Northwest Missouri State Athletics

Ben McCollum – Head Men's Basketball Coach (2009-2024)
The trophies and titles piled up as high as the awards and accolades during the 15-year reign of head men's basketball coach Ben McCollum. The Storm Lake, Iowa, native guided the Bearcats to an elite level among NCAA Div. II teams with four national championships – including an unprecedented three-peat. McCollum posted a record of 394-91 which featured a 32-7 mark in NCAA Tournament play and a perfect 12-0 mark in Elite Eight games. He is the only five-time NABC National Coach of the Year in the history of NCAA Div. II basketball. He captured nine MIAA Coach of the Year awards. Three times he was honored as the Clarence "Big House" Gaines National Coach of the Year. McCollum led the Bearcats to 13 consecutive 20-win seasons, 10 25-win seasons and five 30-win campaigns. He guided the Bearcats to 12 MIAA regular season titles and eight MIAA Tournament championships. McCollum produced 10 MIAA Players of the Year, five MIAA Defensive Players of the Year, five MIAA Freshmen of Year, eight first-team NABC All-Americans and four NCAA Div. II National Players of the Year. After leaving Northwest, McCollum led the Drake Bulldogs to a 31-4 record, Missouri Valley Conference regular season and tournament titles and an NCAA Tournament victory over the Missouri Tigers. McCollum took over the Iowa Hawkeyes in 2025-26 and led them to an Elite Eight appearance in the 2026 NCAA Tournament, which included a win over No. 1 seed Florida in the second round.