Steve Fisher
Encyclopedia
Steve Fisher is an American
college basketball
coach currently at San Diego State University
.
Fisher attended Illinois State University
, where he helped lead the Redbirds to the 1967 Division II Final Four
. After school, he became a high school
coach in Park Forest, Illinois
. In 1979, he accepted an assistant coaching position at Western Michigan University
. In 1982, he moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan
and took another assistant job at the University of Michigan
.
agreed to take the coaching job at Arizona State University
. Though Frieder intended to coach Michigan through the end of the 1989 NCAA tournament, athletic director Bo Schembechler
ordered Frieder to leave immediately and hired Fisher as interim coach, declaring that "a Michigan man will coach Michigan, not an Arizona State man." Once Frieder had announced his employment at another school, Schembechler no longer considered him a "Michigan man."
Initially, Fisher was not expected to retain the position after the season. However, Fisher led the Wolverines to an improbable NCAA championship that season, thanks to a strong performance by forward Glen Rice
. Schembechler hired him as the school's permanent head coach a week after the championship game. Michigan credits the 1988-89 regular season to Frieder and the NCAA tournament to Fisher.
In 1991, Fisher signed one of the most talented incoming freshman
classes of all time. High school stars Chris Webber
, Jalen Rose
, Ray Jackson
, Jimmy King
, and Juwan Howard
all signed with Fisher and Michigan, forming what became known as the "Fab Five
". Together, they helped lead the Wolverines to the national title game in their freshman year, only to lose to Duke
. As sophomores, they again reached the title game, this time losing to North Carolina
. In that game, Webber was called for a technical foul
with 11 seconds remaining in the game. He signaled for a timeout when the Wolverines had none left.
After the title-game loss to the Tar Heels, Webber went pro; Rose and Howard followed a year later. The Wolverines have not yet reached the same heights again. While they reached the postseason each of the next five seasons and won the 1997 National Invitation Tournament
, they never advanced further than the Elite Eight in the 1994 NCAA Tournament.
In October 1997, Michigan fired Fisher as a result of an off-court scandal (see section below).
Fisher was out of coaching for the 1997-98 season before taking a job as an assistant with the Sacramento Kings
.
In 1999, Fisher took over as coach of a San Diego State program that had suffered losing records in 13 of the previous 14 years. In the season before he arrived, the Aztecs had won just four games, but within two seasons Fisher had brought the team up to a .500 record, and led them to a 21-12 record and an NCAA Tournament appearance in year three of his regime. He has since led them to three other NCAA tourneys, and four appearances in the National Invitational Tournament.
electrician, the school launched an investigation. After the investigators questioned Fisher's role in arranging complimentary tickets for Martin, Fisher was fired a week before practice began for the 1997-98 season.
Later, additional facts surfaced that further damaged the program's reputation. In 2002, an indictment unsealed in a Detroit federal court charged Ed Martin with running an illegal gambling operation and money laundering
. Additionally, it claimed that Martin gave Webber $280,000 in illicit loans while Webber was in high school and college, with another $336,000 allegedly going to three other former Wolverine players - Taylor, Robert Traylor
and Louis Bullock
. Martin ultimately pleaded guilty, but died in February 2003.
As a result of the revelations, Michigan imposed its own sanctions on the basketball program in 2002, vacating its two Final Four games from the 1992 NCAA Tournament and its standing as the tournament's runner-up. It also vacated the entire 1992-93 season, as well as every game from 1995-96 to 1998-99. Michigan also withdrew from postseason consideration for the 2002-03 season, and removed the banners hanging in Crisler Arena
that commemorated their post-season appearances and removed references to the named players' records. The move came because the payments may have compromised the four players' amateur status. The NCAA accepted Michigan's sanctions, and additionally placed the school on probation until 2006. It also ordered Michigan to disassociate itself from the four players until 2013.
The discoveries did not impact Fisher's career with San Diego State (and no new allegations have occurred in conjunction with that program). Fisher denied any knowledge of the Martin misconduct. The NCAA ultimately faulted Fisher for allowing Martin access to his players (though his ties to Michigan dated to the Frieder era), but otherwise cleared him of wrongdoing.
. The Aztecs
had not been to the postseason since its NCAA appearance in 1984-1985 .
In his third year, Fisher led the Aztecs to their first Mountain West Conference
tournament title, and finished with a 21-12 record and continued the upward surge of the program. They returned to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since that same '85-86 team. During the 2002-2003 season (his fourth year), Steve Fisher's Aztecs returned to the post-season when they hosted an NIT First RD match against UCSB. The Aztecs earned their first ever Division 1 post-season win. After two rebuilding seasons (2003-2004 and 2004-2005), the Aztecs returned to the NCAA Tournament in the 2005-2006 season; Steve Fisher's sixth season. That year the Aztecs began a present six year streak of consecutive 20+ win seasons while capturing their first ever Mountain West Conference Regular Season Championship, and winning their second ever Mountain West Conference Tournament Championship.
In 2009, the Aztecs earned a school-record 26 victories and reached the semifinals of the NIT. It was their third consecutive trip to the NIT, and fourth consecutive post-season appearance. In the 2009-2010 season, the Aztecs won another 20+ games, won the Mountain West Conference Tournament, and earned their third NCAA Tournament trip under Fisher. In 2010-2011, the Aztecs who were ranked #25 in the pre-season polls, spent nearly the entire season in the top 10 and won their first NCAA Tournament game ever en route to the Sweet 16.
Overall Fisher has guided SDSU to the NCAA Tournament in 2002, 2006, 2010, and 2011, and the postseason NIT in 2003, 2007, 2008, and 2009, to go along with seven 20-win seasons (six consecutive from 2006-present); with the 2010-2011 season being the Aztecs' first 30 win season in school history. Additionally, under Steve Fisher, the San Diego State Aztecs Men's basketball team has captured two Mountain West Conference Regular Season Championships (2006 outright, 2011 shared with BYU), and four Mountain West Conference Tournament Championships (2002, 2006, 2010, 2011). Since the 2005-2006 season, Steve Fisher has led the Aztecs to six consecutive post-season appearances, and back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances for the first time in school history since the 1974-1975 and 1975-1976 seasons.
Just eight head coaches have won the NIT as well as the NCAA tournaments. The others are Nolan Richardson, Bobby Knight, Adolph Rupp, Joe B. Hall, Al McGuire, Dean Smith, and Jim Calhoun. Nat Holman in 1950 coached the City College of New York (CCNY) to an NIT and NCAA championship in the same season.
* Fisher served as interim coach during the 1989 NCAA tournament after Bill Frieder
resigned. Michigan credits the 1988-89 regular season to Frieder and the NCAA tournament to Fisher.
^Michigan vacated its two 1992 Final Four games and its status as tournament runner-up. Official record is 24-8.
^^Entire season, including postseason tournament appearances, later vacated by the school.
Michigan total record includes games subsequently vacated by the school.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
college basketball
College basketball
College basketball most often refers to the USA basketball competitive governance structure established by the National Collegiate Athletic Association . Basketball in the NCAA is divided into three divisions: Division I, Division II and Division III....
coach currently at San Diego State University
San Diego State Aztecs men's basketball
The San Diego State Aztecs basketball team is the basketball team that represent San Diego State University Aztecs in San Diego, California. The school's team currently competes in the Mountain West Conference, and play their home games in Viejas Arena...
.
Fisher attended Illinois State University
Illinois State University
Illinois State University , founded in 1857, is the oldest public university in Illinois; it is located in the town of Normal. ISU is considered a "national university" that grants a variety of doctoral degrees and strongly emphasizes research; it is also recognized as one of the top ten largest...
, where he helped lead the Redbirds to the 1967 Division II Final Four
Final four
Final Four isa sports term that is commonly applied to the last four teams remaining in a playoff tournament, most notably NCAA Division I college basketball tournaments. The term usually refers to the four teams who compete in the two games of a single-elimination tournament's semi-final round...
. After school, he became a high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
coach in Park Forest, Illinois
Park Forest, Illinois
Park Forest is a village located south of Chicago in Cook County and Will County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2000 census, the village had a total population of 23,462...
. In 1979, he accepted an assistant coaching position at Western Michigan University
Western Michigan University
Western Michigan University is a public university located in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. The university was established in 1903 by Dwight B. Waldo, and as of the Fall 2010 semester, its enrollment is 25,045....
. In 1982, he moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County. The 2010 census places the population at 113,934, making it the sixth largest city in Michigan. The Ann Arbor Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 344,791 as of 2010...
and took another assistant job at the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
.
University of Michigan
In 1989, during the final week of the regular season, Michigan head coach Bill FriederBill Frieder
Bill Frieder is a former basketball coach at the University of Michigan and Arizona State University . Just before the 1989 NCAA Tournament, Frieder announced that he would leave Michigan for Arizona State at the end of the season...
agreed to take the coaching job at Arizona State University
Arizona State University
Arizona State University is a public research university located in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area of the State of Arizona...
. Though Frieder intended to coach Michigan through the end of the 1989 NCAA tournament, athletic director Bo Schembechler
Bo Schembechler
Glenn Edward "Bo" Schembechler, Jr. was an American football player, coach, and athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Miami University from 1963 to 1968 and at the University of Michigan from 1969 to 1989, compiling a career record of 234–65–8...
ordered Frieder to leave immediately and hired Fisher as interim coach, declaring that "a Michigan man will coach Michigan, not an Arizona State man." Once Frieder had announced his employment at another school, Schembechler no longer considered him a "Michigan man."
Initially, Fisher was not expected to retain the position after the season. However, Fisher led the Wolverines to an improbable NCAA championship that season, thanks to a strong performance by forward Glen Rice
Glen Rice
Glen Anthony Rice is a retired American professional basketball player who played in the NBA. The 6'8" tall Rice was a three-time NBA All-Star guard/forward, ranking 11th in NBA history with 1,559 three-point field goals made during his 15-year career. As a player, Rice won an NCAA Men's Division...
. Schembechler hired him as the school's permanent head coach a week after the championship game. Michigan credits the 1988-89 regular season to Frieder and the NCAA tournament to Fisher.
In 1991, Fisher signed one of the most talented incoming freshman
Freshman
A freshman or fresher is a first-year student in secondary school, high school, or college. The term first year can also be used as a noun, to describe the students themselves A freshman (US) or fresher (UK, India) (or sometimes fish, freshie, fresher; slang plural frosh or freshmeat) is a...
classes of all time. High school stars Chris Webber
Chris Webber
Mayce Edward Christopher "Chris" Webber, III , nicknamed C-Webb, is a retired American professional basketball player. He is a five-time NBA All-Star, a former All-NBA First Teamer, a former NBA Rookie of the Year, and a former #1 overall NBA Draftee...
, Jalen Rose
Jalen Rose
Jalen Anthony Rose is a retired American professional basketball player, who currently works as a sports analyst for the sports television network ESPN...
, Ray Jackson
Ray Jackson
Ray Jackson is a retired American college and professional basketball player. He was part of the famed University of Michigan Wolverines Fab Five along with former NBA players Chris Webber, Jimmy King, Jalen Rose and current NBA player Juwan Howard that reached the 1992 & 1993 NCAA Men's Division...
, Jimmy King
Jimmy King
Jimmy Hal King is a retired American professional basketball player in the NBA.-College career:He was part of the famed University of Michigan Wolverines Fab Five along with Ray Jackson, current NBA player Juwan Howard, and former NBA players Chris Webber and Jalen Rose, that reached the 1992 and...
, and Juwan Howard
Juwan Howard
Juwan Antonio Howard is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association . The Heat were his eighth different NBA team. He was drafted fifth overall in the 1994 NBA Draft by the Washington Bullets...
all signed with Fisher and Michigan, forming what became known as the "Fab Five
Fab Five (University of Michigan)
The Fab Five was the nickname for a 1991 University of Michigan men's basketball team recruitment class that is considered by some to be "the greatest class ever recruited." The class consisted of Detroit natives Chris Webber and Jalen Rose, Chicago native Juwan Howard, and Texas high school...
". Together, they helped lead the Wolverines to the national title game in their freshman year, only to lose to Duke
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
. As sophomores, they again reached the title game, this time losing to North Carolina
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...
. In that game, Webber was called for a technical foul
Technical foul
In basketball, a technical foul is any infraction of the rules penalized as a foul which does not involve physical contact during the course of play between players on the court, or is a foul by a non-player. The most common technical foul is for unsportsmanlike conduct...
with 11 seconds remaining in the game. He signaled for a timeout when the Wolverines had none left.
After the title-game loss to the Tar Heels, Webber went pro; Rose and Howard followed a year later. The Wolverines have not yet reached the same heights again. While they reached the postseason each of the next five seasons and won the 1997 National Invitation Tournament
1997 National Invitation Tournament
-Semifinals & Finals:*Third Place - Connecticut 74, Arkansas 64Michigan later forfeited its entire 1996-97 schedule after Robert Traylor, Maurice Taylor and Louis Bullock were found to have taken money from a Michigan booster....
, they never advanced further than the Elite Eight in the 1994 NCAA Tournament.
In October 1997, Michigan fired Fisher as a result of an off-court scandal (see section below).
Fisher was out of coaching for the 1997-98 season before taking a job as an assistant with the Sacramento Kings
Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are a professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California, United States. They are currently members of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association...
.
In 1999, Fisher took over as coach of a San Diego State program that had suffered losing records in 13 of the previous 14 years. In the season before he arrived, the Aztecs had won just four games, but within two seasons Fisher had brought the team up to a .500 record, and led them to a 21-12 record and an NCAA Tournament appearance in year three of his regime. He has since led them to three other NCAA tourneys, and four appearances in the National Invitational Tournament.
Ed Martin scandal
In 1997, after it was revealed that Maurice Taylor had visited Ed Martin, a retired FordFord Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
electrician, the school launched an investigation. After the investigators questioned Fisher's role in arranging complimentary tickets for Martin, Fisher was fired a week before practice began for the 1997-98 season.
Later, additional facts surfaced that further damaged the program's reputation. In 2002, an indictment unsealed in a Detroit federal court charged Ed Martin with running an illegal gambling operation and money laundering
Money laundering
Money laundering is the process of disguising illegal sources of money so that it looks like it came from legal sources. The methods by which money may be laundered are varied and can range in sophistication. Many regulatory and governmental authorities quote estimates each year for the amount...
. Additionally, it claimed that Martin gave Webber $280,000 in illicit loans while Webber was in high school and college, with another $336,000 allegedly going to three other former Wolverine players - Taylor, Robert Traylor
Robert Traylor
Robert DeShaun "Tractor" Traylor was an American professional basketball player.-High school and college:...
and Louis Bullock
Louis Bullock
Louis Bullock, Jr. is an American professional basketball player. He is currently with the pro club CB Cajasol Sevilla in Spain....
. Martin ultimately pleaded guilty, but died in February 2003.
As a result of the revelations, Michigan imposed its own sanctions on the basketball program in 2002, vacating its two Final Four games from the 1992 NCAA Tournament and its standing as the tournament's runner-up. It also vacated the entire 1992-93 season, as well as every game from 1995-96 to 1998-99. Michigan also withdrew from postseason consideration for the 2002-03 season, and removed the banners hanging in Crisler Arena
Crisler Arena
Crisler Arena, in Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA, is the home arena for the University of Michigan men's and women's basketball teams. Constructed in 1967, the arena seats 13,751 spectators. It is named for Herbert O...
that commemorated their post-season appearances and removed references to the named players' records. The move came because the payments may have compromised the four players' amateur status. The NCAA accepted Michigan's sanctions, and additionally placed the school on probation until 2006. It also ordered Michigan to disassociate itself from the four players until 2013.
The discoveries did not impact Fisher's career with San Diego State (and no new allegations have occurred in conjunction with that program). Fisher denied any knowledge of the Martin misconduct. The NCAA ultimately faulted Fisher for allowing Martin access to his players (though his ties to Michigan dated to the Frieder era), but otherwise cleared him of wrongdoing.
San Diego State
In 1999, Fisher took over the basketball program at San Diego State UniversitySan Diego State University
San Diego State University , founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, is the largest and oldest higher education facility in the greater San Diego area , and is part of the California State University system...
. The Aztecs
San Diego State Aztecs men's basketball
The San Diego State Aztecs basketball team is the basketball team that represent San Diego State University Aztecs in San Diego, California. The school's team currently competes in the Mountain West Conference, and play their home games in Viejas Arena...
had not been to the postseason since its NCAA appearance in 1984-1985 .
In his third year, Fisher led the Aztecs to their first Mountain West Conference
Mountain West Conference
The Mountain West Conference , popularly known as the Mountain West, is the youngest of the college athletic conferences affiliated with the NCAA’s Division I FBS . The MWC officially began operations in July 1999...
tournament title, and finished with a 21-12 record and continued the upward surge of the program. They returned to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since that same '85-86 team. During the 2002-2003 season (his fourth year), Steve Fisher's Aztecs returned to the post-season when they hosted an NIT First RD match against UCSB. The Aztecs earned their first ever Division 1 post-season win. After two rebuilding seasons (2003-2004 and 2004-2005), the Aztecs returned to the NCAA Tournament in the 2005-2006 season; Steve Fisher's sixth season. That year the Aztecs began a present six year streak of consecutive 20+ win seasons while capturing their first ever Mountain West Conference Regular Season Championship, and winning their second ever Mountain West Conference Tournament Championship.
In 2009, the Aztecs earned a school-record 26 victories and reached the semifinals of the NIT. It was their third consecutive trip to the NIT, and fourth consecutive post-season appearance. In the 2009-2010 season, the Aztecs won another 20+ games, won the Mountain West Conference Tournament, and earned their third NCAA Tournament trip under Fisher. In 2010-2011, the Aztecs who were ranked #25 in the pre-season polls, spent nearly the entire season in the top 10 and won their first NCAA Tournament game ever en route to the Sweet 16.
Overall Fisher has guided SDSU to the NCAA Tournament in 2002, 2006, 2010, and 2011, and the postseason NIT in 2003, 2007, 2008, and 2009, to go along with seven 20-win seasons (six consecutive from 2006-present); with the 2010-2011 season being the Aztecs' first 30 win season in school history. Additionally, under Steve Fisher, the San Diego State Aztecs Men's basketball team has captured two Mountain West Conference Regular Season Championships (2006 outright, 2011 shared with BYU), and four Mountain West Conference Tournament Championships (2002, 2006, 2010, 2011). Since the 2005-2006 season, Steve Fisher has led the Aztecs to six consecutive post-season appearances, and back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances for the first time in school history since the 1974-1975 and 1975-1976 seasons.
Just eight head coaches have won the NIT as well as the NCAA tournaments. The others are Nolan Richardson, Bobby Knight, Adolph Rupp, Joe B. Hall, Al McGuire, Dean Smith, and Jim Calhoun. Nat Holman in 1950 coached the City College of New York (CCNY) to an NIT and NCAA championship in the same season.
Head coaching record
Bill Frieder
Bill Frieder is a former basketball coach at the University of Michigan and Arizona State University . Just before the 1989 NCAA Tournament, Frieder announced that he would leave Michigan for Arizona State at the end of the season...
resigned. Michigan credits the 1988-89 regular season to Frieder and the NCAA tournament to Fisher.
^Michigan vacated its two 1992 Final Four games and its status as tournament runner-up. Official record is 24-8.
^^Entire season, including postseason tournament appearances, later vacated by the school.
Michigan total record includes games subsequently vacated by the school.