Ex-Hawkeye coach Lute Olson made big impact on basketball media

When former Iowa basketball coach Lute Olson returns to Carver-Hawkeye Arena for Thursday's game against Iowa State, the press will gather around him.

Even at 82, Olson has a commanding presence that turns heads everywhere he goes. While the cadence of his thoughtful responses have slowed with age, his aura and charisma are as powerful as ever, rivaled by few people I’ve ever met.

Yet Lute’s media legacy extends far beyond his coaching or interviews. When you consider the number of his former players who became broadcasters, he is in a class of his own.

Three of my Hawkeye teammates from the 1981-82 season made a name for themselves in broadcasting. Kevin Boyle is the long-time Northern Iowa radio analyst, Bobby Hanson has a similar role for Hawkeyes radio, and Steve Carfino became the television face of professional basketball in Australia following his long playing career there. A fourth teammate, Mark Gannon, walked away from a career behind the microphone in the 1990s.