Ex-players impressed: Settles, Bowen ready to help McCaffery
IOWA CITY (MCT) — Not even getting to meet Julia Roberts could get Jess Settles to Notre Dame.
The former Winfield-Mount Union High School standout went to Notre Dame on a recruiting visit during the 1992-93 season, and got to meet the actress.
But Settles always wanted to play at Iowa, so he signed to play for the Hawkeyes, where he played for all or part of six seasons.
“I remember when it came down to it, how could I sign with someone else? I wanted to be a Hawkeye,” Settles said Monday. “That was my generation.”
The Notre Dame assistant coach at the time understood. And now he’s the Hawkeyes’ coach.
“I said, ‘We’ve got to pull out all the stops,” Fran McCaffery said during his introductory press conference. “But (Settles’) entire family were season ticket holders.”
McCaffery was hired to revive Settles’ former team, which hasn’t been to the NCAA tournament in the last four seasons and hasn’t had a winning season in the last three.
“He’s a humble guy,” Settles said before going to greet McCaffery. “He understands the big picture. Around the state of Iowa, that sells.”
Several former players came to the press conference to see and hear the new coach.
“It’s not about us, it’s about the current players,” said Fort Madison native Ryan Bowen, a four-year starter with the Hawkeyes. “We want them to enjoy their time just as much as we enjoyed our time.
“I was impressed with what he had to say.”
McCaffery said one of his goals was to connect with Iowa’s tradition and the players who contributed to it.
“I want them involved,” McCaffery said. “I will reach out to them. I want them coming back. I want them at games. I want them calling me on the phone, (saying) ‘Hey, I heard about a player you might be interested in.’ It’s that kind of relationship to me that makes a program special, and that’s what we’re going to build here.”
“I just like it that he wants to build relationships again with the players and their families,” Settles said. “We haven’t had that the last 10 years.”
“Just listening to him, you could tell he’s sincere,” Bowen said. “We’ve spent a lot of time here, and grew up here. It’s important for us to help out any way we can.”
Settles said the key for McCaffery is getting players to come to Iowa.
“He has a proven track record at a lot of tough places (to recruit). And this is a tough place to recruit,” Settles said. “The competition — you’re sitting down on the same couch that Bo Ryan was on the night before, and Tom Izzo is on the day after. So that’s going to be the ultimate challenge.
“If you grew up here, you came to Iowa. And we’ve lost that, too. We’ve lost a lot of All-American-type players over the last 10 years, and I would hope we can keep them here.”
Former player Bobby Hansen, an analyst for games on the Hawkeye Radio Network who was on the search committee for the new coach, said the players also have to take steps to increase their involvement.
“They have to come to games, they have to come watch practice or go to the golf outings,” he said. “It’s a two-way street.”
McCaffery said he wants the tradition to be involved in his team’s future.
“I’ve given strong consideration to having an Iowa presence on my staff, maybe a former player, for example,” he said.
“He’s definitely paid his dues,” Settles said. “This is a huge step for him. If he can get it turned around here, we’ll love him for 25 years.”
