MANLIUS, N.Y. (WSYR-TV)– Whether he was sitting courtside at a Big East tournament game or cheering on the Orange to its 2003 national championship, superfan Neil Gold was along for the Boeheim era from start to finish.
“I was sad, I mean he’s a legacy, he’s a legend, he’s one of the greatest basketball minds of all time… I loved loving him and I was pretty sorry to see him go,”
Neil Gold, SU super fan
Gold had a unique front-row seat to the legendary coach, often traveling with the team to away games, attending their pre-game dinners or simply watching a practice.
“He clearly wanted to make his players better players, but he wanted to make them better men too, you could just see that,” Gold said.
Gold became just a staple in the organization over the years he received a personalized letter from Coach Boeheim in 2007. At the time Gold was traveling from NYC to Syracuse for every home game and attending away games, the coach joked with him in the letter that every game he attends is an away game.
That letter now hangs on the wall of his Manlius home in a room filled with hundreds of other memorabilia he’s collected over the years. From signed posters, basketballs, and shoes to a 2003 national championship ring, Gold has it all. But most people’s favorite item is Boehiem’s infamous jacket he threw off moments before he was thrown out of a 2014 game against Duke.
So many fond memories Gold has the pleasure of looking back on, enough to last a lifetime.
