On March 18, 1980, the immensely powerful Duke basketball program announced the hiring of its new coach; the man who would resurrect the team, restore glory to Duke, and defeat the legendary Dean Smith, who coached down the road at UNC Chapel Hill and had turned UNC into a powerhouse. Duke's new man was Mike Krzyzewski. The only problem was, no one knew who Krzyzewski was, he had a so-so record in his short time as head coach of Army and worst of all, and no one could even pronounce his name. The announcement caused head scratches, if not immediate calls for his head, and on this note his career at Duke began. The table was set nine days later, when on March 27, 1980, Jim Valvano was hired by North Carolina State to be their new head coach. The hiring didn't raise as many eyebrows, but with the exuberant Valvano on board, two new coaches were now in place to challenge Dean Smith, and the most sensational competitive decade in history was about to unfold.
