far off the NCAA Tournament bubble. It was the Hawkeyes’ second straight year missing the tournament and they haven’t advanced in March Madness since 2021. They haven’t reached the Sweet 16 since 1999.
Hiring McCollum alone was seen as a massive upgrade considering he has done nothing but win as a head coach and won 31 games in his lone season at Drake.
Stirtz, who followed McCollum from Division II Northwest Missouri State to Drake, put up 19.2 points with 5.7 assists and 4.3 rebounds per game for the Bulldogs this year. Regardless of whether McCollum took a bigger job, Stirtz was seen as a potential transfer candidate to a high-major.
Now, he’s in position to be one of the best players in the Big Ten next season.
Ben McCollum and Bennett Stirtz can transform the Iowa men’s basketball program overnight
Just a year ago, McCollum and Stirtz were in Division II and Northwest Missouri State had just finished its 11th consecutive first-place finish in its conference, the MIAA.
McCollum was at the helm for all 11 and led the Bearcats to four National Championships, all since 2017. Drake hired him last spring after losing Darian DeVries to West Virginia. The Bulldogs went 31-4, reaching the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament. Now, McCollum gets to combine his coaching chops with Big Ten resources.
Having Stirtz along for the ride will only help. He proved ready for Division I when his stats improved across the board in the Missouri Valley. He also shot 40% from three en route to being named MVC Player of the Year.
Stirtz projects as a legitimate NBA prospect, but the transfer to Iowa could give him another opportunity to show he can produce at an even higher level.
“Playing against even better competition is something NBA teams will want to see, whether that's at the collegiate level or in the pre-draft process in workouts alongside other prospects,” his SI Draft Digest profile reads. “The offensive flashes Stirtz has shown are impressive, but it's all about sustainability in that production against NBA athletes.”
He’ll see plenty of that in the Big Ten.
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