Syracuse, N.Y. — The most significant tell that a growing swell of the Syracuse men’s basketball fan base is turning on head coach Adrian Autry came Saturday night when Eric Devendorf used the ACC Network platform to call out the “guys on social media” who “have no clue.”
“I know they are struggling this season and the fans are putting a lot of heat on Coach Red, but like I said, 20 wins the first season,” Devendorf said. “This year hasn’t gone as imagined so far. All you guys on social media saying this and that, you really have no clue. What goes on behind the scenes and all the stuff they have to deal with, Coach Red is doing as well of a job as he can. He’ll continue to get better.”
Devendorf’s defense of Autry was passionate but unconvincing considering it was rooted in citing last season’s 20-win campaign and mysterious behind-the-scenes circumstances that fans aren’t privy to.
What fans have seen is a frustrating Orange squad that has played to a 6-8 record (0-3 in ACC), is 0-8 against Power Five competition and in danger of missing the tournament.
No, not the NCAA Tournament. That’s all but a pipe dream for the fourth consecutive season.
I’m talking about the ACC tournament.
If the season ended today, Syracuse would be one of three programs at the bottom of the ACC standings that would not be invited to Charlotte.
Devendorf’s frustrations with the echo chambers and manipulated algorithms of social media aside, doubts about Autry are popping up in all walks of life.
On a macro level, Autry is failing to give the Orange fan base a reason to invest in him beyond familiarity and loyalty to one of their own as a former player and assistant coach here.
Autry has led Syracuse basketball as its head coach for 46 games (26-20) and it feels like he still hasn’t found what he’s looking for to meet his self-described #OrangeStandard.
“I have a standard and we’re not there yet,” Autry said after a recent win over Bucknell. “I’m not going to change that. I’m not going to lower that. I gotta find the guys that are going to try to at least give me that.”
On the court, Syracuse has been a poor defensive unit from the start of the season and lacks a clear offensive philosophy. Autry’s rotations have been mostly puzzling (though recently taking Chris Bell out of the starting lineup snapped him out of a long shooting slump).
On a macro level, Syracuse basketball under Autry has no discernible identity to latch onto.
Love or hate the 2-3 zone defense, it was Syracuse’s basketball identity.
Love or hate Jim Boeheim’s cranky ways, it gave Syracuse basketball a distinct personality.
It’s not Autry’s fault that several coaching heavyweights like Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski, North Carolina’s Roy Williams, Virginia’s Tony Bennett, Notre Dame’s Mike Brey and Miami’s Jim Larrañaga have abandoned ship out in recent years, but it does throw a wet blanket on the possibility of a coaching feud to liven up SU’s sterile presence in the league.
SU football coach Fran Brown made an instant connection with DART, an acronym fans can recite in their sleep.
Ask those same fans what Autry’s #OrangeStandard is and you’ll get a lot of shoulder shrugs in response.
The general feeling of blah that surrounds SU basketball right now is showing in the attendance numbers.
Syracuse, which has led the nation in total attendance 28 times since the Carrier Dome (now JMA Wireless Dome) opened in 1980 and routinely finishes in the Top 3 in that category, is currently sixth in accumulated attendance (139,779).
SU, which averaged 20,288 fans per game last season, ranks fifth in average attendance this season at 17,476 fans per game. That ranks behind Kentucky (20,080), North Carolina (19,324), Tennessee (18,869) and Arkansas (18,793) with nine home games (including five weekend dates) remaining on the dome slate.
I’ve been struck by the number of long-time fans that have reached out to say they have tapped out on the Orange.
A few examples from our Syracuse Sports Insider text line.
- “When I got married, I made my wife promise me I could skip out on family events if it conflicted with a Syracuse game. But right now, the basketball team is just bad. It’s been on a downward trajectory for a decade but now it seems like it’s hit the bottom. I hate not caring. I hate it. But right now, I just can’t find a reason to be invested. Win or lose, they aren’t fun to watch. Red seems lost. And I don’t even care about the players since most are one year mercenaries. If there was anything to grasp on to, I’d be there.”
- “I’ve been thinking a lot about the fans that say “I’m done.” Since 2003, we’ve watched a slow decline. Highs and lows but generally trending downward. Tough football years almost the entire time for SU, so we knew how fragile/cherished the basketball program was. The “I’m done” is different here as a result. There isn’t much else in Syracuse to root for outside of football recently. The only way you can effectively voice your opinion – is to not show up nor tune in, and hope the right people hear the message.”
- “I am 68 years old and have followed SU sports since the Lee brothers and Archbold Stadium. I have totally lost interest in this basketball team to the point that I don’t really know when the games are. I didn’t even watch the FSU game. We are losing badly to poor teams. I could go on but you get my point. Red’s coaching has alienated fans like me.”
The “guys on social media” who “have no clue” may not like this, but I don’t believe Autry’s job to be in danger.
Not yet, anyway.
SU athletic director John Wildhack will white knuckle it the rest of this season with Autry in charge.
Autry will also be given the 2025-26 season, with top-50 recruits Kiyan Anthony and Sadiq White firmly committed, to get Syracuse back in the top-25 rankings for the first time since 2018.
His job is safe for now, but the sand in the hourglass is disappearing for Autry to reignite a connection with a fan base that is finding more reasons to disengage with the sports team that used to run this town.
Contact Brent Axe: Email | X | BlueSky
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