Boeheim’s Army has its full roster for this summer’s TBT run, and the last wave of additions brings a few unfamiliar names into the Syracuse alumni mix.
The Orange alumni team announced Thursday that Tyson Walker, JaCorey Williams, Kaodirichi Akobundu-Ehiogu and Ty Nichols are the final pieces for the 2026 roster. None of the four played at Syracuse, but that fits within this season’s alumni division rules, which allow each team to add up to four players who did not attend that school.
Walker is the most recognizable of the group to college basketball fans. The 6-foot-0 guard grew up in Queens, N.Y., played at Michigan State and was a two-time All-Big 10 selection. He spent last season playing professionally in France and also suited up for the Phoenix Suns summer league team in 2024.
Williams brings a long pro résumé of his own. The 6-foot-8 forward has been playing overseas for nearly a decade, after a college career that included stops at Middle Tennessee State and Arkansas. He was Conference USA player of the Year at Middle Tennessee State and also spent time with the Canton Charge, the Cleveland Cavaliers’ G-League affiliate.
Akobundu-Ehiogu, a 6-foot-10 center, has spent the last few seasons as a professional and played his college basketball at Texas-Arlington and Memphis over a three-year career.
Nichols rounds out the group. The 6-foot-3 guard played all four of his college seasons at Division III Keene State before moving into the pro game, where he has played in Germany, Poland and Greece.
Boeheim’s Army will open the tournament against the Seton Hall alumni team in a best-of-three first-round series. Game 1 is at Walsh Gymnasium, home of the Pirates, before the series shifts to Syracuse for Game 2 on July 23 and Game 3 on July 24 if needed.
If Syracuse gets through that matchup, it would face the winner of the Kentucky-Louisville alumni game in a single-elimination contest on July 26.
The TBT itself is changing format after drawing 61 teams in 2025. This year’s event will be trimmed to 16 teams, split evenly between eight alumni teams and eight non-alumni teams on opposite sides of the bracket. The alumni bracket will be played on college campuses around the country, with the eight alumni teams meeting in best-of-three series before the quarterfinals, semifinals and championship switch to single-elimination.
Since the tournament began in 2015, Boeheim’s Army has been one of the event’s most familiar draws, built around former Syracuse players and the name of longtime coach Jim Boeheim. The team has reached No. 1 seed status multiple times and won the championship in 2021.
In Other News...
Boston College Just Took A Hit Syracuse Fans Will Notice
Boston College is already dealing with a setback that Syracuse will have to keep in mind on the November 21 matchup. Tight end Kaelan Chudzinski will be unavailable for the 2026 season, thinning out an Eagles offense that had a useful piece at that spot and removing one more variable from a late-season game that could matter in the Oranges push for bowl positioning.
The timing lands alongside a busy ACC week, with Fran Brown set to speak at the leagues kickoff event and Syracuse players also on the schedule. The conference also unveiled new tiebreaker rules for its uneven-schedule setup, a change that could loom large later in the year if the Orange find themselves in a crowded race and need every edge they can get. [Read more 🡒]
Fran Brown Arrives At ACC Kickoff With Syracuse Fans Wanting One Answer
Fran Brown is heading to Charlotte this week with a few familiar faces, and Syracuse fans already know the conversation waiting for him. The Orange coach will be joined at the ACC Football Kickoff by Steve Angeli, Antoine Deslauriers and Demetres Samuel Jr., giving the program a chance to put its people in front of the leagues media as all 17 ACC teams cycle through their preseason turn in the spotlight.
For Syracuse, the event is about more than the usual summer talking points. Brown and his players will field questions about where the Orange stand entering the season, but the loudest curiosity is centered on Angeli and what his status means for the offense after the injury he suffered against Clemson. It is the kind of backdrop that turns a routine kickoff appearance into a real checkpoint for a team trying to answer big questions before camp gets fully rolling. [Read more 🡒]
Why Malachi Nelson Is A Syracuse Quarterback Fans Need To Know
Malachi Nelson is the kind of quarterback addition that can get overlooked in the shuffle of a transfer cycle, but Syracuse has reason to keep him on the radar. The redshirt junior arrived from UTEP after committing in January 2024, bringing a rsum that includes real starting experience and the kind of arm talent that once made him one of the most talked-about recruits in the country. He spent 2025 opening six games for the Miners, throwing for 1,163 yards with eight touchdowns and nine interceptions, a line that shows both the upside and the growing pains that come with a young passer still trying to settle in.
For Syracuse, the immediate interest is less about the headline and more about the depth chart. Steve Angeli is the likely starter for 2026, which makes the backup job a meaningful one, especially in a sport where one injury can change everything in a hurry. Nelson is expected to be in that mix, and the competition around him will tell the Orange plenty about how comfortable the staff feels with its quarterback room heading into the season. [Read more 🡒]