By BOB ASMUSSEN and MATT DANIELS
CHAMPAIGN — A former Illini is set to become the new athletic director at Illinois.
Multiple sources confirmed to The News-Gazette on Tuesday evening Illinois will hire Josh Whitman, ending a search that has stretched on for more than three months. Whitman, who is expected to be introduced on Thursday morning, replaces Paul Kowalczyk, who was named interim athletic director after the firing of Mike Thomas on Nov. 9.
Whitman becomes the 20th athletic director in UI history, which has also included seven interim ADs. Edward K. Hall was the school’s first athletic director in 1892.