Fran McCaffery was ousted as the head coach of the Iowa Hawkeyes\u2019 men\u2019s basketball team in 2025 following a 17\u201316 campaign, his worst record with the program since 2018.<\/p>\n
After 15 seasons in the role, and as the returns diminished on the floor, things seemed to have been just as tumultuous behind the scenes.<\/p>\n
Reporter Scott Dochterman revealed on Friday\u2019s episode of Legends & Listeners that McCaffery and even his wife, Margaret, were brutal to the media in the final years of his tenure with the Hawkeyes, including toward Iowa staple Gary Dolphin, the longtime play-by-play voice for the football and men\u2019s basketball teams for Learfield\/IMG College and the Iowa Hawkeye Sports Network.<\/p>\n
\u201cGary Dolphin had it the worst\u2026 [McCaffery] tried to force him out twice,\u201d Dochterman said.<\/p>\n
Dochterman went as far as to provide an example, saying that after Dolphin innocuously asked a player about turning around a losing streak, Margaret lost her composure and screamed at him.<\/p>\n
\ufeff\ufeff<\/p>\n
\u201cMargaret came unglued, F-bombed him, screamed at him to the point where the leadership of both Iowa and Learfield had to be called in\u2026 She would scream at them when she\u2019s there, \u2018I don\u2019t need to be babysat!\u2019 and this is to keep the coach\u2019s wife from yelling at the, the Voice of the Hawkeyes.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s far from the first time the McCaffery\u2019s mistreatment of the media has been touched on. Earlier this week, WHO-TV sportscaster Keith Murphy spoke about the McCaffery family\u2019s bullying tactics<\/a> on Murphy & Andy, recounting a story from when he hosted the annual Coaches Versus Cancer event, during which the McCafferys were upset about Murphy\u2019s coverage of Fran\u2019s contract extension.<\/p>\n Here is the story of Fran McCaffery insisting the emcee of Coaches Vs Cancer be removed or he would no longer attend.<\/p>\n His wife also heckled Keith Murphy as he was talking at the event.<\/p>\n You truly don\u2019t hate this family enough.<\/p>\n Anything to say? @connor_m30<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/0H6kSjlqen<\/a><\/p>\n