Fife named new IPFW head coach

Dane Fife, IU men's basketball administrative assistant and former player, accepted the head coaching position at IU-Purdue Fort Wayne Thursday after an announcement by IPFW's athletics director.\nAt just 25 years of age, Fife is now the youngest head coach in Division I -- five years younger than 30-year-old Jeff Capel of Virginia Commonwealth.\nAlthough he's young, Fife said his family background helped prepare him to be a Division I head coach. Fife is from a basketball family as his father, Dan Fife, played and coached at Michigan while his brother, Dugan, also played for the Wolverines.\nFife said his hiring accomplishes a long-time goal of becoming a college head coach.\n"IPFW men's basketball is on its way to becoming an outstanding program," Fife said in a statement, "and I will give everything that I have within me to bring it to the next level."\nJust three years removed from leading the Hoosiers to the Final Four, Fife now has a chance to coach a team to prominence. The year after Fife left IU he was drafted by the Continental Basketball Association's Gary Steelheads. He came back to Bloomington in 2003 to serve on IU coach Mike Davis' staff in various capacities for two seasons -- this past one as an administrative assistant.\nIPFW Athletics Director Mark Pope said Fife is a great fit for the Mastodon program and brings a "tremendous competitive spirit." \n"What most attracted me to Dane was that, more than any other candidate, he convinced me that he wants this position at IPFW -- not just any coaching position," Pope said in a statement. "He has a passion for our student-athletes and has studied them closely."\nWhen Fife officially takes over April 1, he will inherit a program from interim coach Joe Pechota that struggled last season, finishing 7-22. However, the Mastodons are young and they have only one senior departing -- leading scorer David Simon.\nTo help get IPFW back on track, Pope said Fife already has plans to further develop the program. \n"His preparation, attention to detail and hard work will be his greatest assets," Pope said.\nSenior Mike Roberts played with Fife for two years and was coached by him for two more. Roberts said some people might say Fife is too inexperienced for the job. But Roberts, who is 24, said Fife's age might help him in recruiting because he'll be able to relate to players that aren't much younger than him.\nAlthough Fife played under former IU coach Bobby Knight and Davis, Roberts said he thinks Fife will develop a coaching style of his own. \n"I'd say he'll be very hands-on and hold his players accountable," Roberts said. "He'll run a disciplined practice with a lot of emphasis on the fundamentals. I think it'll be intense and well organized."\nDavis said he's proud of Fife for his accomplishment and believes Fife will become a "tremendous asset to IPFW."\n"One of the reasons I first hired Dane on my staff was because I knew he would someday become an excellent coach," Davis said in a statement. "He has the determination, the drive and the passion to become one of the better coaches in the business and I wish him nothing but the best."\n-- Contact Staff Writer John Rodgers at jprodger@indiana.edu.