DePaul has asked for and received permission to talk to Western Michigan coach Steve Hawkins, who is considered a leading candidate to replace Dave Leitao as the Blue Demons’ head basketball coach.
Leitao resigned Friday to take a similar position at Virginia.
Hawkins, 42, whose first head-coaching job was at Division II Quincy (Ill.) University, recently completed his second season guiding the Broncos, who finished 20-13. They won at Marquette in an opening-round game of the NIT before losing 78-76 to Texas Christian in overtime.
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Hawkins left Quincy for Western Michigan before the start of the 2000-01 season, serving then as the top assistant to new coach Robert McCullum.
When McCullum left for South Florida in 2003, Hawkins succeeded him. In his first season as a Division I head coach, Hawkins led the Broncos to a 26-5 record, their first MAC tournament title and third NCAA tournament berth in school history.