October 12, 2006

I am so excited because college basketball tips off this Friday. That's right, Midnight Madness signals the start of the 2006-07 campaign, and I really feel this is going to be something special.

Remember when the lefthander, Lefty Driesell, brought excitement to college campuses all over by starting Midnight Madness over 30 years ago. I really feel Lefty, with 786 wins, should be considered for the Basketball Hall of Fame. He won 100 or more games at four different schools.

Midnight Madness signifies that college basketball has arrived and is ready to roll. Now everyone rolls out the balls, fans are excited about the upcoming campaign and we find out who will stand tall in Atlanta as national champs. Can Florida repeat and become the first back-to-back titleholder since the Dukies in 1991 and '92? When Will Bob Knight pass Dean Smith's 879 and become the winningest coach in Division I?

We get to see the new diaper dandies and find out how good they are. We will learn about guys like Kevin Durant, Chase Budinger, Ty Lawson, Gerald Henderson, Thaddeus Young and others. We will have to wait on Greg Oden and Spencer Hawes as both are sidelined for the moment. Hawes (knee surgery) is expected to be ready for Washington's season opener.

We will find out shortly, baby! There will be all kinds of new angles. College basketball, I can't wait as it is just around the corner. It all starts this weekend and the lefthander started quite a craze when he began Midnight Madness on the Terrapin campus over 30 years ago.

Dick Vitale coached the Pistons and the University of Detroit before broadcasting ESPN's first college basketball game in 1979. Send a question for Vitale for possible use on ESPNEWS.