New Orleans ? Little Ricky from Hickory is big time now.

When Rick Barnes took over as coach at Texas five years ago, the program was in disarray under the threat of player lawsuits and defections.

He’s done more than just unite the program. He’s turned this one-time “football school,” into a basketball power. The ‘Horns are in the Final Four for the first time in 56 years.

“We’ve come a long way,” the 48-year-old Barnes said.

Who knows where Texas would be without him?

The Longhorns had brief splashes on the national scene. “Tournament Tom” Penders took the ‘Horns to the regional finals in 1990. Eight years later, the program was in disarray, swamped by scandal after one player’s grades were released to the media and several more considered transferring.

The player whose grades were released was Luke Axtell, who eventually transferred to Kansas University.

Penders left and Texas hired Barnes, who had coached at Providence before going to Clemson. Barnes had led Clemson to three consecutive NCAA Tournaments, including the round of 16 in ’97.

“He was good in our league. It’s when he got down to Clemson that he went nuts,” said Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim, who coached against Barnes for three years in the Big East and will face him again tonight in the semifinals.

Barnes has approached his first Final Four by trying to shift the focus from himself and onto his players. They should come first, he said.

“He’s a players’ coach,” Texas sophomore point guard T.J. Ford said.