When Steve Fisher took the head basketball coaching job with San Diego State University he walked in to a program that had won four games the previous season and not been to the NCAA Tournament since 1985.
He took that paltry resume and built a champion.
Within three years SDSU was dancing in March but the real fun started with the 2005-2006 season. That year was the beginning of a run of 11 straight years with at least 20 wins and a spot in the post-season (either the NCAA or NIT).
All in all Coach Fish has led the Aztecs to 386 victories, 10 conference championships and eight NCAA Tournament appearances ... but he will not be building on that body of work.
On Tuesday at a press conference Steve Fisher formally announced he is retiring from coaching.
The most high-profile segment of his career came at Michigan, where he won a national championship and made three appearances in the Final Four. But what Fisher built on Montezuma Mesa might be an even more amazing accomplishment.
"San Diego State is my legacy," Fisher said. "I'm an Aztec."
Fisher said he will not completely disappear from the program: he will still have an active role in the program as a part-time employee with the university.
"That's important to me," he said. "I want to be here."
Longtime assistant Brian Dutcher will step in as his replacement. Between Michigan and San Diego State, Dutcher has been a member of Fisher's staff for 28 years.
