CHAMPAIGN, Ill., April 16 (UPI) -- Illinois men's basketball coach Bill Self has been rumored as the chief candidate to succeed Roy Williams in a similar post at Kansas.
Reports are that KU officials have been given permission to speak with him, and he has indicated that, is approached, he will listen.
Williams left the school after 15 years Monday to fill the vacancy at his alma mater, North Carolina.
Drue Jennings, the interim athletic director at Kansas, has told the Kansas City Star that school will move quickly to replace Williams.
"I can assure you that our objective is to do this job as quickly as we can without being sloppy or hasty in the process," Jennings told the paper. "I'm hopeful we can measure the entire process in terms of days, not weeks."
Self has told the paper that he has not been contacted by Jayhawks officials. That was Tuesday night.
He also said that he was not sure what his answer would be if asked.
"I can't answer that, honestly," Self told the paper. "I don't know what I'd say. I have so many people there that I know. I certainly wouldn't want to mislead anyone or try to. (But) If they do call, I may say, 'Let's visit.' I may say, 'Hey after talking a few minutes, I don't feel it.'"
"This is a great, great program," Self told the Illinois crowd. "I don't know what the future holds, but I'm excited to be your coach."
According to the Lawrence (Ks.) Journal-World, about 100 Universiy of Illinois basketball fans wore "I Love My Self" T-shirts to the Illini men's basketball banquet Tuesday night at the Holiday Inn hotel in Urbana, Ill.
The Star also said Marquette Coach Tom Crean did not return phone calls Tuesday, although it was reported that Kansas officials had left messages for Crean in Milwaukee.
It also said Mark Few of Gonzaga, Kentucky's Tubby Smith, Mike Brey of Notre Dame, and Wichita State's Mark Turgeon have also been mentioned as candidates to take over in Lawrence.
"Obviously I'd like someone with KU ties," 6-9 Kansas forward Wayne Simien, who missed much of the just-ended season because of a shoulder separation, told the paper. "I don't want to see too many changes. Right now, the players are just real concerned with making sure that we're heard, that we're voicing our opinion. We want to make sure we have some kind of say in who comes in."
The Chicago Tribune reported that, if Kansas decides to go after Self, it will have to pay Illinois a buyout of $500,000, or $100,000 for each of the five remaining years on his contract, which was extended in February through 2008.
Self earns $900,000 per season, and would receive a $500,000 annuity if he stays at Illinois for five more years. Williams' total compensation package at Kansas exceeded $1 million per year.
Self has been an assistant at Kansas and Oklahoma State, and a head coach at Oral Roberts, Tulsa, and Illinois, and been successful at all three. This past season, Illinois went 26-7, and won the regular season title in the Big Ten.
The Illini was beaten by Notre Dame, 68-60, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
