Chris Holtmann Hires Buckeyes Assistant At DePaul

Originally posted on FanNation Buckeyes Now
By Caleb Spinner | Last updated 3/19/24

Ex-Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Chris Holtmann will not make his new start alone.

The former Buckeyes helmsman was hired to lead the DePaul Blue Demons men's basketball team last week. One of his first acts as head coach was bringing on former Ohio State assistant Jack Owens.

Before serving under Holtmann, Owens was head coach of the Miami RedHawks. Owens spent five seasons in Oxford, Ohio before making the move north to work on Holtmann's staff.

Owens was one of Holtmann's most trusted staff members on the bench alongside Jake Diebler. Diebler was announced as Holtmann's successor in Columbus on Sunday morning and held his introductory press conference yesterday.

This is not the first time Holtmann has had to adjust to a new school. Holtmann was head coach of the Butler Bulldogs prior to taking the reins at Ohio State.

Each of Holtmann's three seasons leading the Bulldogs ended with runs in the NCAA Tournament. The furthest Butler ever made it with Holtmann at the helm was the Sweet Sixteen back in 2017, while Kamar Baldwin and Kelan Martin were wearing the Bulldog colors.

Holtmann told DePaul beat reporters during his opening press conference he had been reflecting on what went wrong at Ohio State. One of the biggest corrections he needs to make this time around, according to him, is building a more experienced roster.

"One thing probably that I learned is (that’s you) gotta be a little bit older than we were," Holtmann said. "But we took great strides from starting four freshmen two years ago and now four sophomores this past season...But they were not the consistent NCAA Tournament teams of the previous five years."

This article first appeared on FanNation Buckeyes Now and was syndicated with permission.

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