The Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team reached the 2005 NCAA Championship game under the guidance of former coach Bruce Weber, finishing with a 37-2 record after losing to Sean May, Roy Williams and the North Carolina Tar Heels. 

One of Weber's former players, starting forward Roger Powell, is now the head coach of the Valparaiso Beacons, who helped engineer a stunning 83-80 road win over the Purdue Boilermakers on Friday, Nov. 6 in West Lafayette, Ind. 

Weber had the pleasure of calling Powell's team's historic upset, and met with his former player after the game in an emotional interview. 

Powell spoke with a giddy Weber near the sidelines of Mackey Arena as he talked to his former coach about the historic upset. 

"Coach, you've been through some special wins here with me, we clinched the Big Ten Championship here, but for you as a head coach, this has gotta go down as one of the best you've ever been part of," Weber said to Powell. 

"Oh, man, absolutely, and to do it with my coach calling the game is really special, having you at shootout really meant a lot to me. 

"You proud of me?" Powell asked Weber in footage posted by John Fanta of NBC Sports. 

"I am proud of you, it was special," Weber replied.

"I'm learning, I'm growing...We've got a special bunch...That's a part of our culture, we talk about grit, and we showed a lot of grit today," Powell continued. 

Weber and Powell's former team, the Illini, are 2-0 on the season and have cruised behind the play of freshmen Ethan Brown, Lincoln Williams and Quentin Coleman, along with a host of others including the Ivisic twins, Tomislav and Zvonimir Ivisic, heading into Nov. 10's showdown in Lubbock, Texas against the No. 19 ranked Red Raiders.

The Red Raiders have beaten the Jackson State Tigers and Bethune Cookman Wildcats so far this season but haven't played a team of Illinois' caliber. The Fighting Illini are an early 4.5-point favorite over coach Grant McCasland's team and are still missing arguably their best player, David Mirkovic, who is healing from an appendectomy and surgery on his left foot. 

A win over Texas Tech would boost morale for the Fighting Illini as they adjust to life without Mirkovic, who averaged 13.3 points per game last season and eight rebounds in 29.5 minutes of action.

Illinois' basketball fraternity goes beyond one player, coach or team, which is part of what makes it so special — and a big reason why the Fighting Illini are a national title favorite in Underwood's 10th season with the program.