Each Friday I will write about the sport I love, college basketball…

• Indiana has brought back one of their own. Former Hoosiers player Dan Dakich returns to his alma mater as Director of Basketball Operations, replacing Jerry Green (who retired). It is a good move by head coach Kelvin Sampson as it brings back a feeling of the past from Indiana basketball. He played under the General, Robert Montgomery Knight. Dakich was given a lot of credit for being the defensive stopper on Michael Jordan in the 1984 Sweet 16 upset of the top-seeded Tar Heels. The Hoosiers lost to Virginia in the Sweet 16 that year.

• Good to see Joseph Jones opting to return to Texas A&M, where he will play for Mark Turgeon this season. Jones pulled out of the NBA draft. He will be a major plus at College Station. The deadline for others to withdraw from the draft is Monday.

• Rick Pitino has had great success recruiting in the New York-New Jersey area. His latest addition came when 6-9 Samardo Samuels gave a verbal commitment. Samuels is from St. Benedict's HS in Newark, New Jersey and he averaged a double-double last season. Think about the talent that Louisville landed from that area in recent years: Edgar Sosa, Earl Clark and Derrick Caracter.

• Buzz Peterson was dedicated to college basketball. It is great to see him staying in the game, joining the Bobcats organization that includes his former college teammate, Michael Jordan. Now Coastal Carolina is looking for a new coach as we have over 50 changes this off-season. Peterson will be a great addition to the Bobcats as he has a wealth of knowledge. He played under one of the greatest coaches, Dean Smith.

• Michigan State guard Travis Joseph decided to transfer closer to home, opting to attend the University of Vermont. Joseph was a contributor off the bench, averaging almost six ppg. last season. Coach Tom Izzo had a solid recruiting class with three guards coming in. Joseph will sit out next season and he will be a positive factor for the Catamounts during the ensuing campaign.

• It was sad learning of the passing of two coaches who showed such a passion and love for the sport. Former Tennessee coach Ray Mears and former TCU coach Jim Killingsworth passed away during the week. My sympathy goes out to their families.

• Rick Majerus has already had an impact in recruiting at Saint Louis. He landed another big man when he received a commitment from 6-10 Willie Reed from Kansas.

• I was happy to see Quin Snyder get back into coaching. He really loves the gym and being on the sidelines. He would prefer to be on the bench as he'll get his shot in the NBA's Developmental League with the Austin Toros. Snyder is bouncing back after the Missouri situation.

• New Quinnipiac head coach Tom Moore, the former lieutenant under Jim Calhoun at Connecticut, hired a former Huskies star to his staff. Ex-NBA veteran Scott Burrell has come on board. Moore also has former Maryland-Eastern Shore swingman Louis Brookins eligible for the 2007-08 season. The 6-6 Brookins sat out last season.

• A few years ago, Bob Knight and Jim Wooldridge coached against each other in the Big 12 when Wooldridge was at Kansas State. Now Wooldridge is at UC-Riverside and he will face off against Knight in non-conference play this season. Texas Tech is also playing in the Great Alaska Shootout for the first time since the 1990-91 campaign. The last time the Red Raiders played their, current athletic director Gerald Myers was the head coach.

• It's great to see big-time programs taking on in-state rivals. Tennessee will face Tennessee-Chattanooga as part of a new contract between the two schools.

• Who says you can't go home again? Michigan really named former Wolverines linebacker Brian Townsend as John Beilein's director of basketball operations. Townsend served a four-year stint at Ohio University as an assistant under Tim O'Shea.

• Kansas State added Matt Figger as an assistant coach under Frank Martin. The new Wildcats assistant was previously named director of basketball operations at Arkansas under coach John Pelphrey, but he decided he wanted to be an assistant coach again. Figger spent five years at South Alabama under Pelphrey.

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