By Jim Vertuno
The Associated Press

AUSTIN, Texas - The foundation for the Texas Longhorns' Final Four team was in place long before star guard T.J. Ford showed up.

The swagger, desire and nucleus of talent coach Rick Barnes needed to build a great team arrived a year earlier with Brian Boddicker, Royal Ivey, James Thomas and Brandon Mouton.

Barnes got each player to sign with Texas by convincing them basketball could be special at a football school.

"He called Texas a sleeping giant," said Boddicker, the first McDonald's high school all-American to sign with Barnes at Texas.

"Now we are emerging as a giant."

Thomas said the core group of players has taken the program to new heights.

"When we came in as freshmen, we said we'd be on top," he said. "The hard work is not done. We have another year, and this weekend."

Texas plays Syracuse on Saturday in the NCAA tournament semifinals in New Orleans. Kansas and Marquette play in the other game.

The Longhorns haven't been to the Final Four since 1946. It was Barnes who challenged them to wake up a program in a perpetual snooze.

"I picked them to win the national championship," Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim said. "I hope I'm wrong.

"Ford is the best point guard in the country, and they're big and physical. They've got all the answers like all the teams playing right now."

When Barnes took over the program in 1998, he could see potential at a flagship university with more than 50,000 students, a deep pool of in-state high school talent and a winning athletic tradition.

He just needed to find the players who shared his vision.

Boddicker was one of the first players he recruited. Boddicker led Duncanville High School to a Texas Class 5A state championship and was considering offers from several schools nationwide.

He was the multiple skills player Barnes needed: Big enough to rebound and post up inside, he can also step out for 3-pointers.

Boddicker was sold on Barnes and Texas basketball

"From the moment I first met coach Barnes, all he talked about was winning a national championship," he said. "I saw where the program was going and I wanted to be a part of that."

Thomas, Mouton and Ivey all were less heralded, but none escaped the recruiting eye of former Texas assistant Rob Lanier, now head coach at Siena.

The Longhorns found Thomas at Hargrave Military Academy in Virginia. Ivey was at a prep school in New York and Mouton was a top scorer for his AAU team in Louisiana.

Thomas wanted to play in a warm-weather city and committed to Texas without even visiting the Austin campus.

With his floppy braids, tattooed arms and broad shoulders, he brought an intensity to rebounding as tough as Barnes had ever seen. In a league known for its physical play, Thomas led the Big 12 in rebounding this season with 11.1 a game.

"The first time that you saw James Thomas you said you want that," Barnes said. "His intensity, his ability and desire to go rebound the ball don't come along often."

Ivey was a dancer in high school and his only other scholarship offer was from Boston University. He started 26 games at point guard for Texas as a freshman.

The Longhorns' best perimeter defender, Ivey will guard Syracuse's Carmelo Anthony on Saturday.

"Rob said when Roy's a junior or senior, people were going to be asking `Where did he come from?" Barnes said.

Ivey says he and Thomas brought some New York attitude to the Lone Star State.

"When you're from New York, you're not cocky, but you walk with a swagger," Ivey said.

The signs of a solid foundation showed right away.

Thomas and Boddicker were selected for the Big 12 all-freshman team in 2000 and all four played key roles in getting Texas to the NCAA tournament that season.

Their inexperience showed, too. Caught up in just being there, Texas got bounced in the first round by Temple in New Orleans.

It was an eye-opening experience, confirmation that Barnes was right to demand the absolute best every minute on the court.

Ford joined the team in 2001 and was a perfect fit. With his passing and floor leadership, he made everyone around him even better. He helped take the team to the round of 16 last season before a two-point loss to Oregon.

As juniors, Mouton, Ivey and Thomas are starters, and Boddicker was one of the top sixth men in the country. The Longhorns were ranked in the top 10 all season and earned their first No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament.

This year's junior class is a big reason Ford plans to stay in college for at least another year.

"To play with these guys as seniors," he said. "That will be great."