The Syracuse Orange are navigating a challenging stretch right now, and naturally, the fanbase is starting to look around and ask some tough questions about the program’s direction under head coach Adrian Autry.
One name that keeps surfacing in those conversations? Gerry McNamara.
The former Syracuse star and longtime assistant is now leading Siena in the MAAC, and he’s doing a solid job in his first head coaching gig. With Siena showing signs of life, it’s no surprise that Orange fans are wondering whether McNamara could be the one to steer the program back to national relevance if a change were ever to come.
But if you're expecting G-Mac to entertain that kind of speculation, think again.
When asked recently about Autry, McNamara didn’t dodge the question-he leaned into it with honesty and heart.
“I talk to Red all the time,” he said, referring to Autry by his nickname. “That’s my guy.
I haven’t talked to him in a week or two. But yeah, those are as good of friends as I have in life.
Let’s set professionalism aside and what we do for a living. That’s a guy I spent more than a decade working with, a colleague, a guy that lived five houses from me.
A great family friend. Our wives are friends.
His son Trey came to see our team in D.C. I talk to those guys all the time.”
That’s not just a soundbite-it’s a window into the kind of bond McNamara and Autry share. They weren’t just coworkers under Jim Boeheim’s long tenure; they were neighbors, confidants, and part of the same basketball family for over a decade.
When Boeheim stepped down, Autry was the senior assistant and the natural successor. McNamara, ever the competitor, supported the transition and has continued to show that support even after moving on to lead his own program.
But loyalty doesn’t silence the questions swirling around Syracuse right now. The Orange are in the middle of a four-game skid, and the NCAA Tournament remains elusive. That kind of drought is unfamiliar territory for a fanbase that grew up with March Madness as an annual expectation.
It's a tough spot for Autry, who’s trying to build something sustainable in the post-Boeheim era while dealing with the immediate pressure of results. But if there’s any silver lining, it’s knowing that someone like McNamara-who knows the program inside and out-is still in his corner.
For now, McNamara is focused on Siena, and Autry is focused on righting the ship at Syracuse. But the connection between them runs deeper than job titles. And in a sport where relationships matter just as much as Xs and Os, that kind of support can go a long way.