The South Atlantic Conference Mourns the Loss of Jim Burch

ROCK HILL, S.C. (TheSAC.com) – South Atlantic Conference Hall of Famer and former coordinator of basketball officials, Jim Burch, passed away in his home in Apex, N.C. on Sunday (May 19).  He was 91 years old.

Burch, inducted into the SAC Hall of Fame in 2012, spent more than 17 years as the coordinator of officials for both men's and women's basketball in the SAC.

"I had the pleasure of working with Mr. Burch when I started my career at the Southern Conference in the early 1990s, and was fortunate to inherit him as our coordinator when I became Commissioner of the SAC in 2008," SAC Commissioner Patrick Britz said. "He was truly a pioneer and legend in the world of basketball officiating and it was such an honor to see him inducted into our Hall of Fame in 2012. We will miss him dearly, but his spirit will live on in the many lives he touched."

Considered a pioneer in college athletics, Burch was the first black man to officiate an Atlantic Coast Conference game. He began officiating in 1953, spending 17 years at the high school level and 29 years at the collegiate ranks. His officiating resume included 14 NCAA tournaments, five NAIA national tournaments, the 1975 Pan-American Games and the 1980 and 1988 Pre-Olympic Trials.

He was also inducted into the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association and Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Officials Halls of Fame.

A graduate of Fayetteville State University, Burch worked as a principal and superintendent in the North Carolina public school system from 1949-1992.

Watch Burch's SAC Hall of Fame Induction Speech: [Induction Speech Video]