Hawkeye Report Podcast Hawkeye Report Podcast

We continue our coaches series for the summer podcasts by visiting with the Director of Player Development and Assistant Coach for Iowa Basketball Tristan Spurlock. His daily job involves helping to develop the Hawkeyes players on the court and also now he is getting involved on the recruiting side as well with several prospects. 
We open discussing Spurlock and his early life in basketball as a player and the journey that it took him on around the world. Then that journey somehow ends up in Iowa City at the gym ran by a former Iowa player and during Covid, a place where Hawkeye players began playing pickup basketball. That evolved into working out players like Patrick McCaffery and then being offered an opportunity by Fran McCaffery. 
We talk about his job in player development and what that is like on a day to day basis. How he developed the way he works with players each and every day. Also, does that conflict with players who have their own workout coaches?
Then we discuss the current Iowa roster of players, starting with the new freshmen Cooper Koch and Chris Tadjo, who just arrived on campus and what Spurlock thinks of them thus far. Then we discuss the transfers and go over the rest of the returning players and how they have been performing in workouts so far this summer. 

Our week of podcasts continue with a turn to Iowa Football. We are thrilled to have Iowa defensive line coach Kelvin Bell on the podcast today. We open talking about growing up in Olive Branch, Mississippi and making his way to Iowa City, IA to play for the Hawkeyes. 
Bell talks about his coaching journey, which began at Iowa City Regina High School and included stops at Cornell College, Wayne State, and Trinity International coaching offensive line, before landing a GA role at Iowa.
We discuss the coaches along the way that were important to Bell and his development and then we turn the discussion to playing defensive line and the current roster of players. We discuss the four likely starters and the key reserves who could play a role this season along the defensive line and the potential of some true freshmen who just arrived on campus. 
Finally we wrap up talk about the state of college football recruiting and the role of NIL in sports. How is it impacting recruiting and what parents and prospects want to learn about a program when they visit. Then we get a few book recommendations for Coach Bell for your summer reading. 

Our summer of podcasts continues, this time with another great one featuring an Iowa women's basketball player. We are joined by a new member of the Hawkeye squad, transfer Lucy Olsen, who speaks about her reaction to the retirement of Lisa Bluder in great detail and how she got a call from her and Jan Jensen before the news was released. 
We talk to Olsen about arriving in Iowa City and getting right into the gym to get shots up and that gym rat mentality that she has to her game. What have practices been like for her so far in Iowa City? Does she have a strong relationship with Taylor McCabe so far and how has Abby Stamp been to work with from a coaching perspective? 
We also discuss Iowa fans and the reception she has gotten so far since arriving in Iowa City and the type of player that Hawkeye fans should expect to see this winter. Also how excited is Olsen to play in front of big crowds in Iowa City? 

We continue our summer of fun interviews this week on the podcast. We are joined by Iowa women's basketball shooting guard Taylor McCabe. The sharp shooting guard is very honest and open about her career at Iowa and how she may have thought about leaving after this past season. 
McCabe also talks about what it was like the day that she and her teammates found out on a Zoom since they are all at home that Lisa Bluder was retiring as Iowa's head coach and that Jan Jensen was going to replace her. She also talks about how much she will miss Coach Fitz, who also retired with Bluder. 
Then we dive into the first few workouts with the new team and how things are different without Caitlin Clark, Kate Martin, and Gabbie Marshall. What does she think of her new roomate Lucy Olsen and how they are both gym rats. She also has praise for one of the new freshman players early on in practice. 
 

We have a very interesting podcast for you today. Joining us is Bailey Turner, who is the Assistant Director of Strategic Communications for Iowa athletics. His job the last two years has been being the sports information director for Iowa women's basketball. 
In the last two years, Turner, who is a native of Boone and Iowa graduate, has had a front row seat for the historic Iowa women's basketball team and the play of Caitlin Clark. When did he realize that this team would become as iconic as it did in the last two years? 
What was it like working with Caitlin Clark from his perspective the last two years and how impressive has it been the way that she handles the media? Did she come to Iowa pretty much completely fully formed in dealing with the media. 
We discuss Wright Thompson contacting him wanting to do a story on Clark and how that process worked. He also talks about how Thompson went about plotting out the story and the time he put into it. 
We also discuss some of memorable and amazing moments that he had a front row seat for near Lisa Bluder and how he had to always be on his toes to makes sure halftime and post game TV interviews took place.
Finally, we discuss the last chapter of this two years, which is Lisa Bluder retiring from coaching  and Jan Jensen being elevated the head coach of the Iowa women's team and how that was handled.

It was a big day in Iowa athletics. The replacement for Ed Podolak was named it's our good friend Pat Angerer. He will replace Podolak in the radio booth this fall and be paired with Gary Dolphin on Saturday afternoons to call the Hawkeye football games. 
We talk to Angerer about his process in getting involved and interested in this job. What was the interview process like for him and he talks about his recent simulated game with Dolphin prior to being offered the job. What does this job mean to him? Will he be nervous once he officially gets started calling games on Saturday's? 
Then we move on to discuss Iose Epenesa and his official visit this past weekend. Did Iowa move into a lead position to land the legacy prospect and four star defensive end? What were some of the key parts of Iowa's sales pitch? 
Finally we talk about the latest Caitlin Clark drama and being left off the USA Olympic team this year.