Titan Assistant Coach Accepts a Job at New Orleans

Ronnie Dean, a Cal State Fullerton assistant men’s basketball coach, said Monday he is resigning to take a similar position at the University of New Orleans.

Dean said he decided to make the move primarily because of the uncertain status of Titan Coach Bob Hawking.

Hawking’s contract expires March 30, and the university has made no announcement about his future, though the Titans’ season ended more than a week ago in the Big West Conference tournament.

“I love it at Fullerton, and I would have liked to have stayed,” Dean said. “I really like Coach Hawking and I wanted to be loyal to him, but because of the uncertainty, I felt I had to take the job I did. If he had a three-year contract, I’d be around. But [New Orleans] told me I had to make a decision now, or they were going to move on to other candidates.”

Dean was an assistant at Fullerton for one season after working previously for a scouting service in Missouri. Before that, he had coached at community colleges in Kansas, Texas and Colorado.

Dean was chiefly responsible for recruiting two high school players from the St. Louis area: Brandon Campbell of Cardinal Ritter in St. Louis and Josh Helbig of East Belleville (Ill.) High. They signed letters in the early signing period.

“I’ll tell the players I’ve recruited for Fullerton that Fullerton is still the best place for them,” Dean said.

Hawking said he would not comment at this time on Dean’s departure.