Chris Holtmann's DePaul Extension Runs Through 2031

Photo: DePaul Athletics. Official Chris Holtmann headshot.

DePaul announced Tuesday that Chris Holtmann's contract now runs through 2031, locking the Blue Demons' rebuild coach into Lincoln Park two seasons after he arrived from Ohio State on a six-year deal signed in March 2024.

The hard number is 2031 next to an 11-win year-one jump, the nation's largest KenPom climb from the end of 2023-24 to 2024-25, and a year-two Big East finish that was the program's best since joining the conference. Athletic director DeWayne Peevy framed the move around continuity: "At this stage of our growth, continuity matters."

Year one was the floor reset. DePaul went 14-20 and 4-16 in the Big East, but the 11-win climb and a return to the postseason for the first time since 2018-19 changed how the roster and the city read the program. The KenPom leap of more than 180 spots was the national receipt that the defense and the three-point volume were real. A program-record 314 made threes and a first-round Big East Tournament win over Georgetown sat under that climb. The College Basketball Crown appearance closed the season as proof the Blue Demons were back in the postseason conversation after years outside it.

Year two pushed the league column. DePaul finished 16-16 overall and 8-12 in the Big East, good for sixth place and the second-most conference wins in program history. That is the line that sells in the portal and on official visits. A season sweep of Creighton, the first in school history, and another top-10 program mark in made threes told the same story: the offense could stretch Big East defenses, and the win total inside the league was no longer a one-year bounce. Per the school, the Blue Demons ranked 32nd nationally in defensive efficiency in 2025-26 while sitting top-50 in assists per made field goal, opponent turnover rate, and opponent two-point defense. That package is a coachable identity in a league that punishes soft half-court groups.

Locking Holtmann through 2031 before the 2026-27 cycle is a roster move as much as a PR move. Transfer targets and high school recruits ask whether the seat is stable when the next portal window opens. DePaul enters 2026-27 with the second-most returning letterwinners for a second straight year and a nationally ranked portal class already attached to the staff. Peevy's hire of Holtmann in March 2024 was the bet. Extending him now tells the next class the bet is still the plan while attendance is still climbing, including a 118 percent increase in student attendance and the highest attendance growth in the Big East under his tenure.

The Butler and Ohio State resume still frames how opposing coaches scout Lincoln Park. Nine straight 20-win seasons and eight straight NCAA appearances in that stretch taught Holtmann how to sell a rebuild and how quickly a power-conference floor can drop when the roster turns over. DePaul hired that experience after a long Big East drought. Two years in, the product is an 8-win league season, a sixth-place finish, and a coach whose contract no longer expires before the next rebuild phase. Salary dollars were not disclosed in the release. The years through 2031 are the hard commitment on paper.

Holtmann's public line matched Peevy's continuity pitch: a shared vision with Peevy and President Rob Manuel, and a family settled in Chicago. He was also blunt about the road: "We know continuing to move this forward won't be easy, but we embrace the challenges ahead." That road starts in 2026-27 with the second-most returning letterwinners for another straight year and a nationally ranked transfer portal class.

Sources

• DePaul Athletics official release. Sept. 29, 2026, 4:00 p.m. CT. Extension through 2031 announced by AD DeWayne Peevy; Holtmann and Peevy quotes; year-one 11-win increase, postseason return first time since 2018-19, greatest KenPom improvement nationally end of 2023-24 to 2024-25, program-record 314 made threes; year-two second-most Big East wins in program history and best conference finish since joining the Big East; Creighton season sweep first in school history; 118% increase in student attendance / highest attendance growth in Big East; entering 2026-27 with second-most returning letterwinners and nationally ranked portal class; hired March 14, 2024.
• 247Sports / Steve Newhouse. Sept. 29, 2026. Extension keeps Holtmann in Lincoln Park until 2031; originally signed to a six-year deal in March 2024; Peevy and Holtmann quotes from the school release; year-one and year-two summary matching the athletics release.
• DePaul Athletics Chris Holtmann coach page. Career records and program notes: 2024-25 14-20 (4-16 Big East, 10th, College Basketball Crown); 2025-26 16-16 (8-12 Big East, 6th); KenPom improvement of over 180 spots year one; 2025-26 defense 32nd nationally in efficiency; top-50 marks in assists per made FG, opponent turnover percentage, opponent two-point FG% defense; Georgetown Big East Tournament first-round win 71-67 in 2024-25.
• Adam Zagoria on X. Sept. 29, 2026. Extension through 2031, per the school; 11-win improvement.
• Photo: DePaul Athletics. Official Chris Holtmann headshot.