The coach organizing a national online auction to benefit Hurricane Katrina victims is not from a school in Louisiana, Mississippi or Alabama.

He’s from Virginia Tech.

“I don’t think you have to be from a region to have empathy for what people are going through,” Tech men’s basketball coach Seth Greenberg said this week.

The auction of sports memorabilia, which Greenberg announced last week, begins today. The mother of Tech forward Deron Washington lost her New Orleans home because of the hurricane, and Greenberg was struck by the pain in her voice when he talked to her on the phone. That isn’t the only reason Greenberg was moved to act.

“The first day I watched TV and they interviewed a guy that had his young daughter on his shoulder, walking through the water, and they asked him where he was going and he said he had no idea,” Greenberg said. “I have three children, and I don’t think I could ever imagine … having no idea of where I am or where I’m going. The more I watched, the more I said, ‘What can I do?’ ”

Greenberg and two friends who run the Web site collegeinsider.com came up with the idea of an online auction of items donated by coaches. Tech will collect money for the American Red Cross at Saturday’s home football game in its own fund-raising effort, but the money from Greenberg’s auction will go to Habitat for Humanity. Greenberg picked that organization because it intends to build houses for hurricane victims who lost their homes.

“People that are probably hurt the worst are people that are coming from low-income areas that lost everything,” Greenberg said. “As coaches, we’re always rebuilding. Maybe we can come together and help some people rebuild their lives.”

Greenberg has been on Fox News, CNBC, ESPN Radio, New York sports radio station WFAN and Jim Rome’s radio show to promote the auction. He will also be on EPSN2’s “Cold Pizza” this week.

Beginning today, people can bid on items on the Web site AllCoachesCare.com. The bidding for the initial batch of items will last about two weeks, but Greenberg vows that more items will replace them. Greenberg wants to keep the auction going for “a long while.”

“As long as we’re getting good items and getting different people involved, we’re going to keep it going,” he said.

Greenberg phoned people such as Notre Dame’s Mike Brey, University of Southern California and ex-New Orleans Hornets coach Tim Floyd and ESPN’s Dick Vitale to get items. He called the offices of Texas Tech and North Carolina to get Bobby Knight and Roy Williams involved. Greenberg also wrote letters to the offices of the NBA, NHL, Major League Baseball and Division I conferences. Some coaches contacted Greenberg after learning about the auction from one of his interviews.

Some of the items up for bid are rather unique. A winner and two guests will get to play a round of golf with Williams at the famed course Pinehurst No. 2. People can bid to have lunch with Brey, go fishing with Mississippi State coach Rick Stansbury or go shopping for clothes with well-dressed Drexel coach Bruiser Flint.

Tickets to various games and tournaments are also up for bid. Some of those packages include perks, such as taking part in a team’s pregame meal.

There are autographed basketballs or jerseys from Duke coach Mike Kryzyzewski and the Blue Devils, Vitale, coaching legend John Wooden, Atlanta Braves pitcher John Smoltz, Tampa Bay Devil Rays manager Lou Piniella, Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade, Michigan coach Tommy Amaker, Maryland coach Gary Williams, Iowa coach Steve Alford, Tampa Bay Lightning coach John Tortorella, the Minnesota Wild hockey team and No. 1 draft picks Andrew Bogut and Alex Smith

Washington’s mother, Denise Washington, and his grandmother are staying in Houston with friends. Denise Washington is a teacher, and the school where she taught was also lost to the flood. She might wind up spending the rest of the school year in Blacksburg.

The NCAA has relaxed the ban on providing gifts to athletes’ families, so Greenberg was able to send Washington’s mother some clothes.

“She only left with a couple pair of pants,” Greenberg said.

Greenberg said that any Tech fans who want to help Denise Washington should contact his office (540-231-6725) so Tech can stay in compliance with NCAA rules.

The coaches’ hot list

Some of the items up for bid at AllCoachesCare.com beginning today:

High-bidder and two guests will play a round of golf with North Carolina coach Roy Williams at Pinehurst No. 2.

Travel with the Hokies to the ACC men’s basketball tournament; two tickets to the tournament; lodging in the team hotel; be part of all of the Tech team events.

Four tickets to the Virginia Tech-Duke men’s basketball game at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Basketball autographed by coaching legend John Wooden.

Travel with Bob Knight and Texas Tech to the Big 12 tournament, stay at the team’s hotel and go the tournament.

Four tickets to the Pac-10 tournament; attend USC meetings, pregame meals and practices; stay at the team hotel.

Two seats to a Stanford-UCLA game at Pauley Pavilion and two replica locker room chairs with your names embossed.

16 tickets to a Kohl Center suite to watch the North Dakota State-Wisconsin basketball game.

Lunch with Phil Martelli of St. Joe’s and Fran Dunphy of Penn.

Lunch with Notre Dame coach Mike Brey and attend his team’s practice.

Have breakfast and lunch with Mississippi State coach Rick Stansbury at his home and go fishing with him.

Four tickets to the Butler-Indiana game at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, two hotel rooms, pregame meal with Butler and take part in a free-throw shooting contest against Bobby Plump, who led Milan High School to the 1954 state title (the inspiration for the movie “Hoosiers”).

Two tickets behind the Old Dominion bench for the Duke-ODU women’s basketball game.

Two tickets to the Navy-Notre Dame football game in South Bend.