Amid UNC talk, T.J. Otzelberger says he’s staying at Iowa St.

Iowa State coach T.J. Otzelberger shot down reports linking him to other jobs, including the North Carolina vacancy, saying he’s “thrilled to be the coach of the Cyclones” and looks forward to future success in Ames.

Otzelberger, who leads No. 2 seed Iowa State against No. 6 Tennessee in an NCAA tournament Sweet 16 matchup Friday night, addressed his status after arriving at the team hotel Wednesday in Chicago. He said any speculation linking him to other jobs is “not true.”

“As we move forward together, the alignment on our campus with [university president David] Cook, [athletic director] Jamie Pollard is amazing, and we’re thrilled and excited about our future together,” Otzelberger said. “There’s no questions about it, there’s nothing to talk about, there’s nothing else to answer. That’s the truth.”

Pollard, who hired Otzelberger and has been Iowa State’s athletic director since 2005, followed the coach’s comments with a post on X.

“Excited for Cyclone Nation that TJ is not going anywhere — he will be our basketball coach for a long time!” Pollard wrote.

Otzelberger, 48, is in his fifth season at ISU, going 124-52, including three trips to the Sweet 16. In December 2024, he agreed to a new contract through the 2031-32 season which pays him $4 million annually and includes a $4 million buyout if he were to leave for another job.

Otzelberger previously led programs at UNLV and South Dakota State before returning to ISU, where he was an assistant from 2006 to 2013.