Quinnipiac assistant Tom Pecora is again a head coach, replacing Baker Dunleavy on the Bobcats’ bench.

Dunleavy resigned to return to Villanova on Thursday after six seasons as head coach. Pecora, who has been on Dunleavy’s staff as an assistant for all six seasons, stepped back into the lead coaching role he previously held at Hofstra and Fordham.

Villanova hired Dunleavy in a newly created role as general manager of men’s and women’s basketball.

“After a period of post-season reflection, I have decided to step down from my position as Head Men’s Basketball Coach,” Dunleavy said in a statement released by the university. “Chrissi, our four girls, and I would like to thank the Quinnipiac community, especially the amazing staff and players that have worked so tirelessly these past six seasons. We feel it is time for us to take a step out of coaching into a new exciting opportunity for our family. The University and the State of Connecticut will always hold a special place in our hearts and a part of us will always be Bobcats.”

One of the youngest coaches in the NCAA when he was hired in 2017, Dunleavy was 86-93 overall, and the 40-year-old became a head coach after seven seasons as an assistant coach under Jay Wright at Villanova.

He won 11 games in the MAAC, matching his best conference mark at the school, and a career-best 20 games in 2022-23.

Pecora, 65, is 198-231 as a Division I head coach — nine years (2001-2010) with Hofstra and for five seasons at Fordham (2010-15) — and is also a former assistant to Wright at Hofstra.

Pecora has 261 total wins as a head coach, including his run at SUNY Farmingdale from 1989-1992.

–Field Level Media