Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim is the 2009-10 BIG EAST Conference Coach of the Year. The honor was selected by vote of the league’s coaches.
"Our players and staff have worked so hard this year," said Boeheim. "You know, what these kids have done this year has surprised me as much as anybody. They've just been tremendous the way they've played together and looked out for each other has been you know their best regular season we've ever had at Syracuse. And we've had a few pretty good ones. But this team has been spectacular. It's been fun coaching them. And I look forward to the tournament here and the rest of the year."
Boeheim guided Syracuse to a 28-3 regular-season record and the BIG EAST Conference title. The Orange finished with a 15-3 regular season mark in the league and earned the top seed in this week’s BIG EAST Conference Tournament.
Boeheim opened the 2009-10 season by capturing the 800th victory of his tenure as head coach at his alma mater. He directed the Orange to the top spot in both national polls during the campaign. Boeheim ranks sixth all-time among Division I coaches in victories (827). He is second among active coaches, trailing only Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski.
He is the winningest coach in BIG EAST Conference history and the only court boss who has worked the sidelines since the league’s inception. Boeheim owns a 371-203 overall record in the conference (includes regular-season and conference-tournament games). He was previously named the BIG EAST Coach of the Year in 1983-84, 1990-91 and 1999-00.
Boeheim's honor is the fourth for a Syracuse coach this year, marking the second time in school history that Syracuse has had four coaches earned Coach of the Year in the same school year. In addition to Boeheim, Syracuse coaches honored this year include: Ange Bradley (field hockey, BIG EAST); Chris Fox (cross country, Northeast Region Coach of the Year) and Paul Flanagan (ice hockey, CHA). Syracuse also had four coaches earn Coach of the Year honors in 2007-08 when Quentin Hillsman (women's basketball, BIG EAST); Gary Gait (women's lacrosse (IWLCA Regional Coach of the Year); Ange Bradley (field hockey, BIG EAST); John Desko (men's lacrosse, USILA Division I Coach of the Year) were honored.
Boeheim has been named 2009-10 national coach of the year by Sporting News and FoxSports.com.