Adrian “Red” Autry ’94, the new Syracuse University men’s basketball coach and former Orange basketball standout, is serving as grand marshal for Syracuse’s victory parade commemorating the Juneteenth (June 19) federal holiday and the emancipation of enslaved African Americans across the United States.
This marks the second consecutive victory parade with an Orange connection. Felisha Legette-Jack ’89, the women’s basketball coach, served as grand marshal of last year’s Juneteenth celebrations.
Adrian Autry ’94
“It’s just an honor and a privilege to be grand marshal, and I’m excited to take part in this celebration that’s so important to our community,” Autry says. “The University is a big part of our city, and we support that community. To represent the University and be with our community on a day that is special means a lot to me.”
The victory parade is part of the city’s 33rd annual Juneteenth Cultural Festival, which takes place June 16-17 in Clinton Square downtown. This year’s celebration is the second in Syracuse since Juneteenth became an acknowledged New York state holiday in 2020 and a federal holiday in 2021.
Autry, a native of Harlem, New York, will be riding at the front of the parade route sporting his customary Syracuse University gear. The parade begins at 11 a.m. on Saturday, June 17, with Autry riding at the front of the procession. The parade route starts at the Dunbar Center on South State Street and concludes in front of City Hall.
At the conclusion of the victory parade, Juneteenth festivities will continue at City Hall from 1 to 10 p.m.
Autry is a devoted family man, and he’s excited that his wife, Andrea, and their daughter, Nina, will be in attendance for the parade and subsequent Juneteenth celebrations.
“Being not only a basketball coach, but a mentor and a community figure, that’s what you want to do, help teach others about our history. This provides an opportunity for me to give these children who attend Juneteenth hope, and to show the progress that’s been made. Our country is all about opportunity and progress,” Autry says.
In March, Autry was announced as the eighth head coach in the history of the Orange men’s basketball program.
Autry appeared in 121 games (116 starts) during a four-year career playing for Hall of Fame head coach Jim Boeheim ’66, G’73 from 1990-94. He still ranks fifth in program history in career assists (631) and sixth in career steals (217).
Autry joined Boeheim’s staff as an assistant head coach in 2011 before being promoted to associate head coach in March 2017. He earned a bachelor’s degree in speech communication (now communication and rhetorical studies) from the College of Visual and Performing Arts and was honored as a Syracuse LetterWinner of Distinction in 2016. He later received the prestigious Vic Hanson Award from the Hardwood Club in 2017.
