Feb. 16--Illinois is deciding between two final candidates for the athletic director position, according to a source.
The search committee was divided on Josh Whitman from Division III Washington University and Patrick Chun of Florida Atlantic, the source said, so it recommended both candidates to interim Chancellor Barbara Wilson.
Wilson has reportedly said Illinois would make a hire by the end of the month.
Whitman, 37, played football at Illinois (1997-2000) and has been athletic director at Washington in St. Louis since June 2014. He spent the previous four years as AD at Wisconsin-La Crosse.
Chun, 40, has been AD at Florida Atlantic since July 2012 and engineered the school's move into Conference USA. He spent the previous 15 years at Ohio State, where from 2009 to 2012 he oversaw the external relations division. He also served as the daily administrative liaison with the football team.
Illinois has been without a permanent AD since firing Mike Thomas on Nov. 9 amid scandals in the football and women's basketball programs.
The university formed a search committee in January and later in the month hired search firm Korn Ferry to help identify candidates. Illinois interviewed several of them in early February in Indianapolis.
Tennis Australia CEO Craig Tiley withdrew his name from consideration, as did Northern Illinois AD Sean Frazier, according to sources. Illinois also considered Eastern Illinois AD Tom Michael, Central Michigan AD Dave Heeke and Maryland deputy AD Kelly Mehrtens.
Illinois targeted Colorado AD Rick George, a former Illinois football player, but he has publicly stated he would not leave his current position.
The drawn-out hiring process has been due in part to candidates' hesitation to take the job under an interim chancellor and to the state budget issues that have affected higher education, according to a source.
sryan@tribpub.com
