Congratulations, Dane

This may be way off topic for most readers of my blog, but I thought I’d throw in this quick tidbit.

Former Indiana University basketball star and current assistant Dane Fife, 25, was just named the youngest NCAA Division I head coach when he was hired yesterday by Indiana-Purdue-Fort Wayne (IPFW). Serious basketball fans will remember Dane from the 2002 NCAA Final Four when he was one of the key contributors to a scrappy underdog Hoosier team that shocked Duke and Oklahoma to make it all the way to the finals against Maryland.

Why do I make note of Fife’s hiring? Because we both share the same hometown of Clarkston, Michigan. He’s the youngest of three sons to Clarkston High School basketball coaching legend Dan Fife – his oldest brother Dugan played at Michigan, his other brother Jeremy played at DII Grand Valley State. But Dane excelled them all and won the state’s Mr. Basketball award in 1998 before shocking many with his announcement that he was heading to Bloomington to play for Bobby Knight.

May this be the beginning of a successful head coaching career for the pride of Clarkston. Congratulations, Dane.

(Hat tip to my sports writer friend Elden.)