BOSTON, Mass. – Drake men's basketball head coach Ben McCollum has been named a finalist for the 2024-25 Joe B. Hall award, Collegeinsider.com announced. The award is presented annually to the top first-time head coach in division I college basketball.
 
In his first year in Des Moines, McCollum guided the Bulldogs to their first outright Missouri Valley Conference regular season title since 2008 with an overall record of 27-3 and a 17-3 mark in league play. Drake's 27-3 record is the best mark in school history after 30 games and its 17-3 conference record marks the first time in school history a Drake team has won 17 conference games.
 
McCollum ranks second on the list of first-year coaching wins at Drake at 27, trailing only Keno Davis who went 28-5 in his first year at Drake in 2007-08. His current coaching record of 421-94 ranks No. 5 on the all-time collegiate coaches list in winning percentage (.818).
 
The Joe B. Hall award is named in honor of longtime Kentucky head coach Joe B. Hall who was given the task of following the legendary Adolph Rupp at the school. In his first season, Hall finished 20-8, won the SEC and advanced to the NCAA Regional Finals.
 
Hall coached the Wildcats from 1972 to 1985. He won two-thirds of his games (297-100), received four SEC Coach of the Year honors, and won a National Championship in 1978. He also steered the program to two other Final Fours, won eight Southeastern Conference regular season championships and one Southeastern Conference tournament championship (1984).
 
Coach Hall passed away on January 15, 2022.
 
The recipient of the annual award is determined by a 10-member voting committee, which consists of current and former head coaches, as well as two senior staff members of collegeinsider.com.
 
The 2025 award will be announced in San Antonio, TX, site of the men's Division I Basketball Championship.
 
JOE B. HALL AWARD FINALISTS
 
Patrick Crarey II        Florida A&M
 
Mike DeGeorge        Cal Poly
 
Ethan Faulkner         Youngstown State
 
Kahil Fennell            UT Rio Grande Valley
 
Cornelius Jackson   Marshall
 
John Jakus               FAU
 
Jon Jaques               Cornell
 
Mike Jones               Old Dominion
 
Donny Lind               Mount St. Mary's
 
Jonathan Mattox      Morehead State
 
Ben McCollum          Drake
 
Gerry McNamara      Siena
 
Hank Plona               Western Kentucky
 
Clint Sargent             Wright State
 
Ivan Thomas             Hampton
 
Kevin Young              BYU