By Bill Koch
Enquirer staff writer

The University of Cincinnati Bearcats limped home from Columbus after their 24-point loss to Illinois in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in March looking to retool for their final season in Conference USA and lay a foundation for their move to the Big East in 2005.

Instead, the program has been sent reeling by head coach Bob Huggins' June 8 arrest for drunken driving.

With Huggins already suspended by the university until Aug. 27, the basketball program was dealt another blow Tuesday when associate head coach Dan Peters, who on June 14 was named interim head coach in Huggins' absence, accepted a job as Ohio State's associate head coach working under former Xavier head coach Thad Matta.

UC athletic director Bob Goin named former UC great Oscar Robertson to serve as the new interim head coach.

Instead of presiding over a program gathering momentum for the move to the Big East, Goin finds himself trying to hold things together.

That Peters, who has been at UC for five years, would leave the program built by his best friend to take the same job at a school whose program could face NCAA probation and is coached by the former head of UC's crosstown rival speaks volumes about the state of the UC basketball program.

"It's not in disarray," Goin said. "It's in fundamental shape. This is where we find out what our real mettle is about. If it's that fragile after 15 years, then I'm going to be worried.

"Is that what I want? No. We didn't orchestrate it like this. But I'm not going to say the whole world is coming to an end, because it's not."

Peters, 50, said it was difficult leaving Huggins.

"He was very professional about it," Peters said of Huggins. "It's extremely difficult. It's just hard."

Asked if Huggins' arrest and subsequent suspension had an impact on his decision to leave, Peters declined to comment.

Goin said he was happy to have a person of Robertson's stature to run the program until Huggins returns.

"It's wonderful to have a guy who's a role model," Goin said of Rob ertson. "It's a wonderful thing to have him talk to our young men about what they have to do to succeed.

"And he's not a bad guy to make a few phone calls for recruiting. He can do that in this position. I want him to impact our kids, and I think he can."

Robertson said he will not conduct regular business hours at UC. Deputy athletic director Dean Billick actually will handle the day-to-day oversight of the basketball office.

Recruiting coordinator Andy Kennedy and assistant coach Keith LeGree will attempt to shore up recruiting during the upcoming evaluation period July 22-31, a time when Huggins normally would be on the road checking out players.

Despite his suspension, Huggins will have full input in whom to hire to replace Peters, Goin said, but no one will be hired until Huggins returns Aug. 27.

It falls to Robertson, who put the UC program on the national map from 1957-60, to try to help keep it together for future generations. The player who became known as the Big O during his Hall of Fame playing career frequently attends practices and knows all but the incoming players.

"They're nice kids," Robertson said. "There's just certain things that they need. I think I'm in a situation where I can help."

But Robertson wasted no time expressing his opinion about UC center Robert Whaley, who's academically ineligible to play next season.

"You've got a guy who will not go to class, won't hustle hard," Robertson said. "Get rid of him. I think time is too short. I think you should try to save everybody that you can, but some guys you cannot save."

Peters said he was first contacted by Matta about two weeks ago. Matta called him again Sunday night. Peters drove to Wilmington on Monday night to meet with him and accepted the job about 11 p.m.

As associate head coach at Ohio State, Peters will work with players individually, help with game preparation and recruit, something he did not do at UC until he was sent out on the road earlier this month.

"I'm excited about that," said Peters, who confirmed he would receive a sizeable salary increase. He starts his new job Thursday.

"I couldn't turn it down," Peters said.

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E-mail bkoch@enquirer.com