IOWA CITY, Iowa – Iowa Athletic Director Gary Barta joined us for about 25 minutes on Friday and addressed several topics, including Fran McCaffery's contract extension and buyout.

Barta also talked about the lack of transparency in college athletics, about trying to improve the viewing experience for UI students at Carver-Hawkeye Arena and about how tax reform will affect donations to the athletic department.

We started the interview by asking Barta to update his health status, and what he said was encouraging. Barta was diagnosed with prostate cancer in the summer and is now in recovery after having surgery. He is back to work full-time and was kind enough to give us a few minutes that we think you'll enjoy.