Chris Holtmann confirms Ohio State assistant Jack Owens will join him at DePaul

Former Ohio State head coach Chris Holtmann landed on his feet quickly, accepting the DePaul head coaching job just after the season. Now, he’s taking a top Buckeye assistant with him.

At his introductory press conference, Holtmann confirmed that Jack Owens will be coming with him from Columbus to be his No. 2. Here was On3’s Nick Schultz’ tweet with that news from the new Blue Demon coach:

“Chris Holtmann confirms Jack Owens is coming with him to DePaul and they are ‘hard at work,’ Schultz wrote.

So, Holtmann gets a familiar face to start the DePaul rebuild, and Owens is no average No. 2 coach on the sideline. Prior to joining the Buckeyes’ staff in the summer of 2022, Owens was the head coach at Miami (OH) for five seasons. He’s got legitimate head coaching experience and also now a few years alongside Holtmann under his belt.

Holtmann spent nearly seven seasons with the Buckeyes, before being let go. The Buckeyes made the NCAA Tournament four times under Holtmann but didn’t make the Big Dance last season and were on pace to miss out again in 2024 before he was let go.

Ohio State never advanced to the Sweet 16 under Holtmann, but did earn a No. 2 seed in the 2021 NCAA Tournament before they were eliminated by No. 15 seed Oral Roberts and Max Abmas in the first round.

Prior to coaching at Ohio State, Chris Holtmann led the Butler program. He took the Bulldogs to the NCAA Tournament in all three of his seasons in charge, reaching the Sweet 16 in 2017 behind star players Kamar Baldwin and Kelan Martin, before leaving for the Ohio State job.

As for DePaul, the Blue Demons fired Tony Stubblefield earlier this season. He went 28-54 in two-plus seasons leading the program. Matt Brady was named the interim head coach, replacing Stubblefield. DePaul finished the 2023-24 season with a 3-29 record, meaning Holtmann and Owens are walking into a total rebuild.

Here was DePaul athletic director Dwayne Peevy on the hire:

“After an extensive national search, I am proud to welcome Chris Holtmann to Chicago and our Blue Demon family. Chris’ track record as a head coach of high-level programs, demonstrated commitment to excellence on and off the court, and NCAA postseason experience made him the perfect hire for DePaul. Chris unmistakably shares our values and our vision for DePaul men’s basketball, recognizes our commitment to the resources required to compete at a high level, and is eager to return our program to national prominence.”

On3’s Matt Connolly also contributed to this report