Portraits of top NCAA Coaches: Jim Boeheim

Posted by Eitel in Basketball Idols | 3 comments

Usually when a person spends more then five years at a University without gaining a Ph.D. it’s frowned upon. However, I don’t think anyone will be making a fuss about Jim Boeheim staying at Syracuse since his playing days in 1962.

Boeheim was born in Lyon’s New York on November 17, 1944. He would graduate from Lyons Central High School in 1962 and promptly enrolled at Syracuse, setting the stage for a long career as a member of the Orange family.

Boeheim was a good student who walked unto (not a scholarship athlete) the team during his freshman year. Perhaps it was serendipitous that Boeheim’s roommate during that year was Dave Bing, who would go on to be one of the most decorated players in the history of the university.

Portraits of top NCAA Coaches: Jim Calhoun

Posted by Eitel in Basketball Idols | 0 comments

In this age of the college basketball-coaching carousel, where a coach bolts at the mere smell of money, you can associate only a handful of coaches with a certain program. Mike Krzyzewski at Duke, Jim Boeheim at Syracuse and Tom Izzo at Michigan State are three who have been in the spotlight during this year’s NCAA tournament, however one name has been curiously absent: Jim Calhoun.

In a final four that features 2 long serving coaches the absence of Calhoun and his Uconn team looms large after a surprising regular season that ended with his team just two games over .500. This record and surprising exit from the second round of the NIT show that the team clearly struggled. But, struggle is something that Jim Calhoun is as used to as victory.