Kirk Ferentz is in his 28th season at Iowa. No national championships. Not a single College Football Playoff appearance in 13 seasons. Ben McCollum needed one season to take Iowa basketball to its first Elite Eight in 39 years. At some point, sustained mediocrity stops being a standard worth defending.

There’s an interesting parallel in Iowa’s Big Ten schedule this year. Last January, the Hawkeyes played five games in 15 days, going 2-3 with three straight losses to Minnesota, Illinois and Purdue. Iowa faces another five-game stretch in 15 days this January, but opens with three at Carver against Ohio State, Wisconsin and Maryland before traveling to Rutgers and Nebraska. The Hawkeyes went 14-3 at home last season; the three-game homestand will go a long way in shaping Iowa’s early Big Ten standing.

Jaidyn Coon averaged 22 points as a senior, broke Storm Lake’s all-time scoring record and was named Iowa Mr. Basketball. But asked at Iowa’s media day how he can lead as a freshman, Coon didn’t mention scoring. “Just take more pride in my defensive end, and be that enforcer by setting the tone and communicating.” McCollum has already praised Coon’s point-of-attack defense. On a roster loaded with returning talent, it’s telling that defense is where Coon sees his opportunity.

Iowa went 3–6 against teams in today’s preseason AP Top 25 last season, including NCAA Tournament play. Two nonconference opponents make the list: Iowa State and Alabama. Circle the four-day trip to Los Angeles in February. Road games against No. 22 UCLA and No. 21 USC could carry serious weight in the Big Ten race.

Does Kael Combs have another jump in him? The senior guard more than doubled his playing time in his first season at Iowa, averaging 6.1 points and 2.4 assists across 33 starts. More impressive was his efficiency. His true shooting improved from 57.1% to 58.4% despite a heavier workload and the jump from the Missouri Valley to the Big Ten. One of the Hawkeyes best on-ball defenders, Combs can dictate the pace, finish through contact and knock down timely threes. If Iowa wants to take another step, continued growth from Combs will be an important part of the equation.

Of last season’s Elite Eight teams, Iowa is the only one picked outside the top six in its conference preseason media poll. Duke: 1st (ACC) UConn: 1st (Big East) Illinois: 1st (B1G) Michigan: 3rd (B1G) Tennessee: 4th (SEC) Purdue: 6th (B1G) Iowa: 10th (B1G) Arizona’s Big 12 poll is still pending, though the Wildcats are widely projected near the top. In the four seasons following his first Division II national championship, Ben McCollum's teams went 124-7, winning four conference regular-season titles and two more national championships. I wouldn't expect this group to take a step backward.

One name I’ve been high on since he arrived in Iowa City: Trey Thompson. Thompson left high school a year early, spent a season developing in Ben McCollum’s system, and looks ready to make a leap. In limited glimpses at open practice, he stood out as the leading 3-point shooter. I’m expecting him to be a major spark for the Hawkeyes this season, much like Tate Sage was a year ago.

Media day in Iowa City: Ben McCollum says Iowa is bigger, deeper and more athletic, with four shooters creating a different look offensively. This roster is deep. Harris and Coon could command major minutes elsewhere. With Howard and Jirak reportedly making significant jumps, finding minutes may be McCollum’s biggest challenge. Not a bad problem to have.

It is a full on Hawkeye takeover here in Seattle. Feels like a bowl game. Let's Go Hawks!

By now, you’ve likely seen the Big Ten preseason media poll, with Iowa sitting at 10th. Yes, Bennett Stirtz will be nearly impossible to replace. But this team brings plenty of firepower back, led by Tate Sage, Cooper Koch and Kael Combs, with expected jumps from Trevin Jirak and Trey Thompson. And unlike last season, the Hawkeyes will feature one of the tallest centers in college basketball; projecting them to rank among the top 10 teams in offensive rebounding. The national media has generally been a bit more optimistic about the Hawkeyes. Let’s take a look at a few other preseason rankings: USA TODAY: 19 CBS Sports: 21 Seth Davis: 22 ESPN: 25 Jon Rothstein: 40 Andy Katz: 43 Bart Torvik: 43 Joe Lunardi: 11-seed Riley Donald, SI: Fringe Top 25 I expect this team to be dancing again. And closer to a 4-6 seed come March.

Coach McCollum had @PatMcAfeeShow in an @IowaHoops t-shirt within 15 seconds of jumping on air. Ben understands the value of selling Iowa at every opportunity. And he certainly never seems to miss one. Built for this modern era.

The WNBA has one of the strangest officiating standards in professional sports. You will never see a star like Caitlin Clark receive as poor of a whistle across an entire league in any other major sport. Meanwhile, opponents can trip over their own feet and get a call. It is truly bizarre.

It might surprise some people to see Cam Manyawu as the lone Hawkeye in @EvanMiya’s top 20 @B1GMBBall player rankings. Yes, Cam only averaged 6.6 PPG, but there’s a lot more to his impact than the scoring column suggests, and the data clearly agrees, as EvanMiya’s rankings stem from BPR (Bayesian Performance Rating), a formula that measures a player’s overall impact rather than simply looking at points per game. Manyawu was 1st on Iowa in offensive rebounding rate (13.9%), shot 63.1% from the field, and posted a 3.9% block rate (Iowa's highest) He also started all 37 games for a team that reached the Elite 8. Now he gets a 7-foot-3 rim protector next to him, unlocking even more potential ways for his skillset to shine.