Why isn't DePaul a more formidable basketball school?

I have often wondered this as well. Seems like they should be more successful than they are

if you are from the windy city you grow up a hooiser fan

Well that's over 20 years ago. Wow

They currently play out in rosemont, near OHare. That's an hour trip from campus.

They are coming back to campus next year which should help the atmosphere and make it more appealing to Chicago recruits.

No one wants play for the DePaul snowflakes.

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They're smack-dab in the middle of arguably the most fertile recruiting ground (Chicago) in the country, and yet you rarely hear about them. They're also nonexistent when it comes to the tournament in March.

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DePaul is one of the most mis-managed universities in the country. I live really close to the campus and know a bit of what goes on there. It just has dysfunctional leadership in all areas of the university.

It's in a great part of Chicago, is a decent-sized Catholic private school with a large alumni base that has a little bit of money, has a nice campus, is in a good conference, and on and on and on.

It should be Villanova both on the court and in the classroom. Instead, it's UGA on the court and Iowa State in the classroom.

The one thing that the university has going against it that property around campus is so damn expensive, so it's tough for DePaul to have expand and renovate. Some students live in the area, but a lot rent apartments in other, cheaper parts of the city and take the train or bike in for class. That's about the only thing it has going against it.

DePaul and St.Louis U are so similar.


The plan was always a Catholic conference with:

Depaul
St.Louis
Marquette
Creighton
Xavier
Detroit
Dayton
Providence
Etc

But TV money and teams scrambling for conferences got in the way.

Since you mentioned the mis-management of DePaul, I'll add that they seem to have a problem caring (for lack of a better word) and the basketball program embodies that.

They are surrounded by a wealth of talent, but they don't even try to recruit with the big boys. They should at least be as competitive as Marquette manages to be. I read an article a few years back where Whitney Young's HC said DePaul never offered any of his players and they're one of the top HS programs in the city.

Loyola has a similar problem. One of their senior guards this season was the first recruit from Chicago Public Schools in nearly 2 decades. That's ridiculous.

Pat Kennedy reeled in some huge recruiting classes at DePaul with Quentin Richardson and Bobby Simmons, so it is possible. But they can't start getting guys like that again without some effort.

Dave Leato leaving the first time around killed them for good

Never the same after that. They may have made the tourney once under Wainwright but he was the coach who ultimately drove them into the ground

I think Leitao coming back will make them somewhat competitive again. That was a good re-hire.

From what I've read and heard, Wainwright's biggest problem was that he was too nice. Apparently a great guy, but never really pushed his players and didn't recruit aggressively.

I think Purnell is a bigger culprit than those two. Wainwright left a mess, but DePaul gave Purnell too long of a leash. I really don't know what he did except collect a paycheck and shrug his shoulders in postgame press conferences. And he got away with it for 5 years.