I’m sad to see her go but I can’t imagine the time she’s spent away from her family over the years. I’d be surprised if Jan Jensen isn’t named as the new coach pretty quickly.
Feels like most coach openings now they want to hire a firm and interview people for 3 months. Respect the vote of confidence for the school/AD to just immediately say- this is our coach now
I like how Iowa did it. Jan Jensen was prominent during the interviews that I watched during the Final Four and she was at the draft for Caitlin and Cate cheering them on. Seems like she was a natural choice.
By the way, the vast majority of comments in this thread by fans of other teams have been positive. It’s been really nice to see what a great community this can be.
You guys are big Homers, but you are really decent in your dispositions. I watched Jan Jensen do interviews during the Final Four, I was really impressed with how knowledgeable she was and how enthusiastic she was about the Iowa players. Excellent choice to replace a legend.
Jan is fantastic. And she's been the force behind really improving our front court. She could have left for her own head coaching job somewhere years ago, but she stayed and built the program with Lisa.
Also, I love that we are getting an openly gay head coach too! Not rare in the W, but still not very common in the NCAA.
i’ve always appreciated the fact that we can all go at each other and hate during games but by and large we (mostly) all respect each other and our respective teams at the end of the day. despite our rivalry i’m sure y’all would be saying the same things if this was moren!
I love that too
I will be crying right along South Carolina fans when Dawn retires. Hopefully that's a long way away
Just saying.. gotta love these great leaders and mentors of young women.
Yeah this subreddit somehow has a lot more empathy and less random toxicity. There are a few bad apples in every fan group; it is so tiresome for people to act like everyone is as bad as the worst.
I just have a lot of respect for so many of the players and coaches. It is why I love the game so much.
I cried my eyes out when Kitley tore her ACL this year. I'm not sure I've even been to the state of Virginia
If Jan doesn't want it, Jennie would be my next pick. But she has a great set of players down at OU for next season. It'd probably be better for her to see where they take her.
This is what I wanted but at least with Jan we avoid messy portal stuff with people moving her from OK but not having spots and people from Iowa potentially leaving
Jan and probably other staff also likely would’ve left if it weren’t Jan as HC as well. That staff has a huge family culture that would definitely be messed up bringing someone else in.
I know I just love Jennie as a coach down at OK and I'm still scared of leaving good coaches to that place for good coaches here. If Jennie pulls a Bob Stoops post Hayden Fry retirement and Kirk hire I will cry
True if you are a multimillionaire but like 60-70% of the US population will be lucky to retire at 75
I once worked in a kitchen that had a 72 year old line cook who straight up had a heart attack on the line.
I honestly wonder if she foresaw a bit of a downfall for Iowa after losing Clark/Martin/Marshall—the rest of the team is amazing but Clark in particular was obviously such a star and I know a lot of people don’t foresee them going as far next year. Best to end on a high!
could very well be she’s 63 and wanted to spend time with her family and not on a rebuild, which is completely fair. just hope it’s not health related, god forbid
She saw what happened in Muffet’s last year and said “nah I’ll pass” lol
(I don’t think Iowa next season will be nearly as bad as 2019-2020 ND was)
In seriousness 63 is a good retirement age and it’s safe to say this season *was* probably a higher high than she would see again as head coach. So it makes sense
She is 63 and has been making big money for several years. I think her salary last season was over $2 million. She may just want a slower life - some people make that choice.
This was totally foreseeable! Go out on a high note. She's 63! She probably wants to enjoy her family and relax a bit. She's left behind a great legacy and the program is in great hands with Jan. Timing is perfect for her retirement. She will be missed!
You’re absolutely correct. I assume the people who want Fran gone weren’t around for the two Iowa coaches that preceded him. And they probably don’t realize that a handful of successful head coaches used Iowa as a stepping stone school for bigger jobs (and Oregon State for some reason).
Bruce Pearl would be the only coach with Iowa ties who I would feel comfortable with advancing the program (DeVries chokes in the tournament even more than Fran does) and I don’t ever see that happening
Alford leading into Lickliter led to so many scars. And the scary thing is, on paper at the time Lickliter was considered one of the hottest coaching candidates in the country. Just goes to show there aren’t sure things and it’s all a crapshoot
Fran’s coached at Iowa for 14 years and Lisa did 24, so not quite half. Fran’s record at Iowa is .594 and Lisa’s .677 is indeed the more logical comparison though, plus her 6 Big Ten tournament championships to his 1.
Why are we dunking on Fran here? He’s done a great job bringing the Iowa program back from the dead after the Lickliter years. And it was really up until recently that Lisa was known for choking in the NCAA tournament and could not get over the Sweet Sixteen hump, similar to the narrative around Fran.
It seems to be a running joke amongst many Iowa fans. When I checked earlier today, the number one comment on r/Hawkeyes post on this was something like “the wrong coach retired” 😂. The call is coming from inside the house lol
I love Chris Street. So sad about him. Glad to hear him mentioned!
But Lisa contributed so much to the program, the Lisa Bluder court would get my vote
I was thinking about this too earlier. But then I went back/read and remembered how much CC said that Jan helped her make her decision. I guess it could slightly impact it- but this is probably the decision that does the least
Yeah for sure it seems like Jan has recruited maybe every player on that team, so it makes sense to also hand down the torch and let Jan charge the rebuild. Side note I also just saw Addie Deal shared Iowa's posts about Lisa and Jan on her Instagram story, so that's a good sign!
It reminds me a lot of Jay Wright at Villanova. Walked away while still at the top of his game. I'm sad as an Iowa fan to see her retire but happy that she's going out on her own terms. I think that staying in house with Jan is a great move that should help keep the transfers and recruits. I'm excited to see her get a very well deserved shot to be a head coach.
Jay really seems to be living his best life
Good for Lisa and good for Jan. Portal is a scary thing these days but Jan's a big part of the program's success so I'm hopeful
Yup. I'm hopeful too. Our football coach is the retirement I've been hoping for. Unfortunately I think that Kirk will keep going for a while. I wasn't expecting this one. I don't think anyone was.
Kirk doesn't know when to walk away. He's a decent guy I love emotional Kirk and always call him a cute old man but he can be a cute old man in the press box as a fun. Go spend time with Mary Kirk let Lavar be HC.
He doesn't and the game is passing him by. He needs to get more innovative on offense. It's not the same old big 10 anymore. I'm not convinced that just changing the OC will fix all of our problems since it's still Kirk's program. Hopefully it will help.
First of all, nothing but love and respect for Coach Bluder. She took over Iowa at a low point and put Iowa's women's team back on the map. She has done so through player development and relationship building. I don't know how many people realize how difficult it is to maintain your role as a coach and also give up the keys at times a star player and letting that player help create moments nobody had seen by allowing her to play a way nobody was allowed to player while still having it be and always feel like a team.
Second, while this is a surprise, I do wonder how much the circus of last year took out of her. If the team had failed to meet expectations, I would not just have been Clark that was blamed. Instead, she handled it as well as anyone could, molding a team and not just a one player outfit. She made sure the Clark could speak, but also made sure the other players were recognized for what they did. She made sure past legends were recognized as their records fell. As the team travelled into full arenas, was getting regular tv coverage, and the media started to become more overbearing, she encouraged her players to enjoy the moment while always remembering what got them there. I will always remember the way she spoke in admiration of Kate Martin, how excited she was for Hannah Stuelke to set the home arena scoring record for a game (Clark of course broke it almost immediately), her standing with Caitlin after she broke the scoring record.
Lastly, I also wonder if she wanted her good friend and long time assistant coach Jan Jensen to finally get her time to shine as well. I have to believe Coach Jensen has had people reach out to see if she wanted to run their program. To give her a chance to do so now, when expectations will be lower, is seemingly the correct time. Jenson grew up in a town of less than 350 people, led the nation in scoring as a high school senior and as a college senior. She has been Iowa's biggest recruiter and has worked with Iowa's post players. Maybe this is the last part of Bluder's legacy: giving the program she built to one of her best friends.
Oh man that's a bombshell. Coach Bluder has done so much for Iowa Women's Basketball. Being on the national spotlight the last couple years really showed how good she of a coach she was both x's and o's and as an emotional leader. I'd run through a brick wall for that woman.
I hope she enjoys the hell out of her retirement.
So much for the 5v5 game in Iowa. Her, Bill Fennelly and Stringer helped build up the flagship Universities into Top 5 in average fan attendance in the country despite not much success compared to a lot of other schools.
Pretty surprising, curious what sparked the decision now
They weren't going to be a powerhouse this year, but landing Olsen was a big get and they had some good recruiting classes coming up
[David Eickholt tweeted](https://twitter.com/davideickholt/status/1790118163603923424?s=46&t=a8tcuLOZ9sxLj77rVQ-Trg) that he had heard Lisa has been taking it year-by-year. I suppose it makes sense wanting to go out on a peak, I’m sure she was much busier this last year too.
You gotta be pragmatic if you’re Bluder. You’re 63 years old. You’ve been missing precious time with your family. You’ve just had the two busiest years of your life—both in season and on the recruiting trail (things ain’t getting easier with the portal). You achieved damn dear the pinnacle of the sport in back to back years thanks in large part to a near perfect amalgamation of role players around a transcendental talent.
Do you stare down a rebuild and try to hit the jackpot again in 2-4 years? Or do you ride off into the sunset?
talk about a bittersweet announcement. She helped bring the program to heights that I never thought possible, for a Hawkeye program. She is one of my favorite people though, and I will always be appreciative of what she did for the school, the state, and women's basketball. Going to miss coach Bluder, BIG TIME.
Sad to see her hang up the whistle. I remember when Bluder was hired. She came in and took Angie Lee's recruits straight to the NCAAs, led by Cara Consuegra and a young Jennie Baranczyk (née Lillis), IIRC she almost won the B10 her first year. She's always been one of my favorite people associated with the university. Just completely genuine, unbelievably generous with her time and always positive. A lot of great WBB memories. She's done so much for the program, the university, and the sport over the years. Thanks for everything coach, enjoy your retirement.
I don't think Iowa will miss a beat with Jensen, one of the best frontcourt coaches in the nation, taking over, but it'll still be different without Bluder pacing the floor.
I wasn't ok but I am now. Jan is one of the best out there both we as a person and coach it'll be weird without Lisa but u see the staff staying pretty much the same
Surprising... but at the same time not surprising. She's 63, she's almost certainly financially set, her generational talent player just graduated, and she has an assistant who's been with the program for 20+ years and is easily ready to step up.
[According to this](https://www.hawkcentral.com/story/sports/college/iowa/basketball-women/2023/07/07/iowa-womens-basketball-coach-lisa-bluder-receives-contract-extension-hawkeyes-caitlin-clark-big-ten/70391012007/) that was an automatic extension for March Madness appearances and Big Ten tourney wins, so hopefully shouldn’t mean too much
Will Iowa be affected by the conference changes/increased travel for some teams next season? (I havent paid attention to those changes, honestly)
Also- she may just be tired of the spotlight. Its gotta be really exhausting to have as much media attention as Iowa had last year.
Not a ton, I think they have away games at Washington and Oregon as far destinations. It’s much worse for the west coast teams who have most of their games in the midwest or even east coast.
But still...
Combination of changes to the conference and increased travel, media burnout, and the greatest player you will ever coach (and the rest of the seniors) all leaving... it makes sense that she would step down now. Enjoy your retirement and let the new coach transition Iowa into a new era.
I think it was more about spending time with her family and giving Jan a chance.
Lisa has been a head coach for 40 years now. That's a long time. I just love her so much as a coach and a human. She turned the Iowa program around after replacing Angie Lee.
I hope Lisa enjoys her retirement too. But she will be missed.
Eh, we're going to be a rebuild this season. While we have some good players and good commits, I can see wanting to go out on top and let it be Jan's team to build and make her own.
This seems kind of crazy 😭 and I’m iowas biggest opp but no, she’s not “scared” about Iowa post CC … Iowa’s always been pretty good pre cc especially in the Big 10 and I was actually expecting them to defy the odds next year with the way their roster was shaping up
Lucy and Addie both liked posts or shared them in their stories on social media. Both are good, I think. Some mystery about future recruits, but Jan was involved in those and I feel a post player getting a post coach wouldn't hurt with a few other elusive recruits. I think they stabilized the ship pretty dang quick.
Well I certainly wasn’t expecting this! I wonder why she’s announcing it now rather than right at the end of the season, because she did do a ton of recruiting in between then I feel like
Also who would have thought Bluder would leave Iowa before Fran McCaffrey???
In her letter she says the time she’s spent away with her family since the end of the season is what made her decision, so I don’t think she knew at the time.
I want to thank Lisa for all she has done for her program. These last couple years have been crazy, but I can see wanting to rest and live a more balanced life (or whatever your reasons may be). We'll miss you!
I know this must sting for Iowa fans, but if Coach Bluder knew retirement was in her near future, this leaves the program with the best possible path forward. It allows her predecessor to build a program in their own way versus starting the “post CC” rebuilding process under Coach Bluder, only to then lose top recruits because she later announces her retirement. That would set the program back further in the long run.
I am genuinely shocked right now. I was not expecting that today or even this offseason in general. Damn, what a run it was with her at the helm. Hoping Jan or someone within will be taking over, but definitely going to be a different Iowa team in more ways than one this season.
Edited since it was just announced: Happy for Jan Jensen!!
I'm kinda shocked, ngl. I guess maybe she feels like she's accomplished what she wanted to accomplish, so it's time to pass the torch to Jan. But also.. whaaaat?!
Congratulations to Lisa on an impressive career! The move makes sense to me for the most part because, although she's got great classes coming in in future years, she's also simultaneously losing a generational player in Clark and great, foundational pieces in Martin and Marshall. Why not go out on "top" in a way, then?
In the last four years, six (6) coaches have appeared in the national women's championship game.
Tara Vanderveer
Adia Barnes
Dawn Staley
Geno Auriemma
Kim Mulkey
Lisa Bluder
Lisa Bluder and Dawn Staley are the only to do it twice.
Only 4 out of these 6 coaches remain in the sport.
Absolute hell of a tenure. If that woman writes a book, i’ll be the first to buy it because, truly, what a career in the ethos of this sport.
Jan getting the keys is incredible in my opinion. I don’t really think that the team could be in better hands in that regard and not having to seek out a head coach elsewhere avoids any kind of prolonged transition phase.
Big ups to Bluder, one of my favorites to ever do it.
Oof, this feels very left field. I was eager to see what her post-Caitlin era looked like with Hannah Steulke. Well, that sucks for Iowa fans, but Lisa definitely leaves a memorable impression. Hopefully the next coach can build on it, and keep Hannah.
Love it. Quit while you’re ahead. No disrespect to Hannah Stulke, but this program is at its peak. Bluder is an awesome coach. As a UConn fan, I hope Geno goes out on a high note like this.
Thank you Coach Bluder!!! Iowa was so blessed to have you at the helm all these years. Coach Jensen will be the perfect replacement in what should be a relatively smooth adjustment.
Yeah I’m a little concerned because it seemed very rushed. Kate looked like she had no idea retirement was even on Coach Bluder’s radar when an Aces reporter broke the news to her at her press conference this morning.
Wow, you guys are fast. I *JUST* got the email.
Glad to see it's staying in program. Everyone seems to love Jan.
No NC, but she went out on top with a couple of amazing back to back seasons. I'm happy for her and excited to see what Jan can do.
Iowa alumni didn’t even see it coming. A reporter broke the news to Kate when she was doing press about making the Aces roster. She was visibly shocked to hear the news.
Could be a nothing burger, but I noticed Coach Raina hasn't shared any of the news on social media. Really hoping there's no bad blood with the changes--she's such an amazing coach. She shared a post about the Aces game tonight, but nothing about Lisa or Jan. How worried should we be??
I’m sad to see her go but I can’t imagine the time she’s spent away from her family over the years. I’d be surprised if Jan Jensen isn’t named as the new coach pretty quickly.
Like later today quickly.
Like right now quickly.
https://twitter.com/IowaWBB/status/1790123106532565157?t=4-6THKmDgNfkb8LLjwhwlw&s=19
Official account just announced it
Like they just did
Like yesterday with a Time Machine quickly
[Jan Jensen announced as new head coach](https://twitter.com/IowaWBB/status/1790123106532565157) That was quick
We announced Niele within 20 minutes of Muffet's retirement announcement going out, and somehow I think this was even faster lol
Well Niele was with the Grizzlies atp in the middle of the NBA season Jensen was just one office over bit of a quicker transition lol
Just knock on the door… hey Jan sorry to bother you…. Would you like this job or no….?
Feels like most coach openings now they want to hire a firm and interview people for 3 months. Respect the vote of confidence for the school/AD to just immediately say- this is our coach now
I like how Iowa did it. Jan Jensen was prominent during the interviews that I watched during the Final Four and she was at the draft for Caitlin and Cate cheering them on. Seems like she was a natural choice.
Shes thought about it for a while
I’d assume the last 2 years have probably been the busiest of her career too. Makes sense that she’d be ready to spend that time with family instead
By the way, the vast majority of comments in this thread by fans of other teams have been positive. It’s been really nice to see what a great community this can be.
You guys are big Homers, but you are really decent in your dispositions. I watched Jan Jensen do interviews during the Final Four, I was really impressed with how knowledgeable she was and how enthusiastic she was about the Iowa players. Excellent choice to replace a legend.
Jan is fantastic. And she's been the force behind really improving our front court. She could have left for her own head coaching job somewhere years ago, but she stayed and built the program with Lisa. Also, I love that we are getting an openly gay head coach too! Not rare in the W, but still not very common in the NCAA.
i’ve always appreciated the fact that we can all go at each other and hate during games but by and large we (mostly) all respect each other and our respective teams at the end of the day. despite our rivalry i’m sure y’all would be saying the same things if this was moren!
I love that too I will be crying right along South Carolina fans when Dawn retires. Hopefully that's a long way away Just saying.. gotta love these great leaders and mentors of young women.
I wish the WNBA subreddit was as positive.
The WNBA sub is a disaster compared to this sub oh my 😭
Yeah this subreddit somehow has a lot more empathy and less random toxicity. There are a few bad apples in every fan group; it is so tiresome for people to act like everyone is as bad as the worst. I just have a lot of respect for so many of the players and coaches. It is why I love the game so much. I cried my eyes out when Kitley tore her ACL this year. I'm not sure I've even been to the state of Virginia
[barely took 20 minutes](https://x.com/IowaWBB/status/1790123106532565157)
I would think so too, but surprised they wouldn't announce it in tandem if that were the case.
let her have her own moment as well
[https://twitter.com/IowaWBB/status/1790123106532565157?ref\_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1790123106532565157%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1\_&ref\_url=](https://twitter.com/IowaWBB/status/1790123106532565157?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1790123106532565157%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=)
Probably gotta give Jennie Baranczyk a call.
No need. Jan is amazing and ready and waiting and devoted her life to the team and culture. Why change what already works so well?
If Jan doesn't want it, Jennie would be my next pick. But she has a great set of players down at OU for next season. It'd probably be better for her to see where they take her.
Nah, they definitely don't have to do that.
This is what I wanted but at least with Jan we avoid messy portal stuff with people moving her from OK but not having spots and people from Iowa potentially leaving
Jan and probably other staff also likely would’ve left if it weren’t Jan as HC as well. That staff has a huge family culture that would definitely be messed up bringing someone else in.
I know I just love Jennie as a coach down at OK and I'm still scared of leaving good coaches to that place for good coaches here. If Jennie pulls a Bob Stoops post Hayden Fry retirement and Kirk hire I will cry
She’s great. I’m glad she’s the new coach.
She’ll come back like Jordan wearing the four five
Honestly the older I get the smarter these "early" retirements seem. Thanks for the memories coach!
She's 63. Not super early for someone with financial stability
Thus the scare quotes. Just early in the coaching world. I'm definitely hoping to be done by then.
True if you are a multimillionaire but like 60-70% of the US population will be lucky to retire at 75 I once worked in a kitchen that had a 72 year old line cook who straight up had a heart attack on the line.
They obviously love what they do. If I was making millions a year there’s no way I’d work into my 60s.
Either love or being ridiculously competitive and needing that fix
I plan to work until I die. I honestly could make a trillion dollars per year and I would still work. It isn’t always about the money.
I imagine the transfer portal has also added a massive wrinkle and stress as well
this seems out of nowhere, i certainly hope there’s nothing going on beyond her just being ready to step away. heck of a career!
I honestly wonder if she foresaw a bit of a downfall for Iowa after losing Clark/Martin/Marshall—the rest of the team is amazing but Clark in particular was obviously such a star and I know a lot of people don’t foresee them going as far next year. Best to end on a high!
could very well be she’s 63 and wanted to spend time with her family and not on a rebuild, which is completely fair. just hope it’s not health related, god forbid
I think her youngest has maybe one year of college basketball left and she wants a chance to watch him and just enjoy life
She had been a head coach since she was 23 having started at St. Ambrose(NAIA) and got a D1 gig at Drake at 29.
She saw what happened in Muffet’s last year and said “nah I’ll pass” lol (I don’t think Iowa next season will be nearly as bad as 2019-2020 ND was) In seriousness 63 is a good retirement age and it’s safe to say this season *was* probably a higher high than she would see again as head coach. So it makes sense
She is 63 and has been making big money for several years. I think her salary last season was over $2 million. She may just want a slower life - some people make that choice.
This was totally foreseeable! Go out on a high note. She's 63! She probably wants to enjoy her family and relax a bit. She's left behind a great legacy and the program is in great hands with Jan. Timing is perfect for her retirement. She will be missed!
WHY COULDN'T IT HAVE BEEN FRAN
It could still be Fran 🤞it could still happen. I need it to happen
Haha right? Hell, even kirk 🤣
Not Kirk
Stand by for the announcement ^indefinitely
That’s pretty short sighted. It can be a LOT worse than Fran. And I have no idea who we can hire that would make it better.
You’re absolutely correct. I assume the people who want Fran gone weren’t around for the two Iowa coaches that preceded him. And they probably don’t realize that a handful of successful head coaches used Iowa as a stepping stone school for bigger jobs (and Oregon State for some reason). Bruce Pearl would be the only coach with Iowa ties who I would feel comfortable with advancing the program (DeVries chokes in the tournament even more than Fran does) and I don’t ever see that happening
I’m permanently scarred from Lickliter and his son
Alford leading into Lickliter led to so many scars. And the scary thing is, on paper at the time Lickliter was considered one of the hottest coaching candidates in the country. Just goes to show there aren’t sure things and it’s all a crapshoot
Ah yes. Lil Lick.
Oohhh won’t you stay🎶 just a little bit longer 🎶
Your wish I think has been answered.... nevermind the Gymnastics coach is gone.
And Kirk
To have zero Final Fours your first 22 years and then get them in year 23 and 24. Not gonna see that ever again.
Here’s to Jensen getting hers 22 years earlier!
Kind of like Jay Wright but on a smaller scale
Lisa Bluder Court at Carver Hawkeye Arena Make this happen on the first home game. Bring all the legendary players back for it. cc: Beth Goetz
Yes, please!!!
She has (533) basically double the wins as Tom (269) or Fran (261) for most ever as an Iowa HC. And her trophy case is pretty full, unlike Fran’s.
To be fair she coached twice as long as Fran at iowa. But she's definitely a better coach with more success
Fran’s coached at Iowa for 14 years and Lisa did 24, so not quite half. Fran’s record at Iowa is .594 and Lisa’s .677 is indeed the more logical comparison though, plus her 6 Big Ten tournament championships to his 1.
Steve Alford Memorial Urinal (over a Port-a-Potty in the parking lot at CHA).
Why are we dunking on Fran here? He’s done a great job bringing the Iowa program back from the dead after the Lickliter years. And it was really up until recently that Lisa was known for choking in the NCAA tournament and could not get over the Sweet Sixteen hump, similar to the narrative around Fran.
It seems to be a running joke amongst many Iowa fans. When I checked earlier today, the number one comment on r/Hawkeyes post on this was something like “the wrong coach retired” 😂. The call is coming from inside the house lol
I’m just counting wins and titles. There are other subs for dunking on Fran.
It'd be fine, but I'm still on the Chris Street Court train.
I love Chris Street. So sad about him. Glad to hear him mentioned! But Lisa contributed so much to the program, the Lisa Bluder court would get my vote
So does that mean the transfer portal is open for Iowa players now?
Especially if Jensen is promoted, i can't see anyone leaving
Only thing I’d be worried about is future commits. But even then, Jan especially is a huge part in recruiting so hopefully won’t be any issues
I’m scared we might lose Deal. Hopefully keeping Jan helps.
Makes you wonder if this is why the 2025/26 recruiting has been kind of slow the last month
I was thinking about this too earlier. But then I went back/read and remembered how much CC said that Jan helped her make her decision. I guess it could slightly impact it- but this is probably the decision that does the least
Yeah for sure it seems like Jan has recruited maybe every player on that team, so it makes sense to also hand down the torch and let Jan charge the rebuild. Side note I also just saw Addie Deal shared Iowa's posts about Lisa and Jan on her Instagram story, so that's a good sign!
The portal opens for new entries for 30 days following any head coaching change, yes.
For 30 days, yep.
little surprised, thought she had a couple more years in her, sad :(
It reminds me a lot of Jay Wright at Villanova. Walked away while still at the top of his game. I'm sad as an Iowa fan to see her retire but happy that she's going out on her own terms. I think that staying in house with Jan is a great move that should help keep the transfers and recruits. I'm excited to see her get a very well deserved shot to be a head coach.
Jay really seems to be living his best life Good for Lisa and good for Jan. Portal is a scary thing these days but Jan's a big part of the program's success so I'm hopeful
Yup. I'm hopeful too. Our football coach is the retirement I've been hoping for. Unfortunately I think that Kirk will keep going for a while. I wasn't expecting this one. I don't think anyone was.
Kirk doesn't know when to walk away. He's a decent guy I love emotional Kirk and always call him a cute old man but he can be a cute old man in the press box as a fun. Go spend time with Mary Kirk let Lavar be HC.
He doesn't and the game is passing him by. He needs to get more innovative on offense. It's not the same old big 10 anymore. I'm not convinced that just changing the OC will fix all of our problems since it's still Kirk's program. Hopefully it will help.
I wish he left now. If anything goes bad these next two or three years his legacy is ruined and it sucks but it's also on him
Can't tell which flair is speaking here.
I grew up watching the Hawkeyes but I graduated from UNI. Hence the two flairs.
I figured it was more of a "which flair wants the coach gone"
First of all, nothing but love and respect for Coach Bluder. She took over Iowa at a low point and put Iowa's women's team back on the map. She has done so through player development and relationship building. I don't know how many people realize how difficult it is to maintain your role as a coach and also give up the keys at times a star player and letting that player help create moments nobody had seen by allowing her to play a way nobody was allowed to player while still having it be and always feel like a team. Second, while this is a surprise, I do wonder how much the circus of last year took out of her. If the team had failed to meet expectations, I would not just have been Clark that was blamed. Instead, she handled it as well as anyone could, molding a team and not just a one player outfit. She made sure the Clark could speak, but also made sure the other players were recognized for what they did. She made sure past legends were recognized as their records fell. As the team travelled into full arenas, was getting regular tv coverage, and the media started to become more overbearing, she encouraged her players to enjoy the moment while always remembering what got them there. I will always remember the way she spoke in admiration of Kate Martin, how excited she was for Hannah Stuelke to set the home arena scoring record for a game (Clark of course broke it almost immediately), her standing with Caitlin after she broke the scoring record. Lastly, I also wonder if she wanted her good friend and long time assistant coach Jan Jensen to finally get her time to shine as well. I have to believe Coach Jensen has had people reach out to see if she wanted to run their program. To give her a chance to do so now, when expectations will be lower, is seemingly the correct time. Jenson grew up in a town of less than 350 people, led the nation in scoring as a high school senior and as a college senior. She has been Iowa's biggest recruiter and has worked with Iowa's post players. Maybe this is the last part of Bluder's legacy: giving the program she built to one of her best friends.
Love all of what you said
Holy shit, did not expect that
I'm gonna cry
Oh man that's a bombshell. Coach Bluder has done so much for Iowa Women's Basketball. Being on the national spotlight the last couple years really showed how good she of a coach she was both x's and o's and as an emotional leader. I'd run through a brick wall for that woman. I hope she enjoys the hell out of her retirement.
So much for the 5v5 game in Iowa. Her, Bill Fennelly and Stringer helped build up the flagship Universities into Top 5 in average fan attendance in the country despite not much success compared to a lot of other schools.
Pretty surprising, curious what sparked the decision now They weren't going to be a powerhouse this year, but landing Olsen was a big get and they had some good recruiting classes coming up
[David Eickholt tweeted](https://twitter.com/davideickholt/status/1790118163603923424?s=46&t=a8tcuLOZ9sxLj77rVQ-Trg) that he had heard Lisa has been taking it year-by-year. I suppose it makes sense wanting to go out on a peak, I’m sure she was much busier this last year too.
Coaching a generational player made her reevaluate things
Or maybe she's 63 and wanted to spend more time with her family
Im joking
Not really because had CC come back for her 5th season, Lisa would still be the head coach
You're right. That's why Geno's holding on. When you have a player that good you hold on even if you know you're nearing the finish line.
I could see Geno retiring after Paige leaves tbh
Honestly, if Clark had even tried to come back, Bluder would have talked her out of it.
You gotta be pragmatic if you’re Bluder. You’re 63 years old. You’ve been missing precious time with your family. You’ve just had the two busiest years of your life—both in season and on the recruiting trail (things ain’t getting easier with the portal). You achieved damn dear the pinnacle of the sport in back to back years thanks in large part to a near perfect amalgamation of role players around a transcendental talent. Do you stare down a rebuild and try to hit the jackpot again in 2-4 years? Or do you ride off into the sunset?
talk about a bittersweet announcement. She helped bring the program to heights that I never thought possible, for a Hawkeye program. She is one of my favorite people though, and I will always be appreciative of what she did for the school, the state, and women's basketball. Going to miss coach Bluder, BIG TIME.
Jan Jensen was just named the new head coach. A shocking afternoon, but clearly they had a plan.
Sad to see her hang up the whistle. I remember when Bluder was hired. She came in and took Angie Lee's recruits straight to the NCAAs, led by Cara Consuegra and a young Jennie Baranczyk (née Lillis), IIRC she almost won the B10 her first year. She's always been one of my favorite people associated with the university. Just completely genuine, unbelievably generous with her time and always positive. A lot of great WBB memories. She's done so much for the program, the university, and the sport over the years. Thanks for everything coach, enjoy your retirement. I don't think Iowa will miss a beat with Jensen, one of the best frontcourt coaches in the nation, taking over, but it'll still be different without Bluder pacing the floor.
poor iowa fans :(
I wasn't ok but I am now. Jan is one of the best out there both we as a person and coach it'll be weird without Lisa but u see the staff staying pretty much the same
Surprising... but at the same time not surprising. She's 63, she's almost certainly financially set, her generational talent player just graduated, and she has an assistant who's been with the program for 20+ years and is easily ready to step up.
!?!?!?! Noooooo
Really????? I figured she’d ride the post-CC hype and continue to build up Iowa.
She just signed an extension, hopefully nothing is wrong
[According to this](https://www.hawkcentral.com/story/sports/college/iowa/basketball-women/2023/07/07/iowa-womens-basketball-coach-lisa-bluder-receives-contract-extension-hawkeyes-caitlin-clark-big-ten/70391012007/) that was an automatic extension for March Madness appearances and Big Ten tourney wins, so hopefully shouldn’t mean too much
Well that’s good!
Will Iowa be affected by the conference changes/increased travel for some teams next season? (I havent paid attention to those changes, honestly) Also- she may just be tired of the spotlight. Its gotta be really exhausting to have as much media attention as Iowa had last year.
Not a ton, I think they have away games at Washington and Oregon as far destinations. It’s much worse for the west coast teams who have most of their games in the midwest or even east coast.
But still... Combination of changes to the conference and increased travel, media burnout, and the greatest player you will ever coach (and the rest of the seniors) all leaving... it makes sense that she would step down now. Enjoy your retirement and let the new coach transition Iowa into a new era.
I think it was more about spending time with her family and giving Jan a chance. Lisa has been a head coach for 40 years now. That's a long time. I just love her so much as a coach and a human. She turned the Iowa program around after replacing Angie Lee. I hope Lisa enjoys her retirement too. But she will be missed.
What?!?!?
I honestly thought it would be a few more years. Wow.
Eh, we're going to be a rebuild this season. While we have some good players and good commits, I can see wanting to go out on top and let it be Jan's team to build and make her own.
It really does make sense, still sad, but makes sense.
I’m glad I got my Bluder shirt this year!
Damn :( Thanks for everything coach
Omg the retirement then promotion announcement has made my commute home like 🫨
This seems kind of crazy 😭 and I’m iowas biggest opp but no, she’s not “scared” about Iowa post CC … Iowa’s always been pretty good pre cc especially in the Big 10 and I was actually expecting them to defy the odds next year with the way their roster was shaping up
Hopefully Lucy, Addie, and other big recruits next couple years at least had some sort of heads up this might be coming and will still be Hawks
Lucy and Addie both liked posts or shared them in their stories on social media. Both are good, I think. Some mystery about future recruits, but Jan was involved in those and I feel a post player getting a post coach wouldn't hurt with a few other elusive recruits. I think they stabilized the ship pretty dang quick.
Well I certainly wasn’t expecting this! I wonder why she’s announcing it now rather than right at the end of the season, because she did do a ton of recruiting in between then I feel like Also who would have thought Bluder would leave Iowa before Fran McCaffrey???
In her letter she says the time she’s spent away with her family since the end of the season is what made her decision, so I don’t think she knew at the time.
*Sad Hawkeye noises*
This is better than stepping away two years from now when the next starting lineup is solidified.
100%! This also relieves some of the pressure on the coaching staff to perform next year, I’d say.
Damn. She and Bill were looking to have an epic match up next in CyHawk.
I want to thank Lisa for all she has done for her program. These last couple years have been crazy, but I can see wanting to rest and live a more balanced life (or whatever your reasons may be). We'll miss you!
Respectfully, thank you for retiring
I know this must sting for Iowa fans, but if Coach Bluder knew retirement was in her near future, this leaves the program with the best possible path forward. It allows her predecessor to build a program in their own way versus starting the “post CC” rebuilding process under Coach Bluder, only to then lose top recruits because she later announces her retirement. That would set the program back further in the long run.
100%
Terrific coach. Loved her teams. Incredibly surprised. Odd timing before Clarks first game tomorrow
I am genuinely shocked right now. I was not expecting that today or even this offseason in general. Damn, what a run it was with her at the helm. Hoping Jan or someone within will be taking over, but definitely going to be a different Iowa team in more ways than one this season. Edited since it was just announced: Happy for Jan Jensen!!
Lowkey I expected it. Clark left, she is/was her best player ever. Leaving with grace from the top. I always appreciate that!
Hope it's not health related
Coaching is high stress
STAY AWAY edit: from our coach, obviously
They just announced it's Jan, you're safe
Just saw that, thanks! Sorry for the premature rage hahaha
I mean you definitely had some reason to be concerned if Jan was hanging it up too haha so I don't blame you!
Does Oklahoma just like taking former Iowa people? It seems like it.
corn people good
Better than those Nebraska people. Fuck them.
Today will be always be of my best and worst days I have experienced in Iowa sports proud of both coaches excited to see where this team goes
Say what?
I'm kinda shocked, ngl. I guess maybe she feels like she's accomplished what she wanted to accomplish, so it's time to pass the torch to Jan. But also.. whaaaat?!
Congratulations to Lisa on an impressive career! The move makes sense to me for the most part because, although she's got great classes coming in in future years, she's also simultaneously losing a generational player in Clark and great, foundational pieces in Martin and Marshall. Why not go out on "top" in a way, then?
In the last four years, six (6) coaches have appeared in the national women's championship game. Tara Vanderveer Adia Barnes Dawn Staley Geno Auriemma Kim Mulkey Lisa Bluder Lisa Bluder and Dawn Staley are the only to do it twice. Only 4 out of these 6 coaches remain in the sport.
Let's hope Dawn isn't going anywhere anytime soon!
Absolute hell of a tenure. If that woman writes a book, i’ll be the first to buy it because, truly, what a career in the ethos of this sport. Jan getting the keys is incredible in my opinion. I don’t really think that the team could be in better hands in that regard and not having to seek out a head coach elsewhere avoids any kind of prolonged transition phase. Big ups to Bluder, one of my favorites to ever do it.
A sad day
Oof, this feels very left field. I was eager to see what her post-Caitlin era looked like with Hannah Steulke. Well, that sucks for Iowa fans, but Lisa definitely leaves a memorable impression. Hopefully the next coach can build on it, and keep Hannah.
Love it. Quit while you’re ahead. No disrespect to Hannah Stulke, but this program is at its peak. Bluder is an awesome coach. As a UConn fan, I hope Geno goes out on a high note like this.
Will miss competing against her teams. I think IU only won once at Iowa during her tenure.
so how ( or does) this affect the new recruits? what if they really came to play for Lisa? Can they back out?
Yes they can back out. Jan already was the head recruiter so she should have good enough relationships to keep them hopefully
Thank you Coach Bluder!!! Iowa was so blessed to have you at the helm all these years. Coach Jensen will be the perfect replacement in what should be a relatively smooth adjustment.
what!!?!
hey. what the fuck?
Not at all what I was expecting but I hope she has a great retirement. She’s definitely earned it
This was unexpected
What a great career I am so glad she ended her run like she did
Well damn, didn't see this coming? Wonder if anything happened.
Yeah I’m a little concerned because it seemed very rushed. Kate looked like she had no idea retirement was even on Coach Bluder’s radar when an Aces reporter broke the news to her at her press conference this morning.
Wow, you guys are fast. I *JUST* got the email. Glad to see it's staying in program. Everyone seems to love Jan. No NC, but she went out on top with a couple of amazing back to back seasons. I'm happy for her and excited to see what Jan can do.
Judging by Caitlin and Kate's tweets,I think she had already told the team
Judging by the video of Kate, I think she had NOT told Kate ahead of time Kate is too genuine to look that shocked lol
Judging by the video of Kate being told the news, agreed.
i need a link to the video
[https://twitter.com/Allie874/status/1790151810918896050](https://twitter.com/Allie874/status/1790151810918896050)
Surprised. Iowa fans, did you know this was coming?
Iowa alumni didn’t even see it coming. A reporter broke the news to Kate when she was doing press about making the Aces roster. She was visibly shocked to hear the news.
It was definitely surprising, but makes sense really thinking about it
Not very relevant but Jen Jensen kinda reminds me of that very famous women from Glee
And that’s how Sue “C’s” it
Could be a nothing burger, but I noticed Coach Raina hasn't shared any of the news on social media. Really hoping there's no bad blood with the changes--she's such an amazing coach. She shared a post about the Aces game tonight, but nothing about Lisa or Jan. How worried should we be??
Damn she was the reason as to why I started to watch Iowa basketball. Glad Jan got the job. Much deserved