By Chris Duncan
The Associated Press

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. - Darrin Horn slipped off his black sport coat and wiggled into a bright red one moments after he was introduced as Western Kentucky's new head coach on Tuesday night.

"Where I was, red was a bad team color, at Wisconsin," the former Marquette assistant said. "I'm glad to be back in it."

The 30-year-old Horn played for the Hilltoppers in the early 1990s, then was an assistant coach for the team from 1995-97. He worked for two seasons under Kyle Macy at Morehead State before he was hired by Marquette coach Tom Crean, a former Western Kentucky assistant, in 1999.

He always aimed to return to Bowling Green.

"It's good to be home. Being here tonight is a dream come true," Horn said. "There's no place in America, there's no place in college basketball I would rather be."

Western Kentucky athletics director Wood Selig said Horn was one of four candidates interviewed during the weekend. The others were current Western Kentucky assistant Pete Hermann, Texas assistant coach Frank Haith and former Western Kentucky coach Ralph Willard, now the coach at Holy Cross.

"He is someone we consider a rising star and rather than let someone else catch this rising star, we decided, 'Let's get him for Western,"' Selig said.

Horn's youth, his ties to Western and his coaching connections proved to be an "unbeatable combination," Selig said.

"He can talk and he can sell from his own experiences about what it's like to be a student-athlete at Western Kentucky," Selig said. "That's an extremely important and valuable asset."

A contract was still being finalized, but Western Kentucky president Gary Ransdell said Horn plans to stay for several years.

"He's fiercely loyal, and he's demonstrated a real passion for this place," Ransdell said.

Horn sealed his hiring by faxing a list of established coaches and their ages when they first got head coaching jobs to Selig and Ransdell.

"I was looking at every angle. I had to consider what would be concerns on their part," Horn said. "I felt like that was a way to show that age can be overlooked."

The Hilltoppers went 94-32 during Horn's playing career, reaching the NCAA tournament in each of his final three seasons.

"He's been down the same road, played in the same arena and worn the same uniform as the players he's now in charge of leading," Ransdell said.

Horn briefly met with his new team before the news conference. He spoke of a demanding training regimen but promised a fast-paced style of play.

"It seems like we're going to have to do more conditioning, but we're already in great shape," senior-to-be Mike Wells said. "But I like the fast break. That brings more excitement to the game."

The Hilltoppers finished 24-9 last season, their third straight 20-win season under Dennis Felton, who left last week to coach Georgia. The players weren't worried about Horn's arrival interrupting the program's momentum.

"There is no time for us to let down," said Todor Pandov, who will be a junior. "This is just a new chapter in our book. We're going to keep moving forward."

Felton coached Western Kentucky for five seasons, leading the Hilltoppers to sweeps of the last three Sun Belt regular-season and tournament championships. The Hilltoppers have played in the last three NCAA tournaments, losing in the first round each time.

Horn accepts the challenge.

"Nobody is going to put any more pressure on me than I'm going to put on myself because of how much this job means to me and how much this school means to me," Horn said. "Any pressure anyone can put on me will pale in comparison to the pressure I'll put on myself."