New DePaul men’s basketball head coach Chris Holtmann is looking to do more than just build a winning team on the court. Holtmann and his team are looking to build meaningful, personal connections with students and the DePaul community off the court.
Since Holtmann was hired in March, his presence has been very apparent in the DePaul community.
That is intentional.
“We have to engage with our students, and then we have to put a product out there that’s exciting,” Holtmann said in an interview with The DePaulia.
Tim Anderson, a DePaul alum, co-led the student section at men’s basketball games last year. He was typically found in a costume of Steve Harrington from Stranger Things.
Anderson said that he was eager to meet Holtmann for the first time. But to his surprise, Holtmann already knew who he was before meeting him.
“He had done his homework and made sure to know who he needed to connect with when he arrived,” Anderson, who met Holtmann at a DePaul softball game in April, said. “We spoke about building a connection with the student body and helping change the perception of basketball at DePaul with the current generation of students.”
Holtmann’s impact has already been felt in the community before his team has even taken the court for the first time.
“I think he knows how important it is to build a culture on campus,” DePaul junior Ethan Brock said. “From things like ‘Coffee with Coach’ to just showing his face on campus, it’s helping shine a light on our (men’s) basketball program which has been ‘dead’ for about 20 years.”
DePaul is coming off a season where they finished last in the Big East conference. DePaul also has not been to the NCAA March Madness tournament since the 2003-04 season.
DePaul fans and students are hungry for a competitive product to consume.
Holtmann said he wants that for the community too.
“I want us to be a relevant program in the highest levels of college basketball,” Holtmann said. “I want to be a program that people look at and they say this is a program that is relevant in today’s climate and enjoyable to watch.”
Holtmann said he also recognizes the challenges of Wintrust Arena being a 25-minute bus ride from DePaul’s Lincoln Park campus.
“We have some incentives in place,” Holtmann said.
Students may wonder: What kind of incentives?
“We’re going to have a post-game picture together with the entire student section that’s at every game, after every win,” Holtmann said. “After every win, we are going to provide food for all the students. I’m fine if that comes out of my personal bank account.”
However, do not expect Holtmann to cook for you. He said he does not cook for his own team when he has them over to his home for team dinners.
“They would not eat what I cook,” Holtmann said smiling. “I cannot cook. My wife can cook, but we usually cater.”
The need for community, he added, starts with his own team.
“We just want them in a home setting as much as possible, as they’re away from home,” Holtmann said. “That is important to us. They’re more than just players.”
Holtmann knows the importance of building a community that extends beyond Wintrust Arena and inside the classroom as well.
“(The players are) going to be in class with other students who might have never gone to a college basketball game,” Holtmann said. “They’re going to engage with them and I think it’s going to create an energy.”
The community relationships that Holtmann is working to build are noticeable.
“Coach Holtmann has already spent more time engaging the student body, the community and local media than I have ever witnessed,” Anderson said.
For Holtmann, the goal is clear: create a culture where students are more than spectators but active participants in the team’s success.
“We want them (students) to feel personally invested in our success,” Holtmann said.
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