Bernie Fine
Encyclopedia
Bernie Fine is a former associate head basketball coach for the Syracuse Orange men's basketball team.
played at SU with NBA Hall-of-Famer Dave Bing
. Fine graduated in 1967 with a B.S. in personnel and industrial relations and went into business. In 1970, he assumed the basketball and football coaching positions at Lincoln Junior High. The following year, he went to Henninger High School as the junior varsity basketball coach from 1971-74 before taking over as varsity coach. When Boeheim became head coach in 1976, he hired Fine and Rick Pitino
as assistants.
; an adviser for an honor society, Phi Kappa Alpha; and has been involved with the Boys Club and the Make-a-Wish Foundation
.
Fine was responsible for coaching Syracuse's forwards and centers, including Rony Seikaly
, Etan Thomas
and John Wallace
. In 2000, Fine was promoted to associate head coach. In the 2001-02 season, he assumed head coaching responsibilities for three games when Boeheim had health problems.
Fine also coached U.S. Maccabiah team to a silver medal at the 1993 World Maccabiah Games
in Israel. In 2002, he participated in The Blackfeet Native Skill-Builder Hoop Clinic, a basketball seminar conducted on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation
in Montana.
, two former Syracuse University ball boys alleged on ESPN
's Outside the Lines
program that they had been molested by Fine from the late 1970s to the 1990s. Fine and head men's basketball coach Boeheim denied the charges. Because the incidents occurred over 10 years ago, District Attorney William Fitzpatrick indicated that the statute of limitations
would probably bar any prosecution. Syracuse University placed Fine on administrative leave and said it would cooperate fully with the investigation.
Subsequently, another person claimed to have been molested by Fine in 2002 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The United States Secret Service
searched Fine's house and seized file cabinets, computers, and other potential evidence. On November 27, 2011, it was announced that Syracuse University Chancellor Nancy Cantor
had fired Fine in response to the allegations. Cantor said she made her decision after ESPN
released a tape of a 2002 phone conversation between one of the former ballboys, Bobby Davis, and Fine's wife Laurie. In the tape, Laurie said she knew about her husband's behavior, but felt powerless to stop it.
In response to a USA Today
editorial calling for an explanation for why it kept Fine on the job in 2005, Cantor said that had Syracuse known about the tape at any point prior to November 27, Fine would have been fired on the spot.
Early coaching career
Fine started his coaching career as a student-manager in 1963 when Syracuse head coach Jim BoeheimJim Boeheim
James Arthur "Jim" Boeheim is the head coach of the men's basketball team at Syracuse University. Boeheim has guided the Orange to eight Big East regular season championships, five Big East Tournament championships, and 28 NCAA Tournament appearances, including three appearances in the national...
played at SU with NBA Hall-of-Famer Dave Bing
Dave Bing
David "Dave" Bing is the mayor of Detroit, Michigan, a businessman, and a retired American professional basketball player who played 12 seasons in the National Basketball Association , primarily for the Detroit Pistons...
. Fine graduated in 1967 with a B.S. in personnel and industrial relations and went into business. In 1970, he assumed the basketball and football coaching positions at Lincoln Junior High. The following year, he went to Henninger High School as the junior varsity basketball coach from 1971-74 before taking over as varsity coach. When Boeheim became head coach in 1976, he hired Fine and Rick Pitino
Rick Pitino
Rick Pitino is an American basketball coach. Since 2001, he has been the head coach at the University of Louisville. He has also served as head coach at Boston University, Providence College and the University of Kentucky, leading that program to the NCAA championship in 1996...
as assistants.
College coaching career
During his coaching career, Fine was named the president of the Central New York Kidney Foundation; a faculty adviser for a social fraternity, Sigma Alpha MuSigma Alpha Mu
Sigma Alpha Mu , also known as "Sammy", is a college fraternity founded at the City College of New York in 1909. Originally only for Jewish men, Sigma Alpha Mu remained so until 1953, when members from all backgrounds were accepted. Originally headquartered in New York, Sigma Alpha Mu has...
; an adviser for an honor society, Phi Kappa Alpha; and has been involved with the Boys Club and the Make-a-Wish Foundation
Make-A-Wish Foundation
The Make-A-Wish Foundation is a 501 non-profit organization founded in the United States that grants wishes to children who have life-threatening medical conditions. The charity now operates in forty-seven countries around the world through thirty-six affiliate offices.The president & CEO of this...
.
Fine was responsible for coaching Syracuse's forwards and centers, including Rony Seikaly
Rony Seikaly
Ronald Fred "Rony" Seikaly is a retired Lebanese-born American professional basketball player.-Early life:Seikaly was born in Beirut, Lebanon. At the age of 9, Rony moved from Beirut where he'd been attending elementary school at the Athenee de Beirut to Greece, where he spent the rest of his youth...
, Etan Thomas
Etan Thomas
Dedreck Etan Thomas, commonly referred to as Etan Thomas , is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association.-College:...
and John Wallace
John Wallace (basketball)
John Gilbert Wallace is a retired American professional basketball player, in the forward position.He was picked 18th by the NY Knicks in the 1996 draft....
. In 2000, Fine was promoted to associate head coach. In the 2001-02 season, he assumed head coaching responsibilities for three games when Boeheim had health problems.
Fine also coached U.S. Maccabiah team to a silver medal at the 1993 World Maccabiah Games
Maccabiah Games
The Maccabiah is an international Jewish athletic event similar to the Olympics held in Israel every four years under the auspices of the Maccabi Federation, affiliated with the Maccabi World Union. The Maccabiah Games is the third largest international sports competition in the world...
in Israel. In 2002, he participated in The Blackfeet Native Skill-Builder Hoop Clinic, a basketball seminar conducted on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation
Blackfeet Indian Reservation
The Blackfeet Indian Reservation or Blackfeet Nation is an Indian reservation of the Blackfeet tribe in Montana in the United States. It is located east of Glacier National Park and borders Canada to the north. Cut Bank Creek and Birch Creek make up part of its eastern and southern borders...
in Montana.
Sexual abuse allegations and termination
In November 2011, in the wake of the Penn State sex abuse scandalPenn State sex abuse scandal
The Penn State sex abuse scandal refers to allegations that former Pennsylvania State University football assistant coach Jerry Sandusky sexually assaulted or had inappropriate contact with at least eight underage boys on or near university property...
, two former Syracuse University ball boys alleged on ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
's Outside the Lines
Outside the Lines
Outside the Lines, or also referred to as OTL, is an American television program on ESPN that looks "outside the lines" and examines critical issues in American sports on and off the field of play....
program that they had been molested by Fine from the late 1970s to the 1990s. Fine and head men's basketball coach Boeheim denied the charges. Because the incidents occurred over 10 years ago, District Attorney William Fitzpatrick indicated that the statute of limitations
Statute of limitations
A statute of limitations is an enactment in a common law legal system that sets the maximum time after an event that legal proceedings based on that event may be initiated...
would probably bar any prosecution. Syracuse University placed Fine on administrative leave and said it would cooperate fully with the investigation.
Subsequently, another person claimed to have been molested by Fine in 2002 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The United States Secret Service
United States Secret Service
The United States Secret Service is a United States federal law enforcement agency that is part of the United States Department of Homeland Security. The sworn members are divided among the Special Agents and the Uniformed Division. Until March 1, 2003, the Service was part of the United States...
searched Fine's house and seized file cabinets, computers, and other potential evidence. On November 27, 2011, it was announced that Syracuse University Chancellor Nancy Cantor
Nancy Cantor
Nancy Cantor is the 11th chancellor and president of Syracuse University in Syracuse, New York. She received her A.B. in 1974 from Sarah Lawrence College and her Ph.D. in psychology in 1978 from Stanford University. She became chancellor upon the retirement of Kenneth "Buzz" Shaw...
had fired Fine in response to the allegations. Cantor said she made her decision after ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
released a tape of a 2002 phone conversation between one of the former ballboys, Bobby Davis, and Fine's wife Laurie. In the tape, Laurie said she knew about her husband's behavior, but felt powerless to stop it.
In response to a USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
editorial calling for an explanation for why it kept Fine on the job in 2005, Cantor said that had Syracuse known about the tape at any point prior to November 27, Fine would have been fired on the spot.