Once he reaches Ames, Iowa, new Iowa State coach Steve Prohm will commence the traditional new-coach responsibilities. He’ll meet his new, talented team. Later, he might survey the pristine Sukup Basketball Complex a few miles from campus. Maybe he’ll grab a drink with a few boosters at Wallaby’s or chomp on the Midwest’s best ribs at Hickory Park.

And then, the reality will arrive. The pressure too.

Prohm is following a man who, in the eyes of his supporters, walked on water without getting the soles of his shoes wet. Fred Hoiberg returned to his hometown in 2010 and left last week for the Chicago Bulls gig after restoring Iowa State’s name, winning a couple of Big 12 tourney championships, making four consecutive trips to the NCAA tournament for the first time in school history and leaving his alma mater with a top-10 fleet of Cyclones and a Wooden Award candidate in Georges Niang.

They called him The Mayor.

Maybe Prohm will earn a nickname if he’s consistent and successful. The latter, in the immediate future at least, seems much easier than the former.

Either way, he’ll plow ahead his way. Give him that chance.

Last season, his Murray State squad finished 13th in adjusted offensive efficiency per kenpom.com. That Racers squad, led by likely first-round pick Cameron Payne, won 25 games in a row but missed the NCAA tournament after suffering a one-point loss to Belmont in the Ohio Valley Conference tourney championship game.

Prior to Selection Day, Prohm stated his team’s case for an NCAA tournament bid through a column in Sporting News. “To win night-in and night-out, 25 games in a row, I hope people -- especially on the committee -- respect the level of excellence and commitment that takes,” Prohm wrote. “And hopefully these kids are rewarded for doing something special like that.”

When Prohm’s name comes up in convos about up-and-coming coaches (he’s 40), you never hear anything but respect for a man who’s often recognized for his commitment to his players and his ability to develop talent. Payne was the No. 47 point guard in the 2012 class per RecruitingNation. Isaiah Canaan was ranked 82nd among point guards in the 2009 class.

Payne will be a millionaire soon. He could be a lottery pick in the 2015 NBA draft on June 25. And Canaan, whom Prohm also coached, was picked 34th in the 2013 NBA draft. Canaan averaged 9.2 ppg in 47 games with the Philadelphia 76ers in 2014-15.

Prohm’s prominence on the national scene began with a 2011-12 squad that unleashed Canaan during a 31-2 season, which featured wins over ranked Saint Mary’s and Memphis squads and a first-round win over Colorado State in the NCAA tournament. The Racers lost to Marquette in the round of 32 that year, only their second loss of the season.

He’s 104-29 in four years as a head coach. He wins.

No, he’s not from Ames or even Iowa. He’s from Virginia, went to school in Georgia and graduated from Alabama.

He wasn’t a three-sport star down the block from Iowa State as a teenager. He doesn’t have those local ties. He’s not Hoiberg. And he doesn’t have to be.

That shadow, however, will linger until -- unless -- Prohm etches his own legacy into the hardwood of Hilton Coliseum. He can’t escape that. Not yet.

But he can win in Ames. Now and later. Prohm, an overachiever, will boast a crew that could compete for the Final Four in 2015-16. He has a star point guard named Monte Morris and the Big 12’s best defender in Jameel McKay.

That’s now.

Most of Iowa State’s standouts will leave the program after next season. And this summer’s recruiting process has been disrupted by the uncertainty that surrounded Hoiberg. Prohm will be forced to rebuild in 2016. So he must hit the recruiting trail hard this summer and convince prospects that he can help them the way he helped Payne, Canaan and others. Then he’ll have to win and continue to build on the platform Hoiberg established.

Prohm is a good coach. Sustained success in Ames -- without the services of its most famous alum -- will demand more than that, though. But his career suggests that he’s capable and qualified.

He’s not The Mayor. Doesn’t have to be.

But if Prohm struggles, the Hoiberg mourning will persist, and he won’t feel any comfort in a job that requires it.

If Prohm wins big in Ames, however, they might call him the Prom King.

They like nicknames down there. Winning too.

They’ll never forget Hoiberg. But Iowa State’s backers might be willing to fall in love again if Prohm gives them a reason.