Meet Adrian Autry, the coach tasked with replacing Jim Boeheim at Syracuse

Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim is a college basketball legend, and that's how he'll be remembered now that he's decided to retire after 47 seasons coaching the program he once joined as a walk-on.

Plenty of digital ink will be spilled about Boeheim and his impact on the sport, but in the fanfare of it all, let's not lose sight of his replacement, who has some massive shoes to fill for the Orange. That would be none other than associate head coach Adrian Autry, who is now the person in charge of the storied Syracuse basketball program.

So who is Autry?

It's notable that like Boeheim, Autry graduated from Syracuse. He also played for the Orange, starting 116 games over four seasons from 1990 to 1994. Boeheim was, of course, his coach.

Autry started coaching at the high school level in 2006 and in 2008 became the director of basketball operations for Virginia Tech. He joined Syracuse as an assistant coach before the 2011-12 season and was promoted to associate head coach under Boeheim in 2017.

"There have been very few stronger influential forces in my life than Syracuse University and Jim Boeheim. They have both played such important roles and without either of them, I am certain I would not have this incredible opportunity before me," Autry said in a statement on the school website. "I have spent much of my time in the game of basketball learning from Jim and am so grateful to him for preparing me to carry on the winning tradition that is Orange Basketball. It's hard to imagine a world without him on the bench, but together with our coaches, student-athletes and fans, we will build on decades of success as a winning program."

Boeheim took Syracuse to 35 NCAA Tournaments during his time with the program, and the Orange made five Final Four appearances in that stretch — winning the national championship in 2003. Autry was with Boeheim for those Final Four runs in 2013 and 2016 and has helped the program make it to seven of those NCAA Tournament appearances.

Autry coached forwards under Boeheim and was an integral recruiter for the Orange. He was credited with helping along the career of eventual NBA star Jerami Grant, who was at Syracuse from 2012-2014.

"It's rare that a program has as deep of a coaching bench as we do here at Syracuse," Syracuse director of athletics John Wildhack said. "We are fortunate to have someone of Coach Autry's talent, experience and character taking the reins of Syracuse basketball. Not only is he an exceptional Xs and Os coach, he's also an outstanding recruiter, selfless mentor, dedicated community leader and a passionate Orange ambassador. I am thrilled to see what he will do with this program as its head coach."