Ben Jacobson was hired as University of Northern Iowa head men¡¦s basketball coach on March 22, 2006, becoming the 21st head coach in UNI history.

He finished his first campaign at the helm of UNI with an 18-13 record. The 18 wins were the most for a first-year Panther head coach since the team joined the Division I ranks in 1981. In addition, UNI posted wins over Iowa State and Iowa ¡V sweeping the Cylcones and Hawkeyes in the same season for just the second time ever ¡V including posting a win in Iowa City for the first time in program history.

Before taking over as head coach, Jacobson was the Panthers¡¦ top assistant coach since 2001, and was a key cog in bringing the Panthers from the basement of the Missouri Valley Conference to the penthouse. He¡¦s been involved in every aspect of the UNI program ¡V including being chief recruiter for most players on UNI¡¦s roster.

With Jacobson on staff, the development of UNI basketball has been remarkable. Consider that during the past four years alone, UNI has:

fÞ Captured its first MVC tournament title fÞ Made three NCAA tournament appearances, including receiving two at-large bids fÞ Posted three 20-win seasons fÞ Had the school¡¦s first-ever Division I top 25 ranking fÞ Had four first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference selections

Quite a resume, and just a few reasons why UNI director of athletics Rick Hartzell had no hesitation in naming Jacobson the man to lead the Panthers in 2006-07. At the press conference announcing his hiring as the 21st head men¡¦s basketball coach in Panthers history, Jacobson stood proudly in front of the gathered media and Panther supporters and spoke of his desire to take the Panthers to the next level.

¡§I¡¦m humbled and honored to be the head coach at the University of Northern Iowa,¡¨ Jacobson said at the time. ¡§The excitement level for Panther basketball is at an all-time high and I look forward to continuing the growth of our program. With the players we have returning and the current recruiting class, I know we have the pieces in place to be successful. I want to thank Rick Hartzell and Tom Schellhardt for their support and confidence in me, and in making my dream of becoming a head coach a reality today. I have a great working relationship with both Rick and Tom and I hope to lead this program in a way that will make them both proud.¡¨

Proud is exactly what the fans of the purple and gold have been over the past five years. The Panther men¡¦s basketball program has come from rock bottom to its highest point ever the past five seasons, and with a recruiting class as good as any that UNI has ever brought in, hopes are high that the Panthers¡¦ success will continue.

While this is Jacobson¡¦s first head coaching job, he has 12 years of assistant coaching experience. Prior to joining former UNI head coach Greg McDermott in Cedar Falls beginning with the 2001-02 campaign, he served one season as an assistant coach under McDermott at Division II North Dakota State. His responsibilities there included serving as recruiting and academic coordinator, in addition to summer camp director.

Jacobson was the Panthers¡¦ top assistant coach the previous five seasons, serving as associate head coach during the 2005-06 campaign. As the team¡¦s primary recruiter, Jacobson has been a key part of the renaissance of UNI basketball, helping guide the Panthers to a 108-76 record the past six years, including an 83-44 mark the past four seasons. The Panthers have qualified for the NCAA tournament three of the past four years (2004, 2005 and 2006), and posted three straight 20-win seasons for the first time in school history. In 2004, UNI claimed its first-ever Missouri Valley Conference tournament title and an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. UNI backed that up by receiving consecutive at-large bids to the NCAA tournament in both 2005 and 2006.

Jacobson has a long history in the North Central Conference, having played at North Dakota from 1989-93. He was a four-year letterman for the Sioux, a two-year starter, and he ended his career as the school¡¦s all-time assist leader. UND made two Elite Eight appearances and four regional appearances, along with winning two conference championships, during his career. He was team captain in 1991-92 and 1992-93, was named to the NCC¡¦s All-Academic Team in 1993, and was a player representative to UND¡¦s letterwinner¡¦s association from 1991-93.

He was a student assistant coach at North Dakota from 1993-94. From 1994-96, he was a graduate assistant at UND and became a full-time assistant coach for the Sioux from 1996-2000, prior to spending the 2000-01 season at North Dakota State. Jacobson was able to bring his former head coach, Rich Glas, onto his staff this season as associate head coach.

¡§I have never been more excited and energized about a head coaching appointment in my career than I am with the hiring of Ben Jacobson as our head men¡¦s basketball coach,¡¨ Hartzell said the day Jacobson was hired. ¡§Ben is ready to take this step. He has the support of the current team and our recruiting class, and he will do a great job of maintaining the excellence that we have built in our men¡¦s basketball program. Jake is exactly the right guy at the right time for UNI. We have much to look forward to in this program and we will not, under any circumstances, do anything but try to move this program even further forward than it currently is.¡¨

A native of Mayville, N.D., Jacobson graduated from Mayville-Portland High School in 1989 as Valedictorian. He received his bachelor¡¦s degree in physical education from North Dakota in 1994. The 36-year-old Jacobson¡¦s wife¡¦s name is Dawn, and the couple has two children: Hunter (4) and Tanner (2).