After 47 seasons, Hall of Famer Jim Boeheim will not be coming back as the men’s basketball coach at Syracuse University, it was announced Wednesday.
Just hours after the Orange fell 77-74 to the Wake Forest Demon Deacons on a buzzer-beating shot from the great beyond at the ACC tournament, Syracuse announced that associate head coach Adrian Autry, who has been on the staff since 2011, would be promoted to succeed the 78-year-old Boeheim.
“There is no doubt in my mind that without Jim Boeheim, Syracuse basketball would not be the powerhouse program it is today,” Chancellor Kent Syverud said in a statement. “Jim has invested and dedicated the majority of his life to building this program, cultivating generations of student-athletes and representing his alma mater with pride and distinction. I extend my deep appreciation and gratitude to an alumnus who epitomizes what it means to be ‘Forever Orange.'”
After Wednesday’s loss, Boeheim gave the indication that he would be retiring, but he said it was up to the university to decide his future.
“As I’ve said from Day One when I started working here, the university hired me, and it’s their choice what they want to do,” Boeheim said. “I always have the choice of retirement, but it’s their decision as to whether I coach or not. It always has been.
“… I’ve just been lucky to be able to coach this long.”
Added Boeheim later: “I gave my retirement speech last week, and nobody picked up on it.”
The timing of Syracuse announcing that Autry, a former player under Boeheim, would be taking over the program was not set until Wednesday, sources told ESPN’s Pete Thamel.
Boeheim has an official coaching record of 1,015-441 over his legendary career, with 101 wins having been vacated because of NCAA rules violations between 2004-07 and 2010-12 that resulted in sanctions. Retired Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski holds the Division I career record with 1,202 victories, with Boeheim ranking second with either total.
He took Syracuse to the NCAA tournament on 35 occasions and advanced all the way to the Final Four in five of those trips, winning the national title in 2003, led by Carmelo Anthony, over the Kansas Jayhawks.
“I’ve been very lucky to be able to coach my college team, to play and then be an assistant coach and then a head coach, never having to leave Syracuse,” Boeheim said Wednesday. “It’s a great university. The city has embraced our team. I am amazed that we’ve been able to draw the fans that we’ve been able to draw over the years.
“… I’ve been just unbelievably fortunate to keep this job. Mike Brey is thrilled that he was at Notre Dame 23 years; he’s a puppy. I’ve had 47 years. I got to coach my sons. Two years ago, we were in the Sweet 16. And last year, I got to coach my sons. … I wanted to come back and coach these guys, and that’s what I was able to do. The university hasn’t offered me anything, whether to work or do anything at the university. That’s their choice.”
Syracuse awaits any possible postseason bids with a 17-15 record.
Autry had long been the administrative choice to be Boeheim’s successor, sources said, but the timing was not finalized until after Syracuse’s loss to Wake Forest.
Autry, a 1994 grad, has been Syracuse’s top recruiter and staff member since returning to his alma mater in 2011. He brings strong ties to New York City and the Washington D.C. area, and also is a connection to the program’s storied past.
Boeheim has been synonymous with Syracuse for more than six decades. He was born in the Central New York town of Lyons, not far from Syracuse. He enrolled at the university in 1962 as a walk-on, eventually becoming a captain of the then-Orangemen along with Dave Bing.
In 1969, Boeheim was hired at Syracuse as a graduate assistant. And in 1976, he took over as head coach of the program. He has been the face of it ever since.
