April 3, 2004 | ESPN.com's NCAA Tournament coverage
Final Four V-Previews: Connecticut-Duke | Georgia Tech-Oklahoma State

POSTCARD from SAN ANTONIO — I had a great time Friday night speaking to a group from the Hartford Insurance Co. Sure enough, in the same restaurant were Texas Tech coach Bobby Knight, former Michigan State coach Jud Heathcote and Pete Newell (of Pete Newell Big Man Camp fame).

Talk about a trio of great coaches! They're three legends in my mind. It was amazing to see them there together.

I ran into North Carolina coach Roy Williams and Saint Joseph's coach Phil Martelli.

Then it was back to the Riverwalk, where I had spent some time on Thursday, and we had a super time again with the fans. There, I also ran into North Carolina coach Roy Williams and Saint Joseph's coach Phil Martelli, who earlier in the day was named AP coach of the year.

Martelli really deserved it for doing such a sensational job as he led the Hawks to an unbeaten regular season.

On Saturday, after SportsCenter taping, I visited with some friends and also met two young men who are in San Antonio courtesy of the Make-A-Wish Foundation (which grants the wishes of young people with life-threatening medical conditions). I was glad to meet Nathan McKenna and Daniel Scanlan.

On the SportsCenter set, I also met Tony Andrea and Jim Bunnell of GM and Pontiac (along with their families). Then I was off to a couple more speeches.

Next comes the main event -- Final Four basketball. It should be awesome, baby, with a capital A!

Dick Vitale coached the Detroit Pistons and the University of Detroit in the 1970s before broadcasting ESPN's first college basketball game in 1979 (he's been an ESPN analyst ever since). Send a question for Vitale for possible use on ESPNEWS.