Fred Hill has landed on his feet.
The former Rutgers coach will join the Northwestern staff as an assistant under head coach Bill Carmody, two sources with direct knowledge told SNY.tv.
Hill accepted a buyout last year after a cursing incident at a Scarlet Knights baseball game and subsequent insubordination vis-a-vis Rutgers athletic director Tim Pernetti.
Hill, 52, went 47-77 at Rutgers, but will be most remembered for what he did at a Big East baseball game last year. From the stands, Hill, whose father, Fred Sr., is the longtime baseball coach for the Scarlet Knights, got into a shouting match with Pitt’s baseball coaching staff.
After the incident, Fred Jr., resigned so that he could receive an $850,000 settlement. His pay cycle at Rutgers has run its course, allowing him to join the Wildcats. He was replaced at Rutgers by Mike Rice, who left Robert Morris for the post. Rutgers went 15-17 in Hill’s last season, and finished with the same record this year under Rice.
This will be Hill’s 10th assignment as an assistant coach, including Big East stops at Villanova, Seton Hall, and Rutgers, before he was promoted in 2006. A former guard at Montclair State, Hill is known for his strong recruiting ties in New Jersey.
Once the deal is finalized, he will replace Mitch Henderson, who left Northwestern to take the head coaching position at Princeton.
(Photo courtesy Daily News; The AP contributed)
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