Autry Appreciation Thread

[Stevenson]

A great Orangeman. Remember him that way.

 

[rrlbees]

ditto.

 

[JKinUtah]

No doubt his coaching tenure was an abject failure, but I'll prefer to remember him as the highly heralded PG recruit from NYC who everyone wanted, who chose to come up Central NY and gave us his all for 4 years on the court and has bled orange to this day.

 

[cliftonparksufan]

Let's give Red his due. Has bled Orange for a long time. Most coaches either find their niche or they get fired. Many find their niche after getting fired. Good luck to Red and his staff as they navigate thru the muddy waters of college basketball.

 

[Orangezoo]

Red gave us everything he had. He took the mantle after JB and handled himself with pure class. All the best to him and his staff.

 

[tptcuse]

A great Orangeman. Remember him that way.

And a genuinely good human being.

 

[HyattsCuse]

The man bleeds Orange. I am bummed it didn’t work out, but grateful for his role in ‘Cuse basketball history as a player and a coach.

In a way, he kind of took one for the team as ‘Cuse was slow to transition to the new NIL/portal era. I think he played a role in helping Syracuse make that adjustment through some trial and error. Now the next head coach is much better set up to succeed IMO.

 

[sufan59]

The man bleeds Orange. I am bummed it didn’t work out, but grateful for his role in ‘Cuse basketball history as a player and a coach.

In a way, he kind of took one for the team as ‘Cuse was slow to transition to the new NIL/portal era. I think he played a role in helping Syracuse make that adjustment through some trial and error. Now the next head coach is much better set up to succeed IMO.

Well said

 

[OrangeAl]

Some guys aren't made for taking the helm but are great assistants. I think Red falls in this category.

 

[swish7]

A great Orangeman. Remember him that way.

I remember watching that 32 point 2nd half sweet 16 game at Chucks. That was a good time.

 

[NineOneSeven]

I was too young to remember his playing days but all accounts a really solid college player and he’s obviously been involved at SU a long time. Best of luck to his next step. Onward for both parties.

Also… good thread. You also started a thread a long time ago indicating we were going to have a new coach sooner than later, so props.

 

[Bulldog04]

This was rough. For him for his family for his friends. No one is happy about any of this and it sucks he didn’t succeed. It really does. This was wearing on him so badly that they were losing. He knows what this meant and he’s certainly upset that he couldn’t get wins on the court. But the guy is a great guy and all the coaches are to be honest. There’s a human element to this whole thing too and guys like griff and red, they love SU more than anything so imagine how they feel at this time knowing the enormity of the situation. It would have been amazing to see them have a ton of success. It’s a shame it turned out the other way

 

[Fat tire 13]

Succeeding JB was a tall order for any coach, especially a first time coach. Red was a loyal assistant, and genuinely good guy. If the end result here is we end up with a coach that can finally bring us back to prominence (hopefully BH), then Red played his part in the saga.

 

[OttosShoes]

There are many ways to measure what makes a good coach. At this level, only one of them has a massively outsized influence on job security.

Ignore the record for a second, he was a good dude that cared about his players and was extremely well-liked by them. I'm lucky enough to sit near the bench and I'd see him do high-character things like consoling players after things that weren't their fault and patiently explain things they needed to hear. That's a superlative feature in a coach.

 

[Ottoman]

Thanks, Red. I appreciate the genuine effort and heart you put into the job. Forever, Orange.

 

[AZOrange]

Here here. Many thoughts on this right now. But keep it simple. Thank you Red for being Orange

 

[OrangePA]

I remember watching that 32 point 2nd half sweet 16 game at Chucks. That was a good time.

What a performance!

 

[Forza Azzurri]

A great Orangeman. Remember him that way.

Great thread. Thanks for starting.

BTW, I have to be up in Boston next week.

Anything going on at the Braintree Marriott that I should know about?

This was rough. For him for his family for his friends. No one is happy about any of this and it sucks he didn’t succeed. It really does. This was wearing on him so badly that they were losing. He knows what this meant and he’s certainly upset that he couldn’t get wins on the court. But the guy is a great guy and all the coaches are to be honest. There’s a human element to this whole thing too and guys like griff and red, they love SU more than anything so imagine how they feel at this time knowing the enormity of the situation. It would have been amazing to see them have a ton of success. It’s a shame it turned out the other way

Well said.

Appreciation for Griff too. Was always impressed by the resilience he showed after losing his starting spot junior year only to reclaim it as a senior.

Red and Griff are always Orange family in my book.

Hope that he and Red and the rest of staff land on their feet relatively quickly.

 

[OrlandoCuse]

I will always appreciate Red as a player. This shouldn’t tarnish his legacy there. I’ll keep it to that.

 

[Dick_in_MI]

SU has its icons. Red was not quite iconic as a player, but there are very few of those, and he is certainly very much in the next level. As a player, Top 20 all-time scorer, 5th all-time in assists, 6th all-time in steals.

Gave a lot of years of his life to the program as a coach as well.

Sad that it didn't work out for him as a coach. Just like elsewhere in the professional world, sometimes people are really good at their jobs through various levels and then flame out as a VP or President.

Red flamed out, and it happens, but he can hold his head high for everything else he gave to SU. Best wishes for whatever else life holds for him going forward.

 

[cuseallday]

I love all the positive comments here. Red was a terrific guard. Not on the Mount Rushmore, but a standout player. Gave it all to SU as an assistant and then the HC. Not so easy to replace JB, especially amid the current landscape and with the program already in decline. Classy guy. Appreciate all the posts here; kindness wins.

 

[Col. Bleep]

He gave coaching his best as he did as a player..
That’s all you can do..
Rooted for him and the team.
Hope whatever he does next works out well.

 

[hoopsupstate]

Red is still part of the old school mentality. That’s not a knock, but you have to be wired a little bit differently in today’s world. Recruiting and developing your team is a way of the past. That’s what JB did and that’s what Red knows. Fran is an example of understanding what college athletics is like today. He gets it. SU needs to find its next basketball coach with the same mentality. Even Gerry said after his game on Tuesday night that he enjoys the developmental aspects of coaching the most. The problem today is if you develop them there’s a good chance someone else will get the benefits of your labor.

 

[Orangezoo]

Red is still part of the old school mentality. That’s not a knock, but you have to be wired a little bit differently in today’s world. Recruiting and developing your team is a way of the past. That’s what JB did and that’s what Red knows. Fran is an example of understanding what college athletics is like today. He gets it. SU needs to find its next basketball coach with the same mentality. Even Gerry said after his game on Tuesday night that he enjoys the developmental aspects of coaching the most. The problem today is if you develop them there’s a good chance someone else will get the benefits of your labor.

Can we just stick to the appreciation aspect in this thread? We have plenty of others for additional criticism and commentary.

 

[Chip]

No doubt his coaching tenure was an abject failure, but I'll prefer to remember him as the highly heralded PG recruit from NYC who everyone wanted, who chose to come up Central NY and gave us his all for 4 years on the court and has bled orange to this day.

Eventually, that's how everyone will remember him. The scars will heal.