Jan Jensen grew up wanting to be the CEO of Nike, run public relations for the New York Yankees, or be a college president. Instead, she became the "accidental coach" of the Iowa women's basketball team.
"I didn't really have coaching in my mind," Jensen told CBS Sports. "So now being at this job, I feel like I've been really blessed. God has kind of weaved different paths for me."
Jensen's career started in 1993 at Drake as a graduate assistant under Lisa Bluder. At the time, Jensen had her eyes set on becoming the president of a small liberal arts college. She had a busy schedule, and completing her masters degree ended up taking her five years instead of two -- but those extra years helped her become a valuable resource to Bluder
Jensen followed Bluder to Iowa in 2000, and 24 years later she took over as head coach after Bluder announced her retirement. Now, here Jensen is, a month into her first season at the helm of her own program.
"I'm like a duck," Jensen said. "You look at me and I'm on top of the water. I think if you look at me, for the most part, you would be like, 'Oh, good.' Underneath, what is a duck doing? Moving those feet like crazy. I feel like I'm in constant motion underneath the water. I'm constantly surveying... I've never been here before. I've been here a lot, with Lisa."
Jan Jensen on what she would consider a successful first season as the Iowa head coach:
— Isabel Gonzalez (@cisabelg) December 11, 2024
"I think if, come what may in our record, if every one of my players... and my staff can look back and say, 'man, I'm sure glad I played for you.'" pic.twitter.com/ZcWaiaAV5a
Although she is grateful and excited to have what she described as "one of the best jobs in the nation," Jensen is definitely facing a unique transition period.
The Hawkeyes have reached the national championship game the last two years, but Bluder is gone, and so is all-time Division I leading scorer Caitlin Clark -- a player Jensen helped recruit. The team also lost top contributors Kate Martin, Gabbie Marshall and Molly Davis. The lone returning starter this season is Hannah Stuelke.
Iowa did add a strong weapon in Villanova transfer Lucy Olsen, the third-leading scorer in the country last season behind Clark and USC's JuJu Watkins. However, it was still hard to know what to expect from the new version of the Hawkeyes, so they entered the 2024-25 campaign unranked.
Despite the outside expectations not being high for Iowa at the beginning of November, Jensen led her team to an 8-0 start and earned a spot in the AP Top 25. Not bad at all, but then Iowa faced Tennessee.
The night of Dec. 7 resulted in a bruised finger for Jensen because she got too animated while trying to call a time out with under three minutes remaining. The Hawkeyes were struggling against Tennessee's defensive press, and yet somehow were keeping the game close. But one does not win many games with 30 turnovers. That was Jensen's first loss as a head coach -- on her birthday weekend, at that.
Jensen was feeling all sorts of emotions, but she got a message that made her night a little bit better.
"So proud of you no matter what," read a text from her 14-year-old daughter.
The next morning, Jensen got a pep talk from her 17-year-old son about how a loss to Tennessee, a longtime SEC force, is not too bad at all.
"He is always the one that, it doesn't matter, he always can spin it," Jensen said.
Some behind-the-scenes content... After her first loss as the Iowa head coach, Jan Jensen's daughter sent her this message:
— Isabel Gonzalez (@cisabelg) December 11, 2024
"So proud of you no matter what. I found this quote: 'Every great team has had to fail at some point in order to be successful.' - Sue Bird." pic.twitter.com/56muVdPiL6
As for her spouse, Julie, she is Jensen's "biggest cheerleader." Family support has been crucial in this new job, especially when it comes to keeping things into perspective.
"That gives me strength to make sure that I don't let one loss (bring me down), and who knows, maybe it's going to be two, three in a row or more. You keep the main thing the main thing," Jensen said. "Which is, to me, coaching is education and you are a teacher. You think back on the teachers you really enjoyed or the ones that really helped shape you, that's what I want to be."
The Clark and Bluder era is over in Iowa city, but Jensen's chapter is just beginning. Her approach is to acknowledge and celebrate the past achievements, while also remembering she is starting to write her own story at age 56.
"I'm fully aware the bar is high," Jensen said. "I very much can remember how great the generational player was, and what it was like. I love the woman (Bluder) who used to sit on this chair and had those shoes that seem so big at times.
"But also, I'm a little bit longer down the road on this journey. What I love about basketball is the fact that it is a journey. You can't just coach for the end of that championship and not enjoy every day -- including the losses. When I say enjoy, I don't 'enjoy' it. But if you can fix it and you can be better, and then you get the next one, there is such beauty in that."
