As expected, Syracuse has announced that Adrian Autry will not return as men’s basketball coach after failing to make the NCAA Tournament in each of his three seasons.
That makes five straight years without the Orange reaching the postseason. And it raises a question that makes many in central New York uncomfortable: is Syracuse still a quality job in the modern era of men’s college basketball, or were the Orange a national power largely because legendary coach Jim Boeheim made them one?
There are arguments for both sides, including some that place part of the blame on Boeheim himself. It’s possible that Autry simply was not the right person to lead the program; he leaves Syracuse with a .505 winning percentage, the worst mark for any head coach in program history.
At the same time, Syracuse basketball existed long before Boeheim. The Orange reached four straight NCAA Tournaments in the years immediately before he took over in 1976.
But it has now been nearly 50 years since anyone other than Boeheim or one of his former players has patrolled the Syracuse sideline. And if the Orange ultimately hire Siena coach Gerry McNamara, fresh off a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference title and an NCAA Tournament appearance, that streak will continue.
Which brings the central question into sharper focus: is the Syracuse job bigger than Jim Boeheim, or did Boeheim make the job what it became?
Here’s a closer look.
Syracuse’s Post-Boeheim Plan Was a Mess
This is actually a point in favor of the school finding success moving forward. Syracuse can finally put together a plan and stick to it. For years, that was nearly impossible while Boeheim repeatedly wavered on whether he would retire.
That uncertainty was most visible in the situation involving Mike Hopkins, Boeheim’s longtime assistant and former player. Hopkins served as Boeheim’s top lieutenant from 1995 to 2007, and rumors surfaced in 2007 that he would become the program’s coach-in-waiting once Boeheim stepped down. With Boeheim having just turned 61, the idea seemed like a logical succession plan.
But Boeheim kept coaching, and kept winning, and Hopkins eventually had to consider other options.
In 2014, Hopkins pursued the Oregon State job, which ultimately went to Wayne Tinkle. Syracuse tried to keep him in place by officially naming him coach-in-waiting in 2015. Yet two years later, with Boeheim now 71 and still showing no signs of retiring, Hopkins left for Washington. At 48 years old, he had never coached anywhere but Syracuse and had waited long enough.
That forced the program to start over.
Six years later, after Boeheim had recorded his eighth straight season with double-digit losses, the school finally decided the retirement decision would no longer be his. But by then, bringing Hopkins back was no longer realistic. Instead of returning to Syracuse with head-coaching experience, he was trying to save his job at Washington after losing 15 or more games in four straight seasons. Hopkins eventually made it five straight in 2024, and Washington fired him.
Which meant Syracuse suddenly needed a Plan B.
It didn’t have one.
Adrian Autry Wasn’t Ready for the ACC
With Boeheim essentially forced out, Syracuse needed a new plan and turned to Autry, who had not coached anywhere but Syracuse since 2011. Despite Boeheim and others insisting “Red’s ready,” Autry proved he wasn’t up to the job.
His substitutions and game management often made little sense, and Syracuse regularly struggled to maintain momentum against talented and well-funded ACC rivals. Autry was competing at a budget disadvantage, and he did not have an experienced staff around him to help navigate those challenges.
A useful contrast can be seen with two ACC rivals. Florida State’s Luke Loucks hired a pair of former head coaches, Michael Fly (Florida Gulf Coast) and Gerald Gillion (Chicago State). Miami’s Jai Lucas brought in one former head coach in Charlton Young (Georgia Southern) along with longtime assistant Erik Pastrana. Miami has already played its way into the NCAA Tournament, while Florida State became one of the nation’s hottest teams in February and March.
Autry never had that kind of experienced support, and it showed.
Perhaps he could have succeeded at a smaller school, where early mistakes come with less pressure and more patience. Gerry McNamara, another former Boeheim player and assistant, has taken that route at Siena. The Saints won 23 games and a conference tournament title in just his second season.
Whether it is McNamara or someone else, Syracuse clearly needs its next coach to bring more experience to the job.
Syracuse Is An Awkward Fit for the ACC
This might be the biggest problem facing the Orange, and it’s not one the school can solve. When Syracuse left the Big East, Boeheim had the program rolling. Over the Orange’s final four seasons in the conference, Syracuse went 121-26 with an Elite Eight appearance and a Final Four run.
Then came the move to the ACC, which changed Syracuse’s identity and marked the beginning of the program’s backslide. The Orange did just fine in year one, going 28-6 and finishing second in the league. They have not finished higher than fifth in the ACC since.
Over the past 12 years, Syracuse has finished with fewer than 12 losses only once, during the COVID-impacted 2021 season. Boeheim managed to paper over some of those problems with occasional NCAA tournament runs, but Syracuse was rarely strong during the regular season. Each year the Orange would flirt with disaster, do just enough to get off the bubble, and then win a couple of tournament games to satisfy the fan base.
Part of the issue is recruiting identity. Syracuse is a private city school that happens to play big-time football, which historically gave it far more in common with the old Big East than with the ACC. When the Orange were playing in major Northeastern cities, the program could easily get into recruits’ living rooms and find receptive audiences.
That advantage has largely disappeared. Syracuse now competes in a league dominated by large public state schools accustomed to battling other major state programs for talent. The only ACC schools that resemble Syracuse structurally are former Big East rivals Pittsburgh and Boston College, neither of which has enjoyed consistent success in the conference. SMU and Stanford also differ, as both have long histories competing against large state schools.
Can Syracuse Win Again?
It’s possible, but Syracuse first has to figure out its identity. The program needs an experienced coach who understands how to recruit to Syracuse and can consistently get the most out of his players. Autry’s teams often regressed as the season went on; his final team lost 12 of its last 15 games. That cannot happen under the next leader.
McNamara brings a lot to the table, but after Autry flamed out so quickly, the school may be hesitant to return to another Boeheim disciple so soon. McNamara might have a better chance to succeed than Autry did, but it would still represent a significant risk.
More likely, Syracuse will look for someone with broader experience, such as South Florida’s Bryan Hodgson. A native of central New York, Hodgson has shown he can win in multiple places. He has the Bulls two wins away from an NCAA Tournament berth and has already produced 20-win seasons at both Arkansas State and South Florida.
In either case, Syracuse still looks like it can be a good job even without Boeheim, but only if the school commits to a clear plan and sticks with it. Autry was a panic hire after Boeheim’s empire began to slip, and the results reflected that.
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