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Legendary Long Island University football coach Bryan Collins will be posthumously inducted into the Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame during a May 30 ceremony in St. James.
The Sayville resident was among 24 inductees announced last week on Fox 5′ “Sports Xtra.” The group includes Mets legend and longtime Sag Harbor resident Keith Hernandez, WFAN radio personality and Bellport High School graduate Gregg Giannotti (currently a Sayville resident) and NBA veteran Danny Green of North Babylon.
Collins led CW Post/LIU for 23 years, amassing 162 wins, six NCAA Tournament appearances and eight Northeast 10 Conference Championships. He was a seven-time Northeast 10 Coach of the Year and led the program to 16 winning seasons, including undefeated campaigns in 2002, 2016 and 2018.
Collins, 58, died suddenly from a cardiac event last July, just as he about to start his third season as an assistant coach at Stony Brook University. He left a profound impact on many lives.
“He was more than just a coach,” former CW Post wide receiver Jeremiah Pope, now the Girls Track and Field coach at Port Washington High School, told GreaterLongIsland.com in the days following Collins’ death. “He was a mentor and father figure who loved all his players.
Great Lives: LI football community remembers legendary coach Bryan Collins
“He taught us all how to be strong men, tough players, winners on and off the field, fathers, and to even succeed in our careers now,” Pope continued. “Anything we needed, he made sure he provided because he put his players first.”
Below is a heartfelt social media post from Collins’ daughter last July.
My #1 forever ❤️ @FBCoachCollins pic.twitter.com/EmMZS88gTq
— meg collins (@megcollins55) July 10, 2023
Collins was a linebacker at St. John’s University, where he was recognized for his outstanding character with the Dr. Peter Vitulli Award. The honor is bestowed upon the St. John’s student-athlete who exemplified courage, perseverance, dedication, and the spirit of self-sacrifice in the pursuit of sporting excellence.
Also being honored posthumously is Howard Gershberg, a Bayport native who coached East Islip varsity baseball before excelling as St. John’s pitching coach and then in the Anaheim Angels’ minor league system. Gershberg died in 2003 at 67.
“These individuals represent the very best of athletics in Suffolk County,” said Chris R. Vaccaro, president of the Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame, who announced the inductees while appearing as a guest on “Sports Xtra.”
“As usual, our committee has selected a wide range of people who have left their mark on athletics in our country. We’re looking forward to celebrating their legacies this spring,” he added.
The other Hall of Fame inductees
Dave Cohen: Commack High School alum who was Hofstra’s last head football coach. He has served as an assistant coach with several other college football programs and is currently the assistant head coach at Wake Forest.
Jim and Barbara Cromarty: Islip and Riverhead race track owners.
Dr. Anthony Donatelli: A Deer Park native who has been a doctor dedicated to sports medicine.
Sonny Feinman: Islip youth sports advocate and leader.
Leo Fishel: The Babylon native was the first Jewish pitcher in MLB history in 1899.
Sean Frazier: Harborfields alumnus who has been a longtime college athletic director. He is currently the athletic director at Northern Ilinois.
Danny Green: North Babylon native who has played 15 seasons in the NBA and is a three-time NBA champion.
Louis Gregory: Sachem High School alumnus who has worked as a sports agent and manager, and is a U.S. Customs & Border Protection veteran
Sue Johnson: Walt Whitman High School alumna who was an All-Ivy hoops player at Yale before embarking on a decades-long NCAA Division I coaching career at Yale, Princeton, Boston College and New Hampshire. She now serves as the athletic director at Concord Academy in Concord, Massachusetts.
Bob Kersch: Veteran Section XI official with more than a half-century of service.
Alyssa Leonard: A Bay Shore native, Leonard was an All-American lacrosse player who won two NCAA championship in college and played professional lacrosse.
Ann Liguori: Renowned radio and TV sports talk show host, golf correspondent and author.
Bob Panariello: Longtime Bay Shore athletic director and National Wrestling Hall of Fame inductee.
Dr. Frank Segretto: Doctor dedicated to sports medicine.
Brian Spallina: Rocky Point native is a lacrosse legend. He is in the Professional Lacrosse League Hall of Fame.
Vera Truhlar: Longtime Connetquot women’s gymnastics coach.
Chris Wingert: Babylon native and former professional Major League Soccer player who is the head of International Football at Roc Nation.
Donald Yorie: Director of Suffolk County Police Department Police Athletic League.
