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NCAAM Men's March Madness Syracuse's NCAA Tournament drought will reach five seasons this year, its longest since the early 1970s. Candice Ward / Getty Images Syracuse announced Wednesday it has fired men’s basketball coach Adrian Autry after the team’s season ended in the ACC tournament Tuesday. Autry, a longtime Jim Boeheim assistant who starred for the Orange from 1990 to 1994, went 49-48 in his three seasons succeeding Boeheim, failing to reach the NCAA Tournament. After renewed investment in the program last offseason, there was hope Syracuse could make a return to the postseason in 2025-26. But instead, Syracuse went just 15-17 overall and 6-12 in the ACC, finishing 14th in the 18-team conference. Advertisement Syracuse will miss the NCAA Tournament for the fifth straight season — the program’s longest postseason drought since before Boeheim was hired in 1976. Autry, 54, spent over a decade on Syracuse’s bench before succeeding Boeheim in the spring of 2023. But he struggled to elevate the program and navigate the modern-era dynamics to the extent he needed. Autry reflected on those challenges after Tuesday’s season-ending loss to SMU. “I don’t shy away from the job that I did. I’m harder on myself than anybody, ” Autry said. “And I didn’t get the results that we wanted. ” "When I took this job, obviously I went here, I know the expectations that this job comes with. Everyday, that's what I tried to do, honoring that. " "I don't shy away from the job that I did. I'm harder on myself than anybody. I didn't get the results that we wanted, " says Autry… pic. twitter. com/12x QRN1Lbk — Ashley Wenskoski (@Ashley Wensk TV) March 10, 2026 Instead, Autry joins the list of hand-picked replacements who failed to live up to their predecessors. That list most recently includes Kyle Neptune at Villanova, who was fired last spring after failing to make the NCAA Tournament in three seasons following Hall of Famer Jay Wright. Accordingly, Syracuse is expected to look outside the family in making its next hire. After last season, when Syracuse’s 19 losses were its most since 1962, Orange athletic director John Wildhack made clear his expectations for Autry moving forward: “The goal of this program is we should be playing meaningful games in March. ” Syracuse signed a top-25 recruiting class — led by top-50 prospects Sadiq White and Kiyan Anthony, the son of program legend Carmelo Anthony — and added three starters via the transfer portal. But a nonconference loss to Hofstra foreshadowed a season that quickly went downhill when ACC play began. Advertisement Early in February, following the Orange’s 87-77 loss at North Carolina, Carmelo Anthony — who led Syracuse to its only national title in 2003 — commented “SMFH” under a highlight video the program posted. Fans have booed the Orange at recent home games and chanted “Fire Autry” even on the road. Leadership changes above Autry didn’t prevent the Orange from making a move. Wildhack is retiring this summer after a decade in his position, and a new athletic director has yet to be named. Syracuse just announced Michael Haynie as its new chancellor-elect. The new leadership is now tasked with finding a suitable replacement for the Orange, which saw home attendance plummet to its lowest mark since 2002 this season. “We are going to move quickly and with purpose, ” Wildhack said in a news release. “This is one of the most storied programs in college basketball, and we intend to hire a proven winner who will build on that legacy. We are looking for a coach who can recruit at the highest level, develop players and compete for championships, conference and national. Syracuse fans deserve nothing less, and that is exactly what we are going to deliver. ” Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle Brendan Marks is a national college basketball writer for The Athletic, who previously covered Duke, North Carolina and the ACC at large. He won the U. S. Basketball Writers Association’s Rising Star Award in 2025 and was named the 2023 North Carolina Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. His writing has also appeared in Sports Illustrated, The Charlotte Observer, and The Boston Globe, among other publications.