SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) — Jim Boeheim and Syracuse Basketball are synonymous with one another. Boeheim’s 1,116 career wins all with the Orange and the 2003 National Championship make him a beloved figure in Central New York forever.
Boeheim made Syracuse a national powerhouse during his 47-year tenure as head coach at Syracuse, resulting in him earning every possible accolade imaginable. One thing that the Naismith Hall of Famer didn’t previously have on his resume was a street named after him.
“Jim Boeheim Way” was commemorated outside the JMA Wireless Dome on the corner of Irving Avenue and East Raynor Avenue. This honor is something that Boeheim said he never could have dreamed of when he walked onto campus for the first time as a freshman in 1962.
“When I got to campus I barely knew how to get to Manley [Fieldhouse] and had no idea where my first class was,” Boeheim said. “To have this honor, especially outside of the Dome where 34,000 people will show up to a game when it’s 2 degrees and there is 4 feet of snow is something I will never wrap my head around,” Boeheim said.
Athletic Director John Wildhack thought of the hundreds of thousands of fans who walked the path to enter the Dome since it opened in 1980. The sign will be a constant reminder of Boeheim’s impact on the program forever.
“Coach Boeheim’s career record at the Dome is 623-140, an 82 percent winning percentage,” Wildhack said. “623 victories on one court… how many coaches win 623 games in their career?”
Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh believed Boeheim’s laundry list of accomplishments with Syracuse Basketball made him a worthy recipient for the honor, but his generosity in the community is what sets him apart. When the decision came to a vote on the honor, it was unanimous.
“The wins are incredible, and they’ve created memories that will last a lifetime. But the work that you’ve done in our community, that is generational,” Walsh said.
The Jim and Juli Boeheim Foundation has raised over $9 million since its inception. Their goal is to help various youth programs in the region but have also supported cancer research and advocacy. The foundation has a yearly gala during the spring and an annual golf tournament where all the proceeds stay right in Central New York.
“I have said it before on why we give back, but we do this because it’s our community too,” Boeheim said. “I love the people here and everything about it. When I said I wanted to live in Syracuse over any place in the world, I meant it. I will always be here.”
For more information go to their foundation’s website.
